15 Ways to Upcycle Wine Bottles
Updated on November 1, 2018
Now, we’ll be the first to tell you that we love a good glass of wine in the evening. Especially after a hard day at work, there are few things we love more (besides crafting, of course) than sitting down on our patio in the summer or by the fireplace in the winter and relaxing with a small glass of our favourite white or red. To be fully honest, we don’t actually drink that much wine and it takes us longer than is probably average to finish a bottle, but the very bottle we just mentioned is another reason we love enjoying the occasional glass; believe it or not, wine bottles make amazing crafting tools! We collect them over time, cleaning them out and putting them aside, and then bookmark all kinds of different neat pages online that feature all kinds of DIY projects we’d like to turn those bottles into.
Just in case you’re as obsessed with the idea of wine bottle crafting as we are, if not more, here are 15 of the very best ideas, designs, and tutorials for repurposing empty wine bottles that we’ve come across in our frequent searches so far!
1. Rainbow wine bottle candle craft
Are you the kind of crafter who is so in love with candles and tea lights that you’d be quite happy to try your hand at creating just about every single candle holder DIY project you’ve ever come across, without ever even getting tired of them, if it weren’t for the fact that you’d run out of space? Well, we’re much the same, but we think this super fun brightly coloured wine bottle tutorial featured on Saved By Love Creations might be one of our very favourites. Their tutorial shows you how to safely cut the bottles in half so they don’t stand quite so precariously tall, as well as how to paint them in a way that will last.
2. Adorable wine bottle ghosts
Are you the kind of very organized DIY enthusiast who loves to hang onto ideas you like for future holidays and upcoming seasons even if it’s not quite the time of year for that particular project yet, just to make sure you have lots of fun ideas when the right time comes? We do that too, bookmarking countless pages for later and organizing them to be used whenever we please. That’s why we have this Halloween wine bottle craft at the ready even though it’s only August! Check out how The Painted Apron created adorable painted bottles that look like funny ghosts.
3. Painted decorative wine bottle vases
Are you very intrigued indeed by the idea of painting your old wine bottles in all kinds of decorative ways, but you’d prefer something a little less kitschy or character based because you’d like to be able to use them as decor pieces in your main rooms? Then maybe turning yours into classy looking flower vases would be preferable! We love the way The Crazy Craft Lady painted their bottles white and then chose three colour pops or contrast colours that suited their room, option for a sort of stylishly haphazard paint style that suits their rustic wall.
4. DIY wine bottle tiki torch
Were you definitely interested in the way the first tutorial we showed you today pictures the candle based wine bottle crafts they were making as an outdoor decor piece, but you’d rather make something that looks finished and complete with just a singular bottle rather than making a whole set, since your outdoor space is really quite small? Then maybe you’d prefer to make a tabletop win bottle tiki torch like Julie Blanner did here instead!
5. Easy wine bottle terrarium
In our house, the kids have just learned about terrariums in school, so they’ve been completely obsessed with them ever since, coming home from classes each day begging us to help them make terrariums of their very own. That’s why we were so pleased to come across this fantastic cut wine bottle terrarium idea outlined step by step on Saved By Love Creations! They show you how to make the glass cutting very safe, but we’d still recommend handling that part yourself while your kids watch from a safe distance. We think this idea is perfect for people who love the current surge in succulent popularity in gardening and decor as much as we do!
6. Mosaic wine bottle
Are you the kind of DIY enthusiast who is actually a little bit more detail oriented, preferring projects that take some more patience and care because you’re totally willing to invest that time and effort? In that case, we’d definitely suggest taking a look at how Kenarry transformed their emptied wine bottle into a beautifully beach inspired mosaic craft! We love the way they worked a seashell right into their design alongside their miniature tiles, but you could also skip that step if you wanted yours to appear just a little less beach-y.
