DIY: Lighted Wine Bottles

As a crafter, I am always looking for ways to reuse items and make something purposeful out of them as well as something beautiful! Wine bottles are a great item to reuse and repurpose. They are made out of thick glass, sometimes beautiful shades of blue or amber, and lend themselves nicely to be used as vases, lights, or even wind chimes. For today’s blog post, I am going to share with you how I turned wine bottles into a lighted decoration for the home. You can literally make one for any season, holiday, or theme and even personalize it, which makes for a great gift!

To get started on this project, you will want to collect wine bottles and begin to think of your theme. If you don’t drink wine, ask family and friends to save wine bottles for you. Pictured below are samples I made, one for each season as well as a couple that would make a great gift for a special friend!

SUPPLIES

Wine Bottle(s) 

Vinyl design (created on Cricut or other cutting machine) – – Note: if you do not have a Cutting Machine, you can purchase vinyl designs from Craft Stores or online at Etsy

Frosted Glass Spray or Sea Glass Spray (optional) – – Note: good if you are using a clear glass wine bottle

Cork Lights (I purchased mine from Amazon, just search Wine Cork Lights)

Embellishments (This will vary from bottle to bottle depending on your theme. Some ideas include raffia, ribbon, charms, shells, Christmas decorations, fall leaves, flowers.)

General Directions

1. Clean your wine bottles. The easiest way I found to remove labels is to soak them in hot soapy water, then use a kitchen scraper to scrape off the label. If you have any sticky residue, use Goo Gone to remove. Make sure your glass is completely clean on the outside, with no dust or residue of any kind. Let dry completely.
2. Measure your bottle and decide on a design. Make sure you measure the space where you will apply your design. Working on the curved surface can be tricky especially with lettering, so keep that in mind. Also, you might want to leave space up around the neck of the bottle for your embellishments.
3. Make your design. If you are using a Cricut or other cutting machine. Create your design and cut it onto permanent vinyl (651). You can use 631, holographic and other vinyl, but 651 is going to be your best bet for a lasting product. If you do not have a Cricut, as mentioned before you can use a purchased design. More info and tips on designs below! (see photos below)
4. Adhere your design to your bottle. You can use clear contact paper or other transfer vinyl to apply your design to your bottle. Use a scraper to smooth it to your bottle. I use clear contact and you can even reuse it a couple of times.
5. Spray your bottle (optional). If you are using a clear wine bottle, you might want to use a Frosted Glass Spray or a Sea Spray Paint to lightly coat the bottle. This will hide the string lights inside a little as well as make your bottle look beautiful! Cover your workspace and make sure to be in a well-ventilated area. Spray bottle from top to bottom all the way around. One coat should be enough. But if you want to spray two coats, be sure to let dry completely in between coats. (see photos below)
6. Decorate your bottle. This is the fun part! Every bottle is unique. After you have put on your wording and spray, look at your bottle and decide what would look good around the neck of the bottle. Keep in mind you will put the cork light into the opening and need to have access to it. Tie on or glue on some ribbon. Add a cute charm that matches the theme. Get creative! (see some samples in photos at the end of this post.)
7. Put in the lights and enjoy! Make sure the string of lights works first. Then string them carefully down into the bottle. Put the cork in place, turn it on and voila!
   

   From Cricut Design Space to Vinyl to Bottle

   

   Before and After Spray
   
   

   Tips and Things to Consider

• Wine bottle color … I think the clear bottles work best and are most versatile. You can leave them clear or add the frosted glass spray to hide the lights or you can spray with Sea Spray (they come in different colors).
• Make sure your bottle is not too dark and/or do not paint it. For this project, because you are making a lighted bottle, you want your lights to shine through. Using a bottle that is too dark is not the best option.
• If using a colored bottle, such as a blue one or a shade of amber, you will not want to use black vinyl. It will not show up very well, so consider white vinyl or silver vinyl as an alternative.
• Always put your vinyl on the bottle before your spray. If you spray first, then put on vinyl, you risk scratching the spray and creating streaks or spots. The vinyl will show completely through the spray, so don’t worry.
• If you are creating your own design, Cricut Design Space (and I’m sure Silhouette Studio is the same) has a ton of great images, designs, and phrases all ready for you to use! You can also download free images from sites such as LoveSVG or purchase design graphics from Etsy.
• If your design includes cursive writing, make sure to weld it before cutting it. It looks nicer and is easier to apply.
• When applying a design on the curved part of the bottle, I recommend starting in the middle and smoothing out slowly. You do not want creases in your vinyl, so go slow and manipulate the vinyl as needed.
  

  

  

  

  The possibilities for this project are endless! It’s a super easy project that is also a lot of fun to make. These lighted wine bottles make great gifts because you can personalize them by adding names, favorite phrases or scriptures, or even matching to someone’s home decor. Who doesn’t like a one-of-a-kind gift made with love! I hope you enjoyed reading my blog post and will give this project a try! If you do, please share a photo comment on My Pinterest Page. If you want to see other fun DIY projects, check out some of my other blog posts, follow My Blog and/or My Facebook Page. Thanks for stopping by and until next time, keep on craftin’!

~Kristina~

**FREEBIE ALERT: Here is a link to my “Friends … Glow” design on Cricut Design Space for anyone interested. Keep in mind, this is a rough copy, meaning the lettering is not welded together. You can change the size and move things around before cutting the image to fit the size of your bottle. Enjoy!