It’s spring. So naturally we all have a few (bunch) of empty wine bottles lying around, the remnants of a confusing winter, and an even more confusing election season. Why not turn the dregs of a fairly grim drinking season into something bright, even hopeful?
Thus we get: spring wine crafts. For those of us not heavily into the craft scene (and yes, there is one — I recently saw a bumper sticker that read “Crafter On Board,” no joke), the words spring and wine might just mean knee-jerk (delicious) rosé. But add the word “craft” and you get something else entirely, alcohol-free, of course, but capable of giving you a kind of buzz. Especially if you make a vase. Because of bumble bees. Get it?
Dry Bottle Garden from QuartoKnows.com
You need to have a bit of a green thumb, empty wine bottles, and some gravel for this one. (Plus instructions.) But once it’s all put together, it makes for a pretty striking and low-labor horticultural centerpiece.
Wine Bottle Flower Vase from HappyClippings.com
A very simple, and very customizable way, to bring spring flowers into the home. And yes, these are beer bottles. But the same can be done with wine bottles. Just clean, and if you like, decorate, empty wine bottles, fill them part way with some cool water and one or two fresh flowers. Boom, spring renewal, done.
Hummingbird Feeder from TheChillyDog.com
A little bit more complex—as in you’ll need copper electrical wire and pliers, to start—but worth it if you live in an area with hummingbirds. Think of it this way—you had the nectar of the gods (aka wine) first, now they get to have actual nectar.
Wine Bottle Wind Chime from Woohoohome.com
A lot of wine bottle wind chimes (and there are actually a lot) involve some form of glass cutting. If you’re an experienced crafter, great, but if you’re not, there are always chimes like this—where the bottle is still entirely intact. This of course presumes you don’t live in a high-wind area, and that spring will actually be conducive to some outdoor time.
Spring Wine Cork Wreath from SheKnows.com
OK, so this isn’t actually advertised as a “spring wreath,” basically it’s just wine corks painted with nail polish and glued together. But that means a.) it’s one of the easiest DIY projects (as long as you can get access to some good glue) and b.) it’s easily adaptable to spring. Just pick your favorite springy color, green, pink, blue, dandelion-and-allergy yellow, etc.
Self-watering Wine Planters from Mnn.com
This is a bit trickier, since you’ll need to be able to (safely) cut through your wine bottle. White wine bottles work best, since then you can see all the lovely nature stuff happening inside (remember xylem and phloem?). The bottom is filled with water, while the top half of the wine bottle is inverted, filled with soil and the lovely plant of your choice.
Wine Bottle Garden Edge from BalconyGardenWeb.com
Easy and a great way to reuse the quite possibly massive collection of winter wine bottles you have yet to recycle. Clean the bottles thoroughly before use, though some sites say you can keep the labels on, as part of the decoration.
Hydroponic Wine Garden at Urbangardensweb.com
This may be beyond the reach of most of us—it was conceived at none other than enology leader Cornell University, for a student bar—but we had to include it because it’s just so damn cool. And not just because the garden will actually grow herbs like mint and basil to be used in cocktails.
Wine Decanter Airplant Terrarium?
We add a question mark here only because we haven’t found a ton (really any) of these online, but it seems like kind of a no-brainer and a fun way to use your old decanter (also an easy spring gift). You need to know a bit about air plant terrarium care, but fortunately there’s plenty about that online.
