12 More Ways to Reuse Glass

1.  Candle holders:  Put Epsom salt in the bottom and place a candle on top to make Epsom Salt Snow Mason Jar Candles.  (Or use any jar or glass you have around.)

2.  Snowman altered bottles.  You can even take an online workshop to learn how to make these.

3.  Light bulb ornaments.

4.  Use as vases.

5.  Catch fireflies.

6.  Use empty wine bottles as candle holders for taper candles.

7.  Make a snow globe.

8.  Give gifts in them - chocolates, hot chocolate, little collections of crafty things for your crafty friends, homemade salsa.

9.  Fill them up with bath salts that you make yourself  .

10.  Ribbon dispenser. Just cut a slot in the top of the lid.

11.  Fill them with stones and sue them as bookends.

12.  Memorabilia specimen jars.

Previous posts on B.B. Bellezza about reusing glass:

Don't Throw Out that Broken Mirror (and don't recycle it either!)

15 Ways to Reuse Glass

Reuse Glass Jars: Memorabilia Specimen Jars

I take a lot of little road trips to strange and interesting places.  Sometimes I pick up little do-dads here and there.  Maybe it's a ticket stub from the museum we went to.  Maybe it's an interesting stone I found along the way.  Perhaps another little souvenir. 

From a very young age I have been a scrapbooker, so I have been collecting things for my scrapbooks my entire life.  Unfortunately, the older I get and the more responsibilities I have, the less time I have for scrapbooking.

I have discovered digital scrapbooking, which you no doubt have noticed if you are a frequent visitor here!  I find it to be so relaxing and much more simple than the old way.  I don't have to bring out a bunch of paper and supplies and spend days on layouts.  (I am an affiliate, but that doesn't take away from the fact that I love My Memories.  I have a discount for you if you're interested in giving digital scrapbooking a try!)

Even so, there are plenty of tangible items that I have laying around that I can't bear to give up, but I have no where to put them.

I came up with an idea for keep the items!  Glass jars!  Sort of like specimen jars, but with memorabilia instead.

For example, the beach is a popular vacation destination.  Maybe you've even already done this:  gather sand and sea shells and place them in a jar (a reused jar, of course!)

I think this is a great idea for any destination.  I always have ticket stubs, little trinkets, stones and whatever else I might find and pick u along the way.  Just place them in a jar.

Then you can even make a cute sticker with the date, where you were and what you did.  (You could even use the My Memories software to make the sticker.)  

How cute would a bunch of jars lined up on your shelf from your different travels be?  Or use them as bookends!

I haven't actually tried it yet, but I will definitely share when I make the first one!

Other ideas:

Gifts:  Make them for gifts!  Put little things in the jar that remind you of the person you are making it for.  Think of the secret jokes you share or the fun times you have had together and find small inexpensive trinkets to commemorate them.

If you go on a group trip - make one for each of the participants for a holiday gift.  Then you get to remember the fun you had all over again.

Have a friend you haven't seen in a while?  This would be a great way to get reacquainted with them!  Send them a memorabilia specimen jar with some of the fun memories you had in the past.

Wedding:  Fill up jars with little things about the Bride and Groom - maybe little known facts - and use them as centerpieces for the reception.

These could even be used as personalized wedding favors in smaller weddings.

They don't have to be expensive.  The point is the actual memory, not the cost.

Are you going to make a memorabilia specimen jar?  What will you put in your jar?  Click on comment and let me know.

Don't Throw Out that Broken Mirror! (and don't recycle it either)

I recently did a post about ways to reuse glass, which reminded me that American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, MD showcases the work of mirror artist Bob Benson.

The tree above is his work, as well as other pieces throughout the museum. 

We had the pleasure of meeting him when we visited the museum recently.  He was explaining his Flatulence Post installation at the museum.  Yes, flatulence.  Farts are always funny, I don't care what you say.  Lighten up!

Photography isn't allowed inside the museum, but you can check out the Flatulence Post on the artist's website.  It's much funnier with the sound effects in person!  There was an actual farting contest that was recorded, which you can relive by pressing a button on the Flatulence Post.  Also, check out the artist rendering of different farts such as the "Chinese Firecracker Fart", the "Bottom Blast", the "Tuttie Fruitie" or the "Limburger Special."

(I must say, I never did think I would be discussing farts on this blog, but, here we are....)

Back to recycling....

You cannot actually recycle mirror.  In fact, you can ruin a whole bin of recycling if you throw the mirror in with the glass that can actually be recycled.  So, the best thing to do with mirrors is to reuse them.

I can't think of a better way to reuse mirror than by making a mirror tree!

If you want to scale it down a little - perhaps you don't want to create an entire mirror tree - be inspired by Bob Benson's tree and create a mobile, or a string of mirrors, to hang in your window.

