Fancy DIY Water Bottle Designs
Updated on November 6, 2017
In our family, everyone is very active. That means that we’re all always carrying around water bottles in order to try and keep ourselves well hydrated throughout the day. We’ve been very cognizant lately, however, of the kind of harmful impact constantly using disposable plastic bottles of water and throwing them away can have on the environment, even if you put them in your blue recycling box. That’s why we swapped the whole family to a series of refillable, reusable bottles that they can carry with them instead! When we first bought them, however, our kids immediately informed us that they weren’t “fun looking” enough so, being the DIY enthusiasts we are, we immediately started looking up fun tutorials that would teach us how to customize the water bottles in creative ways.
Just in case you’re also looking for a little bit of guidance in the water bottle decorating department, here ae 15 of the very best ideas we found, complete with instructions on how to make your very own versions!
1. Sticker layered water bottles
Have your kids always collected stickers, loving the colours and pictures they come with, but they haven’t always used them for anything or kept them in sticker books? Well, maybe it’s time to put those to good use now instead! We love the way The Odyssey Online started with a few stickers as the base and layered them like a mosaic over each other until the whole bottle is covered in awesome characters and shapes.
2. Painted stencil water bottle DIY
Have you ever used all purpose paint on a water bottle before, or have you been hesitant because you think the paint will just chip and scratch off when you scrub the water bottle in the dishes? Well, Passing Fancy has a technique that might help you with that! They show you how to use a durable all purpose enamel paint to create any hand painted designs you please or, if you prefer very neat, evenly sized letters and numbers, try it with a stencil like they do in the tutorial!
3. DIY water bottle labels
Are you actually resorting to disposable plastic water bottles for once because you’re having a big party for the kids and you want to make sure everyone has a drink that’s not sugary to balance out all the party food they’re about to have? That’s a pretty good reason to hand out bottles as long as you’re willing to recycle them after, but since you’re not keeping them at the end, why not customize them for the occasion specifically? We like the way Creative Ramblings designed and printed party labels themed after the movie Frozen.
4. Cut vinyl water bottle decals
Are you a huge fan of vinyl cut projects because you’re the proud owner of a Cricut machine that you just absolutely love using? Well, then you’ll love to hear that you can absolutely use your Cricut machine to create water bottle designs that are personalized to you and your family! Suburban Wife, City Life shows you how it’s done, complete with shapes and names.
5. Personalized water bottles made with temporary tattoos
Did you know that temporary tattoos can be used for more than just giving your skin some momentary decoration? Well, there are actually plenty of things you can make with temporary tattoos and we could probably write a whole other post about that, but for the purposes of this post, here’s a cool water bottle DIY that will help you make a bottle feature and little picture you can find in the form of a temporary tattoo! We know our kids would go crazy over these Frozen themed bottles from Fireflies and Jellybeans.
6. DIY glass etching water bottle
Do you love the idea of stenciling, but you’re not sure that using paint the way we showed you before will look the way you want it to on a glass bottle? Then try getting that classically cool frosted look by using a glass etching mixture (which you can most likely get at your local craft store) instead! Young Living shows you how to stencil with that in order to make a cute quote all across the front of your bottle.
7. Duct tape bottles
Are you still looking for a way to alter the labels on store bought plastic water bottles for a party but you’d rather go with an idea that your kids can help you with rather than one that you would simply print yourself? Then maybe you’d prefer this awesome custom duct tape idea from Made By Mommy. They show you how brightly coloured and fun patterned tape can be used to create a whole new label that each kid can write their name on.
8. Freehand cut vinyl letters
Do you love the idea of putting vinyl letters onto your water bottle for a neat, clean cut look in whatever you want to write, but you don’t actually own a Cricut or similar vinyl cutter? Well, that doesn’t mean you can’t cut some vinyl letters yourself to get the look you want! A Little Craft in Your Day shows you how best to go about attaching the letters once you’ve cut them out.
9. DIY persaonlized quote water bottle
Did you really like the idea of a glass etched quote water bottle like we showed you before, you actually think you’d like it a lot better if the design was reversed? By that, we mean that the background would be frosty and the letters would be neat, clear, and uncovered. That might sound more difficult, but Carnival of Creativity is here to tell you that it actually isn’t! Their tutorial walks you through the steps you need.
10. DIY super hero water bottle party favour tags
Have you rethought the idea of using disposable store bought water bottles at your kids’ party after all, but you’d still like to add at least a little bit of customization to them to make it exciting when the kids get their favours? Then perhaps you might settle for just these adorable party tags instead! Two it Yourself suggests these awesome super hero tags so that each kid taking a water bottle home feels like they have special powers that day.
11. Funny referee water bottle
What if the event you’re setting out water bottles for is actually for a sports team after their big win or for a bunch of sports fans who came to watch the big game together? In that case, disposable water bottles might once again be your best option, but using bottles that you know you’ll recycle means you’re free to dress them up and glue themed things to them. Check out how The DIY Playbook used striped paper and plastic whistles on beads to make them look like referees.
12. Motivational water goals bottle
Are you still thinking about the idea of vinyl designs on water bottles in order to customize them but the part you’re stuck on is what kind of design you want to make now that you’ve got your technique down? In that case, we thought we’d show you one of our favourite DIY water bottle designs! Porch suggests sticking on a measure of how much water you’ve drank so far, helping to motivate you to stay hydrated throughout the day.
13. DIY Shopkins water bottle
Like most kids are right now, are yours completely obsessed with the Shopkins? Well you can probably find a Shopkins water bottle somewhere in the stores, but it might not be easy since the characters are pretty specific. Besides, isn’t it always more fun to make things yourself? This tutorial from Tiana Hearts guides you through the process of creating your own Shopkins themed water bottle from stickers and sealing them so that they stay when you wash the bottle.
14. Upcycled sweater water bottle cozy
Do you already have the water bottles your family likes to use best all purchased and in use but you’re finding that when you put very cold water in them, they start to sweat, making the things in the rest of your bag wet when you put it in there? In that case, maybe this tutorial from Resweater can help you out! They show you how to use the sleeves of old sweaters that you won’t wear anymore to make water bottle slip covers that will help insulate the bottle and keep the liquid inside cold for drinking.
15. Colour block water bottle holder
Perhaps you really like the idea of a water bottle case or sleeve but you find that you don’t always take a bag with you when you use your water bottle most, so you’d rather a sleeve that can actually act as a case instead? Then Gluesticks definitely has the tutorial for you! These cool colour blocked water bottle cases have straps on them so that they’re nice and easy to carry between sports practices and dance classes.
Have you made other types and styles of DIY water bottles that you use all the time and totally adore, but that you don’t see on our list? Tell us all about how you made it happen in the comments section!