Creative Ways to Decorate Glass Bottles

Trash to Treasure

Crystal Ray
Glass bottles can be quite beautiful, especially tinted varieties with interesting shapes and textures. Many bottles are designed for decorative purposes, and others were simply meant to hold food and beverages. In any case it is worth saving pretty glass bottles to use for crafts and other creative endeavors. Glass bottles provide an inexpensive way to decorate the home or office, and they can be used in a number of creative ways. Consider the following unique and creative ways to decorate glass bottles, and transform items with potential into something that can be used to decorate almost any space or to give as gifts for almost any occasion.

Decorate Glass Bottles with Sand and Shells

Bottles of sand and shells are absolutely beautiful and they add a decorative touch to a home, especially in rooms decorated in an ocean or nautical theme. Fill a beautiful clear glass or semi-transparent colored bottle partway with white or natural sand. Depending on the height of the bottle, make it about two-inches deep. Fill it halfway with seashells that will fit through the opening in the top. Put a cork in the opening and tie raffia around the top to complete this fun and easy project.

To decorate these ocean-themed glass bottles further, paint ordinary scallop shells using watercolors. Thin watercolor paint with water to create a wash, and apply it sparingly to allow natural lines and markings to show through. Leave some shells unpainted, and allow the paint to completely dry before putting them in the bottle.

Decorate Glass Bottles with Sand Art

Kids love sand art, but sand art is fun for adults as well as children. Best of all it provides an eye-catching way to decorate glass bottles. Buy artificial sand in a variety of colors from a craft store, or color natural sand using the easy information and instructions in the article entitled, Homemade Colored Sand. Coloring sand for sand art projects will save a considerable amount of money over artificial store-bought varieties, especially if you plan to decorate a number of glass bottles.

Decorate glass bottles of various shapes and sizes using layers of colored sand. Use a flexible wooden skewer to push the colors down the sides of the bottles in between layers to create mountains, valleys, and other crafty designs. Experiment with various color combinations that can be used to decorate shelves, tables, and windowsills in unique and creative ways.

Decorate Glass Bottles with Beautiful Crystals

Natural rainbows provide a beautiful way to decorate, and it is possible to create rainbows in a bottle. Locate a beautiful clear glass bottle, and place cut crystals of various shapes and sizes inside. Position it in a sunny window and the surrounding walls and surfaces will be covered in tiny rainbows. Bottle rainbows provide a unique way to decorate, and they make fantastic gifts.

These creative ways to decorate glass bottles are just a few of the many ways they can be saved and uniquely embellished. Recycle glass bottles that are not worth saving, and reuse the rest to make beautiful items to decorate any room or space. The aforementioned ideas are easy and inexpensive, and they will help you find new ways to decorate with items that might otherwise end up in the trash.

Published by Crystal Ray - Featured Contributor in Lifestyle

Crystal Ray is an award-winning freelance writer and artist from the Chicago area. Her passion is interior design, but she also loves entertaining and crafting. She is continually developing unique and creat...   View profile

5 Comments

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  • Jenny Heart 6/22/2010

    What great creative ideas!

  • Crystal Ray 9/1/2009

    I love cobalt blue glass. I can't pass it up! Thanks for the comments.

  • Tricia Goss 9/1/2009

    I've always loved glass bottles, dunno why! These are terrific ideas!

  • Donald Pennington 9/1/2009

    :D

  • Jennifer Wagner 9/1/2009

    Decorated glass bottles look so pretty on window ledges, with the light shining through. Great ideas!

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