How To Upcycle Wine Bottles

Does your recycle bin bear a strong resemblance to a wine café’s trash can? Do you find yourself saving old wine bottles with unrealistic hopes of someday getting crafty with them? Have you ever tried to use a wine bottle as a flower vase, just because?

Well today’s your day. The holidays are upon us, and the holidays inevitably bring both a surplus of wine bottles and an intense urge to decorate.

Here are the prettiest, most practical and least messy ways to upcycle wine bottles. Make sure you remove the wine labels first!

MAKE IT A CANVAS
Pretty much anything is a canvas if you’re a little adventurous. You can go abstract or patterned, or paint a landscape or other scene in 360 degrees.

FROST IT
You can get the frosted look easily, without involving chemicals or fancy tools. Most major spray paint brands sell a “frost” variety. For words or initials, use letter stickers or scrapbooking letters in the size and font of your choice. Scrapbooking supply shops can also provide you with gorgeous options for filigree, snowflake outlines and other pretty things. Simply arrange these items how you like, and use the frost spray paint to cover the rest of the bottle. Easy as pie.

ETCH IT
Again, you can fake the etched look with a few paper cutouts and a can of frost spray paint. Just overlay cutouts of your selected words or designs over the bottle, using painter’s tape to hold it in place. Cover the top and bottom of the bottle with craft paper taped to the glass, then “frost” over the cutout!

WRAP IT
Make a festive sleeve for an empty wine bottle that’s serving as a centerpiece, or an unopened bottle you’re giving as a gift. There are 1,000 ways to do this, but here’s your starter recipe for a DIY wine sleeve: First layer is scrapbooking paper or some other thin, colorful paper cut down so it only covers 3/4 of the bottle. Second layer could be another paper product like vellum or a fabric like burlap, cut shorter than the first layer. Wrap a thick ribbon around these layers, and add small decorations such as a festive gift tag, a custom bow, felt cutouts of autumn leaves or Christmas trees, and so on.

TURN IT INTO A MESSAGE BOARD
Chalkboard paint is amazing. Like frost paint, this is sold by most major spray paint brands. Just spray paint the bottle! Write or draw your own messages on the bottle, or let your guests do the honors. You can also glam it up by dipping the top or bottom of the bottle in bright or glittery paint.

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