I would like to make glasses like these from the Pottery Barn. However, I have never worked with glass. Any ideas on how to cut the bottles, and then smooth the edges? Thanks.
They never come out right. If you'll notice on your regular drinking glasses, the edge is slightly rounded. The straight cut glass never "feels" right when you drink out of it.
There are several video's on youtube showing how to cut glass bottles. I watched them last year because I was going to try it--you know how that goes. It's still on my "like to try list" If I remember, you take cotton string or twine, soak it in nail polish remover, tie it on the bottle where you want it to be cut, set it on fire, and then submerge and snap off the top in a bucket of cold water. ( I think the sudden change in temperature breaks it off.) Then you wet sand it smooth. Good luck and let us know the results!
We tried this years ago with a kit. We never were able to use any of them We couldn't get them really smooth--it always felt sandy, and for the time and trouble, it was cheaper and easier to buy glasses--even second hand if you really want to be frugal. They were also ugly and never looked right.
This idea has been around for years. When I was a child, my father bought a kit to make his own glasses. He used beer bottles, pepsi bottles, and any other kind of bottle that suited his fancy.
He did find the kit as one of those " As seen on television".
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If you google "bottle cutter", you will get lots of results that have the special kit; and it should include the emery cloth to smooth the edges. It should also have good directions for all steps. I saw nice kits for $29.95.
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Request: Making Drinking Glasses From Glass Bottles
Archived on 01/02/2009
I heard or read somewhere that you can make your own drinking glasses out of glass water bottles, wine bottles, or beer bottles. Has anyone tried this? I was always afraid to do it as it sounds a little dangerous. As in, maybe safety goggles aren't enough. They said all you have to do is file a little groove around the circumference of the bottle at the height you wish the glass to be and then wrap that groove with a string that's been soaked in kerosene.
So, if you've tried this:
1. What do you use to initially file the glass?
2. How do you minimize the danger of flying glass, etc.?
3. If there are sharp edges afterwards what would you use to file down the rim?
4. Would a glass cutter work instead?
Planet Papier Mache from Wash DC
Answers:
RE: Making Drinking Glasses From Glass Bottles
This was a popular shop class project when I was in high school back in the 1970s. You cut off the neck of the bottle, glue it to the bottom and it becomes the stem of the glass. You do have to use a special glass cutter, which I believe you can get at a crafts store. They are novel, but the big problem with this type of glassware is that the sides of the glasses are so thick so that when you drink out of them, they dribble. I say don't waste your time. If you are looking for fun, frugal glassware, try the mason jars that ready-made spaghetti sauces (like Classico) come in. They work great, are good quality, hold a lot, and are fun to drink from! (11/14/2005)
By Mary
RE: Making Drinking Glasses From Glass Bottles
To make edges of glass smooth to drink from, use sand paper and oil, it works great. (05/04/2007)
By jack sparrow
how to make the edge smooth on cut glass
First of all you cut the beer bottle or wine bottle, then you go to any auto parts store an get some valve grinding compound. Put the valve grinding compound on a sponge and wet it. Then you lay the sponge down and turn the glass up side down on the sponge and start twisting. The edges will come out smooth and rounded. And that's how to make drinking glasses from glass bottles. (12/10/2007)
