So I LOVE wine...seriously I love wine, I’m not an alcoholic by any means, but I probably have a glass of wine 2-3 times a week...its good for the digestive system (at least thats what I was told in my younger years by Mr. Linde a wise man from my childhood who gave me my first sip of the sweet nectar I now hold so dear to my heart) so thats my story and I’m sticking to it.
For the past 5 years every time I finish a bottle of wine or any color bottle of liquor I save it. They have no special meaning to me, but I find the shape, the assorted colors & label art appealing so I save them. You can imagine in 5 years time I have established quite a collection.
One day Jessie (my girlfriend who is more of a beer drinker) was planting some flowers and I noticed she had planted something in an old mason jar. I thought how resourceful of her and I also thought how cool the roots looked spiraling in the jar. Then it got me thinking...what if I cut my wine bottles & use them as planters...I mean how cool would that be & how environmentally proactive of me.
So after some research online, I purchased a glass cutter & some safety supplies (at Jessie's request) and I got to work.
Day 1)
Cutting glass is not as simple as I originally thought. It take patience & lots of practice. I started with wine bottles. Out of my first 10 bottles only 1 came out perfect & 2 others almost perfect, but with some sanding (we'll get to the sanding & polishing portion of the experiment later) can be used. If you cut too deep the bottles crack during the hot & cold water phase. So a perfect, straight, light & consistent cut is a must for success.
I then decided to use one of Jessie's beer bottles for fun. These cut much easier & took very little time. Out of my first 5 beer bottles 3 came out perfect. With some sanding & polishing these will make great "Tumblers" especially depending on what beer bottle I use (Corona, Red Stripe, & Rolling Rock with logos painted on look really cool rather then brands with peel off labels).
Day 2)
I decided before trying some more wine bottles that maybe some of my liquor bottles might look neat. Now anyone who really knows me knows that I'm a Grey Goose Vodka girl. I love my dirty martinis & for me Grey Goose is my Vodka of choice. However, I have tried some others CiRoc, Pravda, Rain & Belvedere are all pretty good as well, not to mention their bottle designs & colors are really cool! So, first up a CiRoc bottle...no go, cracked pretty easily, but I would like to try again because the bottle is really cool, however I only have the one bottle. Next up, Grey Goose bottle...SUCESS!
First try & Perfect! This will make a really cool Planter, Candle or Vase. I'm super excited now & the possibilities of how to use my new found hobby keep expanding.
Day 3)
Practice still makes perfect, not a great day for beer bottles, but awesome day with wine bottles. The trick is getting the cutting tool at the perfect angle (which takes awhile) and then again applying the right amount of pressure. Going to get drill for sanding & polishing tomorrow (been doing it by hand, but I think I could do a better job with drill). The smoothing process takes a while & you have use different grades of wet sandpaper as you progress on smoothing the edges. After that then you have to apply polish. I posted a picture today of 3 of the items (Tumbler, Flower Vase, Planter) & I will be planting Basil, Mint, Chives, & Oregano friday and will post pictures of progress.
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