15 Ways to Reuse Glass Bottles

I have been addicted to glass jars and bottles for a little while now.  Obviously, I am a crafter, so I mostly use my bottles and jars for storage of buttons, beads, washers and other little parts.  I also put pens, markers, scissors and paintbrushes.

To reuse glass bottles and jars, clean them out thoroughly prior to using them in any of the following projects.

Here are 15 great ways to reuse glass:

1. Put them on a tree!

Legend of bottle trees:

According to Wikipedia, Glass bottle trees originated in Northern Africa.  Superstitious people believed that a genii or imp could be captured in a glass bottle. Legend had it that empty glass bottles placed outside the home could the evil spirits at night, and it would be destroyed the next day in the sunshine. The practice of hanging bottles in trees became widespread first in the Southern states of the United States and now more widespread, where they continue to be used today as colorful garden ornaments.

 

2.  Use them in mosaic art.  

One of the most amazing and beautiful examples of this is at Philadelphia's Magic Gardens.

click on the photo to go to my entire set from Philadelphia's Magic Gardens

3.  Use them as vases.  You can use beer bottles, wine bottles, old spaghetti sauce jars or any other glass bottle.  

Here's a cutely decorated vase tutorial:

 Paper and Ribbon Water Bottle Vase Tutorial

4.  Use as a candler holder.  Put a taper candle in an old wine bottle or put a votive or tea light in an old mason jar or cleaned out spaghetti jar.

5.  Make "gifts in a jar."  There are tons of books and recipes out there.  Basically you layer all the dry ingredients of a baked good or soup (and many other things), tie on the recipe and give it as a gift.

6.  Use for storage for your office or for crafts.  Separate out small items - paperclips and thumbtacks for your office or buttons or beads for your crafting supplies.

7.  Make terrariums!

How to make a terrarium from a repurposed glass bottle.

8.  Reuse your glass bottles and jars as drinking glasses.

9.  Put a pump on top and use as a soap dispenser.

10.  Reuse your glass bottles to make an oil lamp.

11.  Make sand art.

12.  Use them as windows in your home.

13.  13 Coolest Things Made from Glass Bottles from the Daily Green

(The above photo is from that post.)

14.  Keep your collections in jars:  marbles, buttons, etc.

15.  Reuse a baby jar to make a cool pin cushion.

I hope I've inspired you to reuse glass bottles!  What do you do with your glass bottles?  Are you going to try any of these now?

Brand Spanking New Item!

Square Glass Pendant PDF Tutorial

I am thrilled to bring you the full-color PDF Square Glass Tile Tutorial. Once you purchase it, I will send you a pdf file in an email with instruction and a list of resources to find the supplies to make these cool pendants.

I love these pendants because you can be so creative. The possibilities are only limited by your own imagination!

Available now in my Etsy Shop (under zines and tutorials), and for only $6!

Customize your Jewelry!

Here are some new pendant necklaces that are new and fresh in my Etsy Shop! They are various pieces of ephemera behind a piece of glass. I am just crazy about them!
Bird on a cancelled stamp (I almost kept this one!)

Map
This could be customized to different locations, just contact me to see if I have a map of the location you are looking for!


Music

Japanese Paper

The other great thing about these pendants is that I can make a customized pendant just for you! If you have a little piece of paper you would like made into a pendant, just contact me. The pendants are 7/8" X 7/8", so if you are giving me something that is bigger than that, I will obviously have to cut it.

Another option is to have a photo made into a pendant. If you email me the photo, I'll do the rest! There is an extra $3 charge for the photo pendants (So they are $18) unless you can give me a physical photo the correct size for the pendant.

Let me know what kind of pendant I can make you!

WORKSHOP

Feeling creative and want to make your own custom glass pendant to give as a holiday gift or to wear yourself?
Come to my workshop on Sunday, November 29, 2009 at 2 p.m.

at BUiLDiNG CHARACTER

342 N. Queen Street, Rear Warehouses, Lancaster, PA 17603

Prepayment is required. Either mail a check to Building Character or you can call in your credit card. Email info@BuildingCharacter.biz or call (717) 394-7201

It's only $10 and you can bring your own paper, photos, etc. to make your own pendant, or choose from the selection I will bring with me.

BUiLDiNG CHARACTER is hosting a variety of workshops mid-Nov through Dec. Check out their website for more details.

Faux Stained Glass Project

In between nursing a sick boyfriend, a huge sewing frenzy (photos to follow from that sometime soon) and getting sick myself, I started a new project at a workshop at Building Character:

It is faux stained glass. Well, at least this is the start to it. It will be a sign for my stand at artMarket. Above it is pictured with just the black.

I really didn't think that I could do this, but it was easier than I expected. If you are in the Lancaster, PA area, you really should check out the workshops at Building Character.

I love this sign in black and white, but I was told that that it wouldn't be stained glass if I didn't add color, so I started to add color. I will definitely share the finished project.