Jeannie's bottle design painted on a classic 1964 Jim Beam decanter. See more of my painted bottles here.
Karen Dillingham's Jeannie bottles
Welcome to my Jeannie bottle artist website. Growing up, my little sister and I loved watching "Bewitched" and "I Dream of Jeannie" so painting the bottles was always a magical experience for me. I hand-painted each bottle one at a time on authentic 1964 Jim Beam bottles that I purchased through online auction sites. Each bottle, however, took me approximately five to six days to complete (as I also had a full time job). After painting for many years, I finally decided to that it was time to quit. Although I continue to design and paint, I rarely paint Jeannie bottles anymore. Enchanted Lamp showcases just a few of the Jeannie bottles that I have painted in the past. Please feel free to drop me a line if you like the bottles or if you want to share a "Jeannie" experience.
Jeannie's bottle
Jeannie's bottle was actually a colorfully painted 1964 special Christmas edition Jim Beam whiskey decanter. Legend has it that Sidney Sheldon received this special bottle as a Christmas gift and decided it would make the perfect Jeannie bottle. The first season's bottle was designed with a more antique look to it with gold vines/leaves painted on the bottle. The 2nd to 5th season bottle was colorfully painted with a somewhat mulberry/purple base with pale blue arches (which looked white on screen). There are also different bottle designs and colors for Jeannie's evil sister, the Blue Djinn, and reunion movies.
I Dream of Jeannie
"I Dream of Jeannie" debuted on September 18, 1965 on NBC. Producer Sidney Sheldon was the creative force behind the "Jeannie" in the bottle. In 1964 Barbara Eden had starred in "The Brass Bottle" with Tony Randall and Burl Ives. Barbara played the part of the girlfriend of the guy who finds a genie (Ives portrayed the genie). Sidney wanted a sexy female genie for his new series though and Barbara was always in the back of his mind for the title role. However, he searched for a brunette as he did not want comparisons to the beautiful blonde witch, "Samantha." Sidney just couldn't find anyone that could compare with Barbara though. Of course with Eden's mischievous smile and great beauty as well as the chemistry between Barbara and Larry Hagman, it was a complete success and lasted five seasons.