What is it?:
A suspended candle holder made from a discarded wine bottle, paper clips and plastic party cup.
Usefulness factor:
Classes have started, but many students haven't had time to rid their homes of Welcome Week remnants. Not only does this craft help reuse those empty bottles you have lying around, it also adds decorative lighting to drab dorm rooms.
Items needed:
• An old wine bottle
• A tea light
• A plastic party cup
• Three paper clips
• An old wire coat hanger
• An assortment of vines or leaves
• Tape
• Diamond glass cutters, or for the economically-challenged college student, a hammer, safety goggles and towel will work just fine.
• Glue
• (optional): Mod Podge, a clear varnish
Get started:
2. If you have a diamond cutter: Carefully score the circumference of the wine bottle's bottom and tap the end of the bottle to make a clean cut. Other method: ( this can be a bit dangerous if not done right, so take proper safety precautions and wear goggles.) Wrap the bottom of the wine bottle in a towel and use the hammer to gently tap the bottle until it breaks off. (This method leaves the bottle sharp at the ends, but a few grinds on the sidewalk will file it down.)
3. Wrap the broken pieces of the bottle in the towel and use the hammer to break the glass into smaller sections.
4. Create a mosaic by gluing the small pieces of glass on the outside of the plastic party cup. (Optional: Mod Podge can next be used to cover the glass pieces to fill in the empty spaces.)
5. Bend the wire hanger into a long shape and string it through the neck of the bottle to the opening in the bottle's bottom.
6. Unravel the paper clips to poke three holes through the plastic party cup, and suspend all three paper clips to the wire hanger as if you were hanging a holiday ornament.
7. Place the tea light in the plastic party cup, and use tape to decorate the outside of the wine bottle with vines or leaves to create that rustic vineyard feel.
8. Find a place to hang the Champagne by Candlelight, carefully light the candle and wait for the compliments on your craftiness to roll in.
Total cost:
Most of the materials for this craft were discarded treasures from the dorm room, but the optional Mod Podge and tea light total a whopping $2.
Challenge level:
On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the Martha Stewart Challenge, this is a 5. When you don't have a pair of diamond cutters lying around the house, breaking off the bottom of a wine bottle can be quite tricky, not to mention dangerous when handling the broken shards of glass. Good thing you probably have enough bottles lying around to keep trying.
Our thoughts:
Although this craft was a bit tricky to complete, the finished product is well worth the time put into it. Not only does it provide mood lighting, it also disguises those once-shameful empty bottles into a chic conversation starter that is sure to light up the night.
