How to reuse Wine Bottles – two more ways to recycle your glass

Welcome, to this my last post and story for a while and today I have two more uses for your wine bottle bottoms. This time it’s the turn of the more widely found, green bottles and as always, the goal is simple, effortless charm without spending your savings. And if you don’t have wine bottle bottoms to hand, don’t switch off since these gifts from glass can be achieved in a great many ways. I’m going to dive straight in today with our how to reuse wine bottles ideas, although first I have a little family update for you and news of when I shall be back…

It occurs to me this moment in time we are currently sharing – here our summer, perhaps your winter – will be the oddest many of us have ever known. And although we may be experiencing different temperatures depending on where we are in our world, we are all certain to be learning similar ways in which to navigate our new norms.

In a new twist for me, I shall be taking the next couple of months away from a key board and enjoying what I hope to be a wonderful summer full of new moments, fun and sun at home. Notoriously readership on my blog is much less come summertime here in the UK since the vast majority of you are, quite rightly, enjoying families, holidays and the big outdoors. Will there be a holiday for you this year I wonder or like us, will you enjoy a staycation with visits here and there when we can all move around a little more freely.

In the coming summer months, there are a few changes for The M’s to look forward to. Master M will return home from university very soon. He has been away on and off for four years now and I for one am looking forward to a huge cuddle and his effervescent company. I am not looking forward however to the washing he will surely bring home. Little Miss as many of you know has a hair salon which she will return to in the coming days. She is excited to get back at it and there will be a great many challenges and opportunities for her and her team for sure. Mr M will be less under my feet than he has been these past three months. I’ll let you into a secret; I shall miss his cheery chops around the place. Remember please, that is our secret. And I have a few exciting coming soon’s I shall be working on as well as a plethora of new and simple crafts and up-cycles to bring you when I return. Oh, and as if that were not enough, we are beginning renovations at last to our home. A busy and exciting time for us all.

And so to this week’s zero waste and recycled creation. How to reuse wine bottles the eco friendly way. Using this little beauty once again, I cut these green wine bottles which became a favourite to hoard since I was able to retain the cute little label at the bottom of each one.

Now if you don’t have the means to cut glass bottles – be sure to check out this page for DIY ways to cut glass for the fearless – jam or pickle jars, empty candle pots or even stubby drinking glasses would work a treat. To each wine bottle bottom I added a thin layer of shingles to help with drainage and I simply split and mixed basil and coriander herb plants which had found their way into my trolley on the weekly trip to the supermarket. And to great effect I think. For now, these are on my own kitchen windowsill and getting plenty of use.

Then I tried some inexpensive Campanula plants sitting on the ‘no-one loves me’ shelf. A good soak in the sink soon revived them and again I split them to fit each wine bottle bottom. Now wouldn’t they make wonderful hostess gifts? Wrapped in brown paper and tied up with string with a homemade pretty tag, who wouldn’t be delighted with receiving this thoughtful gift?

And at summers end when the plant has nothing left to offer, the wine bottle bottom can simply be recycled or perhaps reinvented to my next trick.

I am a candle addict in both the home and garden. And during these summery months to come, citronella candles come into their own when we enjoy an outdoor supper and we sit talking long into the evening. I am not however a huge fan of the yellow waxed variety which is commonly for sale. And so last year I treated our home to this essential oil and have recently ordered more. I take a simple lit tealight and once it has melted a little, I drip a few drops of the essential oil into the wax and abracadabra no pesky flying creatures in my wine or peanuts. I’m unsure if I breach any health and safety issues with this idea; we’re all still in one piece although as always you might like to carry out your own research.

In the base of each wine bottle bottom and glass jar I’ve added candle sand, marbles, sparkles and this years dried flower petals for each candle to sit safely atop. Did you spot an empty pretty jar from @cucumberwoodcandles in there? I cannot recommend Ruth’s candles enough. Clean, fresh and paraben free, just how we like it. And afterwards a gorgeous jar to fill with all your trinkets and treasures or simply with tealights.

Lighting up your garden or patio has never been simpler or so inexpensive. I keep a great many empty glass jars and pots and their uses are reinvented often. This summer you’ll find this little group at The Gin Palette along with Mr M and I no doubt.

Like many simple crafts, these green wine bottle bottoms look better en masse or mixed with a similar sort. Some of mine have smaller tealights and others, the larger longer burning variety which I managed to buy from our local garden centre.

The M’s are pretty set up now for their staycation wouldn’t you say? Over the past few months, you’ve seen on my blog a small garden terrace transformation complete with a homemade pallet sofa and squidgy recycled cushions, how to reuse wine bottles in a variety of ways including this pretty table top lighting and finally copious candles all a glowing in wine bottle bottoms and glass up-cycles. I have spent so little money and created so many delights from what others might have thought of as junk for our family to enjoy this summer. We are often reminded to recycle, reuse and reinvent these days: It’s rather wonderful if the end result is a looker too don’t you think? And if this sun continues to shine as it does whilst I’m writing you this story, we have much more use to come from all these simple and wonderful crafts.

I am never happier than creating and crafting and writing stories for you at Belle’s and I have much more to share still. I shall be back in September, with new and exciting thrifty crafts and up-cycles from my home and garden to yours. And in the meantime, you can keep up to date with our summer shenanigans over on my Instagram page if you like. Wherever you are in our world stay safe, healthy and happy and enjoy your time with your loved ones. Until September… x

There are a great many more ideas for how to reuse wine bottles on Pinterest here are a few I’ve saved to get you started…