7. Tissue paper decoupage bottle lamps
Do you adore the idea of decorating the outside of your wine bottle by hand but you’d like to get your kids in on the fun and you’re not sure they can handle the detailed but messy nature of the craft we just showed you above? Then perhaps you’d prefer this simpler, equally colourful tissue paper decoupage idea instead! Modpodge Rocks shows you step by step how to make it happen in a smooth, neat way that’s free of creases and air bubbles.
8. Nautical wine bottle decor
Were you quite intrigued indeed by the beach inspired mosaic bottle design because your home does have quite a seaside aesthetic to it but sand and shells aren’t quite the precise direction you’ve taken your decor in because you come from a family that adores sailing? Then we have a feeling these wonderfully decorative nautical themed bottles might be a little more up your alley instead! See how they’re made in more detail on Love, Create, Celebrate.
9. Wine bottle bird feeder
If we’re being fully honest with you, our love for all kinds of wine bottle crafts isn’t the first time we’ve gone through a bit of an obsessive phase with a particular genre of DIY project. Before we got quite so caught up in these, we were actually really obsessed with making DIY bird feeders of all different kinds! Imagine our excitement, then, when we came across this tutorial that combines both of those kinds of projects in one place! See how this fantastic upside down wine bottle bird feeder was made in more detail on Elizabeth Joan Design.
10. Sand covered wine bottles
Were you completely enamoured with the idea of making a seaside inspired wine bottle decor project but your idea of the beach is a little less centred around blue tones and sea glass, so you’re looking for something that’s a little more subtle in its appearance and colour? Then we’d suggest picking up some DIY concrete and taking a look at how Table and Hearth made these “stoneware” vases with some simple yarn wrapping and a sand dollar embellishment near the top.
11. Yarn wrapped bottle vases
Did we really catch your attention when we mentioned yarn wrapping in reference to wine bottle crafts but the idea we just showed you actually doesn’t have quite enough yarn involved for how much you adore doing the technique? In that case, we’d absolutely suggest taking a look at how Mountain Modern Life created an entirely yarn wrapped vase design that looks explicitly homemade in a beautiful, endearing way.
12. Colourful wine bottle chandelier
Are you actually scrolling through our list but still catching yourself thinking about the colourful cut bottle technique we showed you way back at the very beginning, you’re just not sure if a tea light candle project is quite what you were aiming for? In that case, maybe you’d prefer a more permanent lighting solution that uses the same idea instead! We’re completely in love with the way Modpodge Rocks created a bright chandelier out of wine bottle tops.
13. Wine bottle glass pebble pendant lights
Just in case you’re feeling very intrigued indeed with the idea of making a pendant light from cut wine bottles but you’re just not convinced that the previous brightly coloured idea will quite suit your current decor scheme, here’s a slightly more neutral idea that replaces loud tones with neat textures! Take a look at Dream a Little Bigger to see how they covered the surface of their wine bottle light shades with flat-backed glass marbles in clear and frosted white, as well as green.
14. DIY glass etched plant watering bottle
Are you actually still kind of a beginner when it comes to some of these advanced techniques you’ve seen on this list so far, like glass cutting, so you’d rather simply embellish your bottle but keep it otherwise in tact instead? In that case, we’d definitely suggest taking a look at how 2 Bees in A Pod created a plant watering bottle with some simple, adorable glass etching to make it decorative rather than just practical, despite how useful it is.
15. DIY sea glass bottles
We definitely mentioned sea glass earlier on our list, but it was in passing and only in reference to some pieces of the mosaic design we showed you above, so what if that’s actually the precise aesthetic of project you were hoping to find? Well, we think you’ll be very pleased indeed to learn that Sadie Seasongoods has an entire sea glass related tutorial that looks fantastic whether you use it as a vase or simply side table decor! Check out their tutorial to see how the colour and clouded effect was added to the surface of their bottles using painted etching and frosting techniques.
Have you made other kinds of upcycled wine bottle crafts that you very much enjoyed creating but that you don’t see anything similar to on our list? Tell us all about how you did it or link us to photos of your finished product in the comments section!