Thursday, June 13, 2013

DIY Glass Bottle Wall Sconces

A few months ago we finally replaced the fence in our side yard. It was at least 10 years old and the poor thing had taken quite a beating from Mother Nature over the years.
The crafter in me was sad to see all of the gorgeous weathered wood being tossed onto the curb. So, when my husband wasn't looking I nonchalantly pulled about 6 boards off the pile and stashed them in our garage. Ha ha!
And there the wood sat for some time until I could figure out what to do with it. Luckily, I've been able to use it for two different projects! The first are these pretty wall sconces.

They were incredibly simple to make, although it took a bit of trial and error in the beginning. :)
You'll need:
Wood
Pipe Clamps (I used 2 1/16 in. to 3 in. clamps)
Paint
Sponge Brush
Drill
Twine
Hot Glue
Snapple Bottles, Milk Bottles or Mason Jars
First, cut your wood down to size. I actually cut out the middle of the fence boards and saved the ends for another project. These are approximately 17 to 17 1/2 inches long.


Next, get out your painting gear!


I love these little paint samples that they have at Lowe's.  They're under $3 a piece and really go a long way! I chose Coral Reef, Hazy Dawn and Crocodile Smile for my boards.


You'll want to blot the paint on in thin layers with your sponge brush. Do not coat the whole board, or else it won't have that weathered look that's so desirable.


Let the boards dry. Smile at how bright and pretty the colors are. :)


Now, this is where things got tricky. My initial thought was to hot glue the pipe clamps onto the boards and then use my staple gun to staple them into place.

Epic Fail!

The glue only temporarily stabilized the clamps and my staples were too small to hold them down. :(


So, after talking it over with my husband, we came up with the idea to drill holes around the clamps and then tie them down with strong twine.

Win!


So, drill four holes into your board. Two above and two below the space where your clamp will go.

 

Then, taking the twine (be sure to use a variety that will hold up to 4 pounds) criss-cross through the holes pulling tightly so that it holds clamp in place. Tie into a tight knot.


As an extra precaution, I did squirt hot glue into the drilled holes. I'm not really sure if that helped or not, but it made me feel better! ;)


Next, it was time to figure out how to hang these bad boys. I once again whipped out my trusty drill and used it to drill two holes at the top of the boards. Then, I simply looped twine through the holes and tied a knot behind each hole in the back.


 Now, hang your sconces!


I was originally going to use Mason Jars, but decided on these Snapple bottles instead. I love their shape and size. Perfect for fresh flowers. :) 


I added these gorgeous peonies from our local grocery store to mine. I am in love with these flowers. Seriously. Yesterday I actually kissed one in front of my husband. And now he thinks I'm insane. ;)


These sconces would look great hanging outside on your patio or front porch. They'd also lighten up any room in your home!


I can't help but smile every time I look up and see these hanging in our living room. I'm definitely smitten with this project and can't wait to make some more for our front porch!

Have you used old wood for any projects lately? Are you a peony person, too?


Don't forget to link up your projects and recipes with us at Much Ado About Monday! And, be sure to check out our awesome fabric giveaway! :)


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8 comments:

  1. These are adorable! Now to drink some Snapple so I can make some :) Found you on the Live Laugh Linky, now following on twitter! Can't wait to see more!
    Krista@ Far From Normal

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    1. Thanks for the follow Krista! Definitely start chugging the Snapple- these bottles are just too cute to toss! :)

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  2. Very cute! What a fun way to decorate with flowers.

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  3. Love love...will be featuring on my FB page later on tonight...xo

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    1. Oh my gosh! I literally squealed out loud when I saw that there was a comment from you, Lucy! I simply adore your blog. Your compliment means the world to me! Thank you so much for the feature, too! :)

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  4. These are so pretty! I just love them...and would love them in my home! Nice work!

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    1. They're so easy to make! Let me know if you create your own- I'd love to see how they turn out! :)

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