Anyone who knows me, knows that red wine is my favorite libation. Coffee comes in a close second! We’ve all seen the studies that show drinking red wine in moderation provides numerous health benefits such as anti-aging, immune-boosting benefits, and has also been shown to promote cardiovascular health. Not that I needed any encouragement to drink more red wine, but it sure is nice to know that there are health benefits in each delicious glass.
What to do with all those empty bottles? Instead of tossing them into the trash use them to create something truly unique. This project doesn’t require any special skills. It uses common supplies that you probably already have on hand, and it’s a fun project that lets your creativity loose. Keep reading to find out how easy it is to transform bottles into a work of art that you can easily create. Even if you think you don’t have a crafty bone in your body, I promise, you can easily do this!!!
When my girlfriend Michelle shared this craft idea that uses empty bottles, I was all in! No need to purchase any bottles or jars, I have a bevy of empty wine bottles. If you aren’t a wine drinker, start saving interesting shaped glass jars and bottles. I place them in my kitchen sink, fill it with hot water and let the bottles soak for a few hours. The labels will peel off easily and any glue or residue left behind can either be scrubbed off with a scubbie sponge or you can use a little Goof Off to remove any glue residue.
Supplies:
- Glass bottle or jar
- White glue
- Baby powder
- Acrylic paints, in colors of your choice
- Water
- Paint brush
- Paper towels
- Pencil
- Air dry clay
- Metallic powdered pigments
- Mod Podge spray sealer
- Hot glue and glue gun
- Assorted gem stones, cabochon, glass beads, pearls
We used wine bottles for this project since we had them on hand but you could use any empty glass bottle you have on hand. Just be sure to start with a clean bottle and remove any labels and glue.
Once you have selected a bottle to use for this project, you will want to coat the bottle with a gesso. The gesso will stick to the glass and provide a base to build upon. You can purchase it at any craft store but you can easily make it for just a few pennies using items you probably already have on hand.
To make your own gesso, combine about a tablespoon of baby powder, with 1 teaspoon white glue and 1 teaspoon acrylic paint. You can use any color paint.
Add a couple teaspoons water until you have a mixture that’s about the consistency of pancake batter. You will have plenty of gesso to paint several bottles.
Paint gesso onto each bottle to completely coat it.
The gesso serves as the base and sticks to the glass and allows you to draw a pattern onto the bottle.
Allow gesso to dry completely. The gesso will dry to a chalky finish.
Take a paper towel and crumple it up. Place the neck of the bottle on the paper towel. It allows you to rest the bottle on it and prevents it from rolling around on your work surface.
Use a pencil to lightly draw your design onto the surface of the bottle. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it’s more of a guide. The drawn on pattern will be covered with clay and paint so you won’t even see it later on. So don’t worry about making it “perfect”. Just have fun and let your creative side come out. I freehanded a loose scroll pattern all around the bottle.
Next comes adding some dimension with clay to the piece. You can use any type of air dry clay for this project. This is the clay I picked up at Hobby Lobby, and it worked great. I liked using the darker colored clay, it made it easy to see areas that needed more scrolls as I applied the dark pieces of clay onto the light gesso coated bottle.
Start by dividing clay into small pieces.
Sprinkle a little baby powder onto your work surface. It will keep the clay from sticking to your work surface and hands as you roll it out.
Roll each ball of clay out into a long thin rope, keeping one end a bit thicker than the other end. Bend the thicker end into a scrolled hook shape.
Place a bead of glue onto one of the scrolls drawn on the bottle and apply a clay rope to the bottle. Gently press it into the bead of glue to secure it in place. If you have a clay molding tool, use it to press a slight indentation into the thicker end of the scroll. You can also use your fingertip to do this.
Continue adding ropes of clay to the bottle until you have a pattern that you are happy with. Allow the clay to dry overnight until the glue is set and the clay has hardened.
Mix together a dark acrylic colored paint with a bit of water and coat the entire piece. I mixed a dark Sienna with black to get a rich deep brown color. Allow paint to dry completely before moving on to the next step.
You may need to do two coats of paint to get an even finish.
No need for perfection, the paint covers everything.
Now comes the fun part. It’s time to add some highlights to the piece. I used a combination of metallic Aztec Gold, Brilliant Gold and a little Silver powdered pigments to highlight the scrolls on the bottle.
You don’t need a lot of the metallic pigments, a little goes a long way. I placed a little pigment powder in the lid. I dipped the tip of my finger into the pigment and then rubbed it onto the scrolls on the bottle.
TIP: If you get too much pigment on a scroll, use a dry paintbrush to gently brush off any excess pigment. Don’t worry if you get some on the bottle when you are applying the pigment, it can easily be brushed off. It adds depth and a nice metallic sheen to the flat areas on the bottle.
Once you are happy with the highlights spray the piece with a coat of Mod Podge or spray varathane in a matte finish. Allow the Mod Podge to dry completely. This seals the piece and keeps the metallic pigment from rubbing off the bottle.
Use a hot glue gun and attach jewels, cabochon, glass beads or pearls to the indentations on each scroll and in random areas of the bottle to embellish it and give it some sparkle and bling.
This is such a fun project! There are no special skills needed or expensive supplies, just a little creativity and time will produce a lovely piece that you can use as a truly unique vase or as a lovely piece to display in your home.
You are only limited by your imagination! Change up the colors, add different shapes of clay to achieve a totally different look that works with your decor. The most important things to remember; it doesn’t have to be perfect to look stunning, let your creativity loose and just have FUN!
If you need more ideas on embellishing glass bottles, just do a search for “bottle art” on YouTube. You will find loads of videos to get your creative juices flowing! A special shout out to Jyotsna Anand and her YouTube channel, “You and Craft” for the inspiration for this lovely craft idea.
Did You Make This?
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For God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
John 3:16