Decorating and redecorating your home is usually an exciting project to undergo. Whether it’s a major overhaul or a simple painting job, the occasional re-do keeps things fresh and fun. Once you’ve decided on a colour scheme, done some painting, and upgraded your furniture, the detail and accent pieces can be difficult to choose. After all, it’s these pieces that bring the decor of the room together; they make it unique, and they reflect your personal style.
By the same token, it’s possibly just as interesting when you choose to mix things up with reclaimed and recycled materials. After all, there’s really no better way to live an environmentally sustainable lifestyle than to take things into your own hands and repurpose ostensibly “throw-away” goods in a sustainable and eco-friendly way.
So why not enhance the style you’ve created with some personalised (and environmentally sustainable) touches? Here are some great ways to add a spot of flair to your space by repurposing the most simple household item: old glass bottles.
Craft Beer Drink Tray
What you’ll need: 1 Drink Tray, About 100 bottle caps, spray paint, Modge Podge Glue (gloss, not matte)
Start saving up those beer bottle caps, because you’re going to need them to make this cute drink tray. In the meantime, be on the lookout for a cheap drink tray. Check out your local thrift shops and department stores to find one that’s the right size and shape for your space. Don’t worry about the colour; you can always change that.
First, paint the tray the right colour to accent your decor. Once you’ve accumulated enough caps to cover the bottom of it, arrange them neatly and cover them in a healthy dose of Modge Podge. It’ll go on white, but don’t worry; it will dry clear.
Add a Floral Touch
What you’ll need: Empty bottle, blackboard spray paint, chalk
Image by Flickr via winestyr
Empty glass bottles make great vases, and the possibilities are only limited by your imagination. You could go for the minimalist look by boiling off the label and using the bottle as is, or you could apply a little crafty genius tricks.
Paint the outside of the bottle with chalkboard paint and customise it with chalk. Other options are to wrap yarn or twine around the bottle to give it a texturized, earthy look. No matter how you decorate your new vases, they will really add some style to your space, especially with freshly cut flowers. Check out http://www.direct2florist.co.uk for convenient delivery of your favourite varieties.
Saute in Style With a Customized Oil Cruet
What you’ll need: Empty bottle, cruet/drizzler top
One of the easiest ways to reuse empty bottles is to simply add a cruet top to any craft beer bottle. Find one of these at your local kitchen supply store or supermarket. They come with attachments that expand to fit your bottle. You decide whether to paint it or to keep the natural bottle colour. Tada! Now you have a unique oil cruet you can display on your countertop, and use for sautéing culinary masterpieces for a long time to come.
Create Quirky-Yet-Attractive Modular Shelving
What you’ll need: Six planks of wood, each cut with four holes at different diameters (see this PDF); 12 recycled wine bottles (cleaned, of course); and 6 hook-and-eye strainers
Image via Imgur by yossarian007
This project is one of the easiest ways we’ve seen to create some quirky-yet-attractive modular shelving for your home using reclaimed and recycled materials. Begin by taking six boards (the dimensions aren’t particularly important so long as they’re roughly the ame size). Then, using a drill and a jigsaw, cut four circular holes in the corner of three of the boards. Then, drill holes for the hooks into all six boards. At this point, you may want to sand and apply stain or lacquer to the boards and then insert the eyes.
Once you’ve gotten them to fit your taste, though, your next step is to place the bottles into the holes, and then add the tensioners to the hooks to pull it all together. For added stability, cut holes at half-depth on both sides of the bottom boards so the bottles will fit snugly between the boards. For a full walkthrough, check out this step-by-step breakdown on instructables.com
Create a Craft Caddy
What you’ll need: 1 Six pack holder, glue, cardstock paper, scissors
The next time you bring home a six-pack of beer or wine, hang on to the cardboard carrier; you can use it to create a colourful caddy for organising crafts, or just about anything. Just use heavy cardstock paper, cut it to size, and glue it on to the edges of the carrier. Now you have a nice pop of colour to add to a bookcase or craft room.
Build a Coffee Table from Wine Bottles and Wooden Pallets
What You’ll Need: Four wine bottles (make sure they’re the exact same type), two wooden pallets, a ball of hemp string, and screw eyes.
Image via Imgur by yossarian007
In principle, this isn’t wholly different from the modular shelving shown above. It involves four wine bottles of the same brand and two found wooden pallets (the ones in the photo above have been dismantled, reconstructed and sanded down to achieve the creator’s desired size and appearance). This particular table is constructed first by drilling holes into the four corners of the bottom pallet that are large enough to fit the neck of a wine bottle.
The top pallet is then held in place using a tensioning system that relies on a tension system. This tension is created between the string as it’s stretched tightly between the screw eyes, which are placed strategically on the underside of the table. Bitsofmymind has a more comprehensive walkthrough for setting up this table, but it’s really simple enough to do without following a step-by-step guide if you’re clever with tools.
Really, there’s almost a countless number of ways to reuse glass bottles that will truly enhance your home’s decor. Give some of these DIY projects a try and see what designs you can come up with. Not only do these repurposed projects look really unique and cool, but they’re also environmentally sustainable. And who doesn’t like a win-win situation like that?
By Abigail Clark
