Hey, so I am back as promised with a tutorial on how to achieve the colored bottle/jar look.
You will need:
- Glass bottles/Jars
- White glue (like Elmer’s) or Mod Podge
- Food coloring
- Lots of paper towels/rags
How to:
- Clean the glass bottles thoroughly and remove labels and any sticky residue. Just soak them in hot soapy water for a couple of hours. Most labels come off easily. You can use an old toothbrush to scrape off stubborn ones.
- Dry the bottles completely.
- Mix a little white glue (or Mod Podge) with food coloring of your choice in a small bowl.
- Pour the glue mix into the bottle and swirl it around. You can add a few drops of water, if you find it to be too thick.
- Pour out the extra glue mix back into the bowl. Place the bottle upside down on a paper towel/rag/dish to get rid of all the excess glue mix. If you use a dish, you can collect the glue mix and use it again!
- Have fun and experiment with the colors and ratios. I did a green bottle and a blue bottle. I had a lot of leftover glue, so I combined the blue and green and ended up with a sort of turquoise color.
- Let them dry completely, preferably, overnight.
- Once dry, bake the bottles in an oven at 250 deg.F for about 30-40 minutes. The bottles will be really hot when they come out of the oven. Take care to place them on a cloth pot holder or trivet to cool.
- Enjoy your beautiful creations. Mine had some drip marks. But I think they really add to the charm!
Here they are in sunlight. Pretty pretty!
Once I started, I just couldn’t stop! So, I hunted around for some small jars to color.
I even dabbed some color onto the bottom of two clear glass saucers!
Like I did earlier, I painted the outside of a small jar and baked it. This gives a more matte finish to the bottle.
Though the swirling method is time-consuming and messy, the bottles are prettier! I am loving the various shades of green and blue!
The bottles now hold some fake flowers as photo props. I can’t wait to get some real ones to put in them!
So, what do you think?
I am linking up at The Shabby Nest, Finding Fabulous, French Country Cottage, Chic on a Shoestring Budget, My Romantic Home, Southern Lovely, Knick of Time, House of Hepworths, Tatertots and Jello, The Dedicated House, and the Going Green:Recycle/Upcycle Challenge at The CSI Project.
Love this! I am looking for diy ideas for decorating for my daughter’s wedding reception.
Thank you! They would look amazing on the tables. And you can tint them any color you like.
Can you put water in it afterwards to put flowers in?
If you use the swirling method, it is not waterproof. To use it as a vase, you can brush on the glue mix on the outer surface of the bottle and bake them. Hope this helps!
These look stunning! I love that you can match it to your decor and it looks vintagey!
Thanks so much! Yeah, absolutely. The sky is the limit when it comes to the colors you can tint them with!
Very pretty! I am dying to try this! Thanks for great tips
Jenna
Thanks for visiting! Do try this. Its so much fun!!
My bottle is too tall to stand upright in my oven….can I lay on its side to bake or will this not work? I am using a vodka bottle that I plan to put mini light in.
Thanks for visiting Rita! I have never baked the bottles laying on their sides. I think the important thing is to make sure all the excess glue mix has been dripped and dried properly. Otherwise you may find drip marks on the side where the bottle rests.
Why don’t you give it a go and let me know how it goes! That’s the fun of DIY, right?
These are so amazing and I love your tutorial….so easy and simple. Cant wait to try this.
Karin
So glad you liked it! I would love to see your finished project!
I have allready tried this and it turns out really great. Very cute think to have.
Ooh, they turn out so pretty, don’t they?!!
Glad you liked it!
Oh my! they look so super pretty! I had no idea you could use glue for this. That makes total sense!
I’ll keep this in mind!
Thanks!
hugs x
Crystelle
So glad you liked them! You have a lovely blog too!
Keep visiting… 🙂
Wow!! This idea is amazing. What I liked the most about it that it does not require too many things. I would definitely do this at home.
Thanks for visiting. This is sure a fun simple project! I would love to see your finished project!