By Elina Suvi
I’ve been wondering about these lightbulb vases for some time now but never had the time to look into it and make one myself. It was a bit of a project and I may have asked my husband to help me out, but it was definitely worth it! So if you have a few incandescent lightbulbs laying around the house from that one time when they burnt out, don’t throw them away! You can make something beautiful out of them AND it’s eco-friendly! That’s a win-win right there.
Let me tell you something before you start though. You will need patience and time for this project since you’ll be handling something very fragile. Wear gloves if you have them. Also, I must say, even though some sites are saying that you can do it outside to avoid getting glass all over your floor, I say, don’t do it! If you live in a house, do it in your garage and just make sure you sweep everything up afterwards. In an apartment building, it’s a big no-no; you never know who has pets and if they walk past your door and you don’t want them stepping on your broken glass. Trashcan in a kitchen works just fine!
1. On top of the lightbulb, there’s a small brass colored disk. Pry it open with the tweezers and pull it off.
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2. That was the easy part. For the next step, move over a trashcan; if possible, wear glasses to prevent the glass from flying into your eyes. With the tip of a screwdriver, tap the black glass part of the lightbulb. It might take a minute or two to crack it, so be patient (and careful). Once it’s cracked, use pliers to pull the pieces out.
3. Warning! There’s more glass to break! I did not see that coming when I was working on my first bulb. Don’t worry, tapping it with the tip of the screwdriver should break it and you can pull the wires out along with the broken glass.
4. Rinse the bulb to make sure there’s no broken glass or dust left in or on the lightbulb.
5. Wrap a piece of wire around the silver part of the lightbulb and twist it on one side, as pictured. Take another piece of wire (or simply just the other end of it if yours is in one piece) and tie it on the other side. Twist the loose ends together.
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6. This step is optional. Wrap another colored wire around the silver base (to give the whole thing another pop of color)
7. Ok, this is it! Fill your lightbulbs with water and put some flowers in them!
Make sure you sweep your floor afterwards!
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I have to say, breaking the glass was slightly scary but thrilling at the same time. I wanted more! This is definitely not a child friendly project, so send them to play outside or let them watch cartoons while you’re working on this. When you are done, you could hang these up in their bedroom (if it's age appropriate and you know, if you even have kids) or the dining room. The options are endless. It would make a nice little gift or you could even use it as a Christmas ornament on the tree, just make sure it won’t be too heavy for the branches. Broken glass is probably not the gift you’re looking for under your tree!
Be careful and enjoy the new masterpiece!
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