Ways To Reuse Empty Wine Bottles

Last Updated on September 30, 2024 by Robin

Discover creative and practical ways to reuse empty wine bottles! From vases to garden paths, explore 10+ creative projects that turn your wine bottles into beautiful and useful items for your home. Let’s get crafty!

You guys know how much I enjoy a nice glass of wine, learning about wine, and discovering new wines. And when my local recycling stopped taking glass, I was left with my fair share of empty wine bottles. I hate not being able to recycle them! So, I decided to do some research on fun uses for empty wine bottles. Just in case you all want to do some upcycling with me!

While most wine is made in a similar manner, wine bottles can take many forms. Instead of simply throwing away the empty glass wine bottles, why not try to repurpose them instead? From wine bottle crafts to lights, and more! There are many beautiful and useful ways that you can put those empty wine bottles to good use, and I am sharing over 10 ways to upcycle empty wine bottles below. Let’s get creative, shall we?

Ways To Reuse Empty Wine Bottles

Vase

Yes, that seems like a simple one, but it’s one that we may not think of and it’s super easy! Just rinse out your wine bottle and add some of your favorite flowers. This makes for a great gift idea as well.

Paint Them For Seasons

I simply painted a few empty wine bottle orange and added a few leaves to the neck of the bottle and they looked like wine bottle pumpkins! Perfect for fall. Here are some ideas for Christmas, an idea for Easter, and ideas for Halloween.

Bottled Lights

Arrange 5 to 15 wine bottles on a mantle, ledge or wall. String Christmas lights (or any small stringed lights) in each bottle opening all the way to the bottom of the bottle and back out again. Don’t allow any of the lights to hang outside of the bottles. If you need to you can remove the bulbs from the outside lights. The thick and often colored glass of the bottles will give a firefly-like quality to the light that they put off. If you are feeling a bit more adventurous, here’s a tutorial on how to drill a hole in the wine bottle so that the wires aren’t coming out of the top. I have 3 of these at home, but my father-in-law made them for us! Pro-tip: be sure to use LED lights, the old school ones will get hot inside the glass bottle.

Flowered Bottles

Lots of people have used an empty wine bottle as a vase to display fresh or silk flowers. You can take it a step further by decorating the bottle with flowers too. Hot glue silk flowers to the bottle from the bottom up, gradually exposing the glass. Avoid gluing over the label so that it can serve as a reminder of the wine you enjoyed. Fill the bottle with water and display some fresh flowers.

Mosaic

Carefully peel the labels off of each wine bottle and put them to the side. Wrap the bottles in a towel and tap them with a hammer until they are thoroughly shattered. Pick a few pieces from each bottle and hot glue them on a piece of wood to create a mosaic of bottle pieces. Glue the labels around the edges nearest the bottles each one represents.

Wine Capsule

After enjoying a bottle of wine, write down the memories you have associated with it. Maybe it was the wine you drank when friends were over to play board games, or you brought it home from the fair. Roll up the memoir, note, poem, or journal entry. Slip the paper inside of the bottle all the way down and set the bottle aside. Collect these wine time capsules all year long. Once a year, break the bottles open to retrieve the notes and relive the old memories.

Soap or Olive Oil Dispenser

Repurpose your empty wine bottle into a soap or oil dispenser. Wash the bottle out thoroughly with a dish or hand soap. Get a pour stopper from your local craft or beverage store to the top of the bottle. You now have a creative way to dispense liquids such as olive oil, balsamic oil, or syrups.

Garden Path

Create a path in your garden with wine bottles. Lining either side of a footpath can create a striking visual, as well as keep guests from accidentally traipsing on the pansies. Here is an excellent How To Build A Wine Bottle Path from Shawna Coronado.

Drip System

Wine bottles can be excellent at providing hydration. Simply fill a bottle with water and tip it into a planter at an angle. The dirt will absorb the water and disperse it slowly, like a drip system.

Wine Chimes

Tie empty wine bottles with a string and hang them from a small block of wood. Cut the string at different lengths and fasten the string tightly so the bottles can’t slip. The bottles will blow in the wind and create a wind chime. You can get a full tutorial on how to cut off the bottom and actually put the chime in instead of just using the wine bottle here on homedit.

Glittered Wine Bottles

What household doesn’t need a little more sparkle? These glittered wine bottles would be perfect for the holidays or any time you need a little more sparkle in your life. These would look amazing as a table centerpiece or on your fireplace mantle during the holidays! 

Wine Bottle Citronella Lamps

Let your empty wine bottle be a part of future parties and celebrations by upcycling it into a citronella candle. These homemade citronella lamps look classy, offer some light in your outdoor entertainment space, and keep the mosquitos at bay so that you can enjoy the fresh night air while sipping your wine! 

Empty wine bottles don’t have to head straight for the trash or recycling bin, not when you can repurpose them to be useful and beautiful around your home. We’ve visited some of our favorite wineries recently so a few extra bottles are to be expected. Wondering what the best wines are for your summer BBQ? This article on summer sangria will help! 

Do you use your empty wine bottles for crafts or repurposes them, or do they just head for the recycling or trash bin? If you do repurpose them or use them for crafting I would love to see your projects in the comments. There are a lot more ways that you can reuse wine bottles! 

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