Use Old Bottle Caps To Transform An Old Pot Lid Into Rustic Hanging Porch Décor

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There's something about the addition of bottle caps on everyday items that inspires a vintage feel. They can be turned into all sorts of décor, like made into a mirror's border, glued onto driftwood as wall art, or arranged inside a frame as a decorative display for a cabinet or mantle. If you're into this brand of classic, nostalgia-sparking appeal, another idea is to use the bottle caps to make a wind chime.

A great example of this was posted back in 2017 on Facebook by a user who captioned the homemade piece, "Some colour for the garden." Not only does it upcylce old bottle caps, but the caps hang from an old pot lid. The bottle caps are connected with jump rings, creating a charming wind chime for your porch or garden that catches both light and sound with every breeze. 

So instead of throwing them out, save your bottle caps and try repurposing those pot and pan lids with this clever hack. For the wind chime, there's no exact bottle cap count to recommend; it just depends on style preference and pot lid size. As a rough guide, though, aim for five to 10 caps per string. A few supplies you'll need include a thread needle and two pairs of pliers, like these jewelry-making chain nose pliers at Amazon ($7.79).

You'll also need the jump rings; you typically can find a pack in the same price range. For example, this 500-piece Kopox set for $4.98. Also gather fishing wire, a drill with a small twist bit (for the bottle caps), and precision hole punch pliers, like this Speedwox 1.5-millimeter round-hole metal punch (Amazon, $9.49). With the exception of the drill, all these items can be purchased for $10 or less.

In a video tutorial by Fort Bend County Libraries, you can see how these old bottle caps are strung together. Start by using the hole puncher to create holes on the top and bottom edges of the bottle caps. It's best to also determine the number of caps beforehand to avoid having to do this again later in the process. The next step is constructing the bottle cap strings with jump rings. To do this, hold a jump ring with pliers on each side of the split, twist one side toward you, and the other away to open a small gap. Next, thread the ring through a hole on the bottle cap, then twist back until the ends meet flush.

After wrapping up this step, the next phase in the process is drilling small holes into the rim of the pot lid with a power drill. As a guide for the hole spacing, it's best that the holes are at least about 2 inches apart so the bottle caps won't look cluttered and messy once the chime is hung. Now it's time to use the fishing wire to create a hanging loop for each string of bottle caps and jump rings. To do this, you can either thread the string through the lid's holes with jewelry pliers or use a sewing needle.

First, cut off a piece of fishing wire roughly 6 inches long. Thread the wire through one hole on the lid, create a knot on top (not beneath the lid), and then trim any excess wire. Repeat this process for each of the drilled holes. Once the loops are complete, attach the bottle cap strings by securing the top jump rings onto them.

One of the great things about this DIY (just one of the endless ways to reuse bottle caps around the house) is that it offers a different approach to decorating with metallics, balancing that finish with the rustic charm the bottle caps bring to the design. You can even switch up the wind chime design by painting the caps or pot lid, while still holding on to the piece's overall homespun look. One way to do this is by white washing the pot lid for a distressed finish. 

If you do add a coat of paint, just be sure to drill the holes into the pot lid beforehand and then examine them afterward. This will ensure they haven't been sealed with paint. This technique is easy to do and latex or chalk paint works well for this type of finish. Another way to put a spin on this chime idea is by simply using fewer bottle caps for a more sparkly appearance. 

You can also swap out the jump rings for keychains or even threaded beads, the types often used for making charm bracelets. Additionally, the outside of the lid can be covered with a thin string of jute rope or a twig wreath. And if you really want to upgrade this loop around the pot lid's edge, make it a colored rope, or one with some embellishment, like this natural twine with green leaves (Amazon, $6.49). Also, if you do add rope, securing it via the holes in the pot lid with fishing wire may be best, since that will hold up better than glue in extreme weather.