Bottled Up
Posted by ReadyMade
The inspiration: Shopping for a light fixture tends to either dead-end at a home center or cause sticker shock at a designer store. If you’re thirsting for a better option, swig some spirits or sodas and use the glass bottles to form a chandelier. Hardware-store goods add an industrial edge. Candlelight glowing through the bottles casts a soft, sculptural glow, so find a cozy spot, indoors or out, to hang.
Skill Level
Moderate
Active Time
Weekend
Cost
$$
- Glass bottles (We used water, juice, and vodka bottles. Soda, wine, and beer bottles also work.)
- 16-inch-diameter galvanized-steel pan with at least 2-inch-tall sides, such as an oil pan or feed pan from a farm-supply store
- Stranded galvanized cable (We used 8 feet.)
- 8 cable ferrules
- 8 cable stops
- 2 stainless-steel quick links
- Plastic zip ties long enough to fit around bottles
- 5 (or more) pillar candles
- Hanging hook
Materials
- Safety glasses
- Drill
- Tape measure or straightedge
- Wire cutter
- Pliers
- Heavy-duty indoor-outdoor glue (We used white Gorilla Glue)
Tools
Prepare the pan: Don your safety glasses. Drill holes, spaced 1 inch apart, around the sides of the pan to feed zip ties through. Drill four additional holes near the top edges, evenly spaced around the pan, to run the cable through. If you plan to use the chandelier outdoors, drill holes in the bottom of the pan so rain won’t collect, and keep caps on the bottles.
Attach the cable: Cut the cable into four equal-length pieces. Loop each piece of cable through an upper hole in the pan, from outside to inside. To secure, loop cable ends through a ferrule, thread a make it cable stop on the tail, and pinch the stop with the pliers to tighten. Repeat for the hanging end of the cable, making loops big enough to fit into the quick links. Attach two looped ends in each quick link.
Add the bottles: Put some glue on the lower third of a bottle and place against the side of the pan. Feed a zip tie through a hole, around the bottle, and back through another hole. Tighten to hold the bottle in place. Press on the bottle to adhere the glue to the pan. Repeat to cover the outside edges of the pan.
Finish and hang: Arrange candles on the pan. Hang the chandelier from a hook.
