Wine bottle jack-o-lanterns

Halloween + drinking = wine bottle jack-o-lanterns!

Turn regular cheap wine bottles into some funky Halloween decorations. Halloween decorations that you can drink! Even better.


This Instructable was brought to you by Krylon

Step 1: Materials

What you need:

• Cheap wine. Charles Shaw is always a winner here. $2 a bottle at Trader Joe's
• Masking tape
• Sharpie
• X-acto knife
• Spray paint. Definitely need orange, green is optional.
• Bucket

The Goo Gone is for wine bottles that have particularly sticky labels that are hard to remove. Fortunately, the Charles Shaw labels are easy to remove and it wasn't needed here.

Step 2: Ditch those labels

Soak the bottles in a bucket of water for a little while and then peel and scrape off the soggy mess. This only took about 10-15 minutes, I think. I actually forgot about them on my front stoop for a bit. I'm an awesome neighbor.

Step 3: Tape it up

Break out the masking tape! Put a large working are on the front of the bottle. The "front" here being the side facing you when the seams of the bottle are pointing to the side.

Also wrap a bit of tape around the top of the bottle to avoid painting the cork and lip of the bottle.

Step 4: Draw faces!

Use the Sharpie to draw some Halloween faces on the bottles. Have fun with this step, it's better to be loose and see what you make.

Step 5: Cut and peel

Use the X-acto to cut the edges of the faces you just drew. Make sure to get all the way around. Then just peel away everything else, being careful not to go too fast. You may have missed a spot and don't want to go back.

If you do mess up and tear the tape, you can patch it with a bit more masking tape. That's what happened to the happy face on the right.

Step 6: Paint the stems

Break out the green spraypaint and spray the necks of the bottles. Wait a while, at least a day, before applying some masking tape over these to protect them for the next stage. Do it too early and the tape will pull off some of the paint when it's removed.

Step 7: Paint the bodies

Now use the orange spraypaint and apply a series of light coats with 20 minutes in between to let each coat dry.

Once you're done, let the bottles dry for at least an hour before removing any of the tape.

Step 8: Peel off and enjoy!

Slowly remove all of the tape and you have some wine bottle jack-o-lanterns! While these bottles are dry to the touch they may still be a little tacky and smell like spraypaint. Let them fully dry for a few days, or even a week, before putting them out or giving them to someone else. No one likes a smelly present.

Finally, don't hesitate to drink them, fearing that you'll ruin the look. They still look good even when empty.

Enjoy!

Comments

[cjpetit]

It would also be cool if you put some Christmas lights inside!

[SelkeyMoonbeam]

Ethanol actually works pretty well for removing wine labels too.

[fungus amungus]

True, but water comes out of my faucet :)

[genterara]

Never Drink & Spray.
Christmas is coming, you can go on full Santa mode and paint candy cane bottles.

[fungus amungus]

Nice! I'm already planning a few Xmas versions. Just might have to use that candy cane one as well. :)

[qbock]

The paint doesn't stick to the bottle do you have any sugestions

[fungus amungus]

Did you do a light coat? Make sure the glass is clean and do a very light coat of paint first. Be sure to wait for a while for it to dry and repeat the process. If you try to do it all at once it'll drip off.

[genterara]

Thanks for the instructable. Since I was already drunk after two wine bottles, I decided to also follow the candy corn bottle instructable: http://swelldesigner.blogspot.com/2011/09/candy-corn-bottle-vases.html

[fungus amungus]

Ooh, nice pairing

[tvengineer]

Thanks for this ibble... I really enjoyed making these :-)

[fungus amungus]

Hey! Nice job!

[Manny B]

Clever. When I first saw these, I figured you had started with CLEAR glass bottles and painted from the inside in reverse order (eye/mouth/nose 1st then, orange).
You still have a great recycling idea.

[mrq2u]

Why not paint the bottle with the orange paint first then wrap bottle with painters tape and then cut out designs and paint designs?

[fungus amungus]

Then you're painting twice instead of once.

[ModlrMike]

You could drop a glow stick into them and set them out for Halloween.

[mbenner]

Great idea! I was racking my brain trying to figure out how to light it up. Thanks!

[aholmes2]

If you use white wine I wonder if it would look golden as if lit or of the orange behind would mess that up.... Hmmm. I may have to experiment.

[DreamingSheep]

Not quite sure, was just wondering a similar thing, but more about what it would look like empty. I'd be worried there there isn't enough light getting into the bottle with all the paint on it. Maybe with a thin enough layer, or if you only paint about two thirds of the bottle (leaving the back unpainted).

Love the idea of an LED too. Was thinking about a candle but there's always the risk of the glass breaking from the heat. Maybe a flickering/flashing LED stapped to some LR44 batteries so it can be dropped inside the bottle? You'd lose the Golden look you're after by emptying the bottle, but you could paint the 'face' or waterproof the LED circuit?

[IamDeirdre]

In a pinch you could drop a glow stick in there! Very low tech. :-)

[fungus amungus]

Good idea to try out. Can place the bottle on top of an LED candle.

[El DJ]

This would be great for pumpkin mead :D

[jaycodrew]

if you used a light colored bottle, or a clear glass bottle; you could fill it with water and green or yellow highlighter mix which glows under a black light. I would leave the bottoms unpainted and under light a couple with a black light for an eery glow coming from the mouth and eyes

[lmnopeas]

These Rock!

[notalis1970]

I'm sooo doing this. I American but live in Italy and I'm the only one in town who decorates for Halloween, so what's better than a bunch of vino bottle jack-o-lanterns? LOL

My sister in Texas said she prints antique poison and medicine bottle lables and puts them on bottles at Halloween, too. Cute idea.

[porcupinemamma]

Just thinking you could put pumpkin punch in it or toddy swamp juice (fruit punch with gummy worms perhaps?) :0) You made a fun project!

[fungus amungus]

Ooh, didn't even think of other drinks to put inside. Makes it more fun for the kids.

[Dream Dragon]

Neat idea, I wonder what it would look like after you emptied it if you shone an led inside?

[fungus amungus]

Could be good, but probably a better effect with a white wine bottle.

[chabias]

Very cute idea!

[sunshiine]

Love this entry! Thanks so much for sharing.
sunshiine

[sandraellis]

This is actually pretty clever and will be a great conversation starter when you have guests over. Plus you dont have to clean up a sloppy mess!

[somewhiteguy]

These look great and I'll definitely pass on to my wine-loving family that like to have Fall parties.