Use A Plastic Bottle To Create A Beautiful Suncatcher With A DIY

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Every year, Americans chug through about 50 billion plastic water bottles, according to Earthday.org, and that plastic doesn't just disappear after the last sip. Upcycling plastic bottles into something new and beautiful is a smart way to reduce our dependence on landfills, and you can find a wide range of these DIYs popping up on social media. One unexpected idea that adds beauty and color to your home involves making spiral suncatchers. All you'll need to do is carefully cut a water bottle into a spiral shape, paste on dried and pressed flowers, and let it dry. Add a few extra charms and a hanging string, and you've got an easy and whimsical DIY suncatcher ready to shimmer on your porch or in a bright window.

To make this stunning DIY suncatcher with dried florals, a clear, smooth water bottle is best, such as a SmartWater bottle. Plan ahead by pressing and preserving some gorgeous spring and summer flowers, or look for an affordable option that will give you some variety in the florals, like these CONVELIFE's 106 piece Dried Flowers. While you could use a classic school glue for this project, another option like Mod Podge or LOOCTOT Plastic Glue will dry super clear and adhere better to plastic. Other helpful materials include hanging glass beads, a black marker, jump rings, needle nose pliers, a blade to cut the bottle, a paint brush, and cord to hang the suncatcher. 

To get started creating your suncatcher, make sure the label is cleanly removed from the bottle. With a permanent marker, trace a line swirling down the bottle, roughly 1 inch wide. This line marks where you'll need to cut to create a spiral shape out of the plastic. Taking your crafting knife, carefully cut along the line you've drawn until the bottle unfurls into a spiral. Remove the bottom of the bottle, but you can keep the top attached if you choose. 

Working in small sections, paint glue onto the inside of the plastic spiral strip. Next, lay pieces of your pressed florals into the wet glue. As each section dries, you'll move on to the next portion of the spiral until the entire piece is covered in flowers. After all of the flowers are attached and the glue has dried underneath, paint a second layer of glue over the top to seal the flowers in. 

As everything is drying, take out jump rings, needle nose pliers, and hanging beads and add the rings to each bead. Poke small holes into the plastic spiral at about 1 inch increments and attach the jump rings so that the beads dangle from your suncatcher. When you're happy with the final look, add a hole at the top of the plastic spiral and thread a cord or wire hook through it. Make sure that the cord is a good length for the suncatcher to catch the light if it's hanging in a window.

If you're looking for a budget-friendly suncatcher DIY that anyone can make, this is definitely a really good option, especially if you want to make it your own. To personalize this suncatcher, you can use colorful beads instead of clear crystals or. Alternate between a few different colors or even create a full rainbow up the spiral. Permanent marker colors, ribbons, stickers, leaves, pebbles, and other materials can also be incorporated into the suncatcher to give it a more fanciful or forest-like theme. Hang multiple spiral-cut bottles on a dowel rod for a fuller, more colorful display.

If you want to add even more sparkle to your suncatcher, you could use glitter on this DIY project. One way to do this might be to sprinkle a bit of glitter after you add the florals so that it sits within the first layer of glue and is sealed in by the second layer. You could also try using a spray glitter over the whole suncatcher, such as the Krylon Glitter Shimmer, which is available in colors like silver, green, gold, and pink.

One other thing to consider with this project is how sharp the edge of the cut plastic might be. To prevent slicing your fingers while working, file the edges of the spiral down with sandpaper or carefully use a lighter outdoors to soften them and round them out. This is such an easy way to repurpose a plastic water bottle around your home, you might find yourself filling every window.