How to "upcycle" your Leonista Bottles
HOW TO UPCYCLE YOUR LEONISTA BOTTLES
Upcycling is a great way to take something that’s considered waste and repurpose it in an attempt to reduce one's footprint, give something a second life and increase its value. Once you have finished your bottle of Leonista, you can remove the tops of the bottle to create a variety of things such as pot plants, candles and holders for stationery - or even bar tools.
There are a couple of methods to remove the tops, ranging from a glass cutter, tile cutter, dremel tool and even using Acetone – nail polish remover and string.
We teamed up with one of our favourite bartenders from Cause Effect, Matthew Cox, to show you how to use a bottle cutter.
ESSENTIALS
Bottle(s) of Leonista and/or your choice
Bottle Cutter
2 x large pots
Stove
Lots of ice
OPTIONAL EXTRAS
(anything that you would like to decorate it with)
Soil
Plants
Candle Wax
Pebbles
BOTTLE CUTTER
"The bottle cutter I used is from Perfect Laser and can be purchased online. It can also be used for things such as flower vases, candle holders, drinking glasses, pendant lights and more."
STEP 1:
Mark the cutting line of the bottle according to placement of the label, note it can only be done on a flat surface and not on a curved edge of the bottle.
STEP 2:
Rotate the cutter around the bottle, one 360 degree motion will do. Make sure to be accurate to ensure a smooth cut.
Step 2: Cut the bottle
STEP 3:
Place the bottle upside down in boiling water for 15 seconds, only submerging the bottle from below the cut line.
STEP 4:
Immediately place the bottle in the same upside-down position into ice cold water and gently rotate it. At this point, the bottle should separate into 2 pieces. If not, repeat step 3 and 4.
Step 3 and 4: Alternate placing the bottle in boiling water and ice water.
STEP 5:
If necessary, sand the bottle to smoothen out the edges. Remember to be careful!
Step 5: Sand the bottle edges
STEP 6:
Decorate and use your bottle as you please!
Step 6: Use as you please!
If you like the idea of giving your old leonista bottles new life - but you find you don’t have the time - we’d like to help…
Get in touch with us about returning your empty bottles and we’ll give your old bottle(s) a new purpose.
If you want to order a new bottle, we’ll send you a 5% discount voucher (valued at least €2 per bottle) to go towards your next purchase
- location dependant*.
We’ll even collect your used bottle(s) upon delivery - and ensure they get put to good use!
Note: Leonista packaging (our ink and cardboard gift boxes) is already biodegradable and comes from recycled sources (respectively) - so please be kind enough to recycle your bottle and packaging (at your local municipal drop off), and rest easy that you’ve done all you can to ensure you leave the world a better place.
Now, that’