How to Make Painted Wine Bottles

By
Caylin Harris
Caylin Harris
Caylin Harris
Caylin Harris is a crafter, stylist, and writer with over 10 years' experience creating easy DIY projects. She has created craft and DIY projects for The Pioneer Woman magazine and the "Naturally, Danny Seo" TV show on NBC.
Learn more about The Spruce Crafts' Editorial Process
Updated on 01/23/21
light and dark blue painted wine bottles with foliage in them

The Spruce / Caylin Harris

Project Overview
  • Working Time: 30 mins
  • Total Time: 2 hrs
  • Skill Level: Beginner
  • Estimated Cost: $10

Decorative glass bottles can be pricey. So rather than paying retail prices, you can make your own painted bottles at a much lower cost in colors that perfectly match your style. Over time, save wine bottles or any other interestingly shaped bottles that you'd want to paint and display as decor pieces. The project itself is quick and easy. You simply have to remove any labels from the bottles, clean them well inside and out, and then spray them with primer and paint. To make the biggest design impact, consider painting multiple bottles of varying shapes and sizes in coordinating colors. You can use the bottles as vases, and they even make great customized gifts.

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What You'll Need

Equipment / Tools

  • Dish soap
  • Plastic scraper (optional)
  • Adhesive remover (optional)
  • Drop cloth (or other protective surface you don't mind getting paint on)
  • Spray primer
  • Spray paint (in colors of your choosing)

Materials

  • Empty glass bottles

Instructions

spray paint and wine bottle supplies

The Spruce / Caylin Harris

  1. Remove the Labels

    The glass bottles need to be cleaned well on the inside and the outside. Fill your sink with hot water and dish soap, and let the bottles soak for about an hour. Then, rinse them while attempting to remove any label stuck to the glass. A plastic scraper and adhesive remover can be helpful if a label doesn't easily peel away.

    Once the labels are off, give the bottles another quick soap and rinse to make sure any residue is completely gone.

    washing the label off a bottle
    The Spruce / Caylin Harris 

  2. Prime the Bottles

    A lot of people skip the primer step, but it's key to having the paint job last and look good on the bottles. Choose a spray primer specifically meant to help paint adhere to glass.

    Make sure the glass bottles are completely dry, and set them on a drop cloth or other protective surface in a well-ventilated area. Then, coat each bottle in a thin, even layer of primer. Hold the spray primer can several inches away from the bottle. (The can will typically give a specific distance recommendation.) If you hold it too close, it can cause primer buildup and drips on the bottle.

    Once you have an even coat, wait for the primer to dry before moving on to painting. Your primer can should list the product's dry time.

    priming the bottles
    The Spruce / Caylin Harris 

  3. Paint the Bottles

    Now for the fun part: adding color to your bottles. It's best to paint one bottle at a time with the others out of the way, so no accidental overspray results in an uneven paint surface.

    Work slowly with thin, even sprays. Always keep the spray paint can moving as you're spraying each bottle, so no paint buildup or drips occur. You can always fill in areas that need more coverage, but it's harder to smooth spots that got too much paint.

    Finally, let the bottles fully dry before you use them. The spray paint can should list how long the product takes to be dry to the touch, as well as to dry completely.

    painting a bottle
    The Spruce / Caylin Harris