This month the Inspiration Tribe is working with the theme of Knock Off projects.
Loving the industrial look of repurposed bottles into light fixtures, I looked for one that I can add into my workshop makeover challenge.
I found this one in the Ballard Designs catalog and loved it... in a kinda sorta way. If it was more industrial - rustic looking.
And, I had a large bottle to use for it. Knowing I that I could add a rustic look, it had potential.
Using a bottle cutter I allowed enough space to hold the socket and a bulb inside. Then scored the glass.
When I cut glass bottles (which is a bit more challenging than cutting tiles), I use the temperature shock method because it gives a smooth break by scoring the glass with the cutter first.
That shock method is just simply using containers of boiling water and very cold water. (Safety glasses, rubber gloves and tongs are required.)
1. Score the glass with a cutter, with steady contact, all around the bottle or subject you are using without pressure. (pressing too hard will create disasters.)
2. Dunk the scored bottle into boiling water ( I rolled the bottle in a large kettle of boiled water in my double basin sink.)
3. Then shock the heated bottle by putting it into cold water. (Again, I used a large kettle of cold water with ice cubes added to it and rolled the bottle in it on the other side of the sink.)
4. The bottle will take a few seconds to take affect, but you will hear the "pop" and the two sections will come apart while giving off a bit of air pressure. Sometimes, you may need to go back and forth from hot to cold to hot, etc. But do it quickly to utilize the water temperatures. If you end up with the glass break in the boiling water, retrieve the parts with tongs. Switching can also change the water temperature. (Tip: keep more boiled water handy at the stove to add to the hot and a bowl of cubes to add to the cold.)
Not all cuts will be perfect but it is much more effective than the "tapping method".
Have extra bottles in case of bad splits. With this one, I had a one shot deal and it turned out well.
Then I gathered up a plug in type of light socket with a cord switch to be hooked up and hung.
And, bought an awesome vintage light bulb.
I'm so in love with the style.
To insert the wiring through the bottle top, I had to remove the wires first. (Easy to do. Just loosen the screws to release the wiring.)
I replaced the bottle cap and punched a hole through it to feed the loose wire into the bottle.
Then replaced the wires by tightening them around the screws and put the socket back together.
After sanding the cut area of the glass with sand paper and a bit of water to smooth it, I used electrical tape as the trim. It was too stretchy, so I removed it and used black duct tape that I cut down to 1.5" to wrap around the brim for about 3/4" on the inside and 3/4" on the outside.
Then the fun part: added the light bulb, hooked it, and hung the pendant up.
The hardest part of the project was a good glass break. Otherwise, it's really easy!
Pretty enlightening, isn't it? :)
It's going to look awesome over my workbench. Now I'm off to turn a dresser into the workbench with some fun ideas "attached" to it!
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