There are a couple of things you should know about me before I start this article: firstly I actually don’t mind a little DIY, I can’t say I’m always that good at it, but I do like a challenge!
Secondly if there a shortcut to be found, I’ll normally find it!
Knowing all of that we can now continue…
I found an article online a few days ago showing you how to make a Wine Bottle Christmas Light that involved drilling a hole in the back of a wine bottle, then threading through the Christmas lights. I thought it looked quite easy so I gave it a try. After 20 minutes of drilling and still with more to do I got bored. Therefore I came up with my own way of making Wine Bottle Christmas Lights, and I PROMISE that it will take less than half the time!
You will need
screwdriver
hammer
safety goggles (because we will be dealing with a small amount of broken glass)
an empty bottle. I selected Cliff Raven Torrontes, but that’s only because they are my winery this week!
a short strand of 50 bulb Christmas lights (with a plug only on one end). Make sure it is no more than 50 bulbs as you won’t be able to fit any more in the bottle.
How to:
1. Rinse out your wine bottle and remove the label. If you want you could leave the labels on I guess…
2. You’ll need to be careful for the next bit and make sure you are wearing your safety goggles, because Christmas would suck if you lost an eye whilst doing this!
Place the screwdriver in the “punt” end of the wine bottle and gently tap it with a hammer. A couple of taps should be sufficient, you’ll only need a hole big enough to thread in the lights.
3. Empty out the broken glass and give the bottles another rinse to ensure you have removed any glass shards. You can now start to thread the lights.
CAUTION: The edges of the hole you have just made will be sharp, so use something to push the lights in. I used the handle end of a spoon
4. Once the lights are fully inserted (as shown in the photo) it is worth sealing them in with a thick piece of tape.
5. Now all you have to do is set the bottles down, hide the wire and plug the lights in.
6. Merry Christmas!
streamertyer
Great idea. Made myself one of these after seeing this. A couple of tips that may help – 1. I smoothed out the sharp edges of the hole in the bottom with a grinding bit on my Dremel tool. 2. I tied a string around the center of the light strand and dropped it into the upside down bottle and out the neck. This allowed me to pull a few lights up into the neck. 3. I used adhesive-backed rubber cabinet door bumpers (4) on the bottom to add stability, to clear space for the cord to come out. 4. Used 50 strand LED lights to keep it cool.
Kris Chislett
Wow, thanks for the advice! You are obviously WAY more handy than I am! My biggest concern was the sharp edges at the bottom so I’m glad you managed to find a work-around! You should look me upon Facebook (facebook.com/blogyourwine) and show everyone photos of your creation! Thanks again for taking the time to comment and I’m glad you liked!
Suevm
How feet of lights did you use? What kind of Christmas lights did you use?
Kris Chislett
I just used “regular” tree lights. The ones with the smallest bulbs possible. I also want to say I used less than 6 feet of lights. Any more than that and you’ll have a hard time fitting them in there.
Jan
Did you find that the raw edges of the glass damaged the light cords at all? Did the tape protect the cords from being damaged?
Kris Chislett
No, they’re fine. What I would say it that it might be wise to use some clear caulk to secure the wire in the bottom, especially if you there are kids around. You don’t want their fingers get stuck in there.
Jessica
Does your bottle sit level on the ground with the cord coming out the bottom?
Kris Chislett
They certainly “rock” a little, but not enough for them to fall over. One thing you could do is file-away a small indentation that the wire can sit in.