Drinking Glasses from Wine Bottles

Step 5: DONE!

Before you stick your glass in the dishwasher, you can also etch your initials on your glass to make it truly yours.

Or etch the glass with your sweeties' initials, making it a nice gift.

Of course, if you have a laser engraver, it is even easier and you can make some very intricate designs that way.

Cheers!

Comments

[cbg3868]

I am not crazy about the tools you uses to polish or grind the rim of your class. Fortunately, I have stained glass tools. I would use a stained glass grinder for the initial smoothing. There are various grinding wheels that provide the initial smoothing. Next, I would choose various level of wet or dry sanding paper to fully smooth the edge. My favorite winery, Iron Gate, in Mebane, NC offers one of its best wines in a blue bottle. Therefore I have no trouble getting quality wine in a blue bottle.

[fstedie]

I have moved on to using a stained glass grinder since I first published this instructable. However, not all of us have access to such tools. Whatever you use, just be careful!

[technosapien]

Hi! If you use the wire brush to leave a metallic sheen, is the glass dishwasher safe (or drinking-safe)? Or will that sheen eventually fade off with use/washing over time? Thanks, great instructable!

[shabushabu4613]

If the wire wheel is made of steel (even stainless steel), I'd be worried about it rusting over time, but it may wear off before that. If the wire wheel is Aluminum, it will also oxidize, and dull. Some people will argue that excessive amounts of Aluminum can have toxic effects, but since the average person is estimated to consume 3-10mg of Aluminum daily as it is, I doubt that even if you ate the rim it would be a problem (much less so than the lacerations such an act would cause...). Nonetheless, at least a heavier metal, like gold isn't being used, which has well known toxic effects. The metal is most likely deposited as the wires pass over the rough crystalline structure, and as the wires help break off minute, weak, and incomplete pieces of the matrix, thus smoothing it, larger pieces of the matrix will become impregnated with metal scraped and broken off of the wires, also effectively making the surface smoother, as long as the metal is retained. How you handle these glasses is up to you.

[relict]

While gold can cause heavy metal toxicity, it's extremely rare. The human body isn't able to digest gold in pure form, and it typically passes through without harm. There are forms of gold that can be absorbed, typically used in folk medicine. Even in these forms, dosages have to massively exceed recommended levels before health problems arise.

[angelabchua]

Im totally going to make these!

[Earthymom]

this was a great tutorial. I have made these glasses before and used a diamond tip dremel  it took much less time than the sand paper method. You have inspired me to start making more glasses, thanks

[larkshyn]

Earthymom, I am being told there are several different kinds of diamond tips for the dremel, can you tell me which one you usually use for this?  My fiance and I want to make a bunch for vases for our wedding then later just use as glasses. :) Anyway, we just want to make sure we attempt fully prepared!  Thanks!!

[suzyqhoo]

Nice instructable!  I have cut my own bottles before, but could never get the edges smooth with the included "shavings" that you were supposed to grind the edge in.  This looks do-able to me!  Thanks for posting!

[amandapanda31]

This is great! I saw something like this on www.uncommongoods.com and i wanted to figure out how to make my own instead of spending so much money on 2 glasses. Where can i buy that chemical for the etching and is there a specifiv type of paper you have to use for it? thanks!

[suzyqhoo]

AP, the glass etching cream is called Armor Etch and it is sold at Michael's Arts & Crafts (@ $13 for a small bottle) and probably at Hobby Lobby too.  One bottle will last you a year or longer, it takes very little cream to accomplish the etch.  Very cool stuff!  And Michael's sells the stencils too, although I think they are kinda pricey.  I get a roll of contact paper from the dollar store and make my own masks/stencils.  Good luck!

[Deadicated]

Do you think I can use them to make soy wax container candles? The melting point of soy wax is about 150˚

[omnibot]

It should not be a problem since glass needs over 1000 degrees to melt, the flame could damage the glass but since wine-bottles tend to be thick it should work but beer-bottles are more fragile. Try it and find out.

[mattface]

Man these are the dogs danglies. You could make kiddy beakers from beer bottles...