Prepare your bottle

Check the product and its instructions

Downhome supplies the physical message bottle. Check the current store listing for the exact contents, price and availability, and follow the instructions included with your bottle.

The unique number links the physical bottle to this website. Keep it with the bottle throughout its journey so the next person can find the same record.

Before the first toss

• Check that the bottle number and website address are readable.
• Keep the accompanying verification instructions available for the finder.
• Register the bottle under the account that will manage its journey.
• Write and date your note, then prepare the bottle according to the supplied instructions.
• Use the toss action when recording the beginning of the journey.

Make it easy to report a find

A finder may never have used this website. A short instruction in the note helps: “If you find this bottle, please visit YourMessageInABottle.com and report where you found it using the bottle number.”

Use the original number and verification details supplied with the bottle. A new number would not connect to its existing record.

If it is a gift

Let the recipient choose the message and decide whose account should register the bottle. If you already registered it, make that clear before it changes hands.

A handwritten introduction, a date and a question can make the gift personal. The journey is something to follow over time, with no promised discovery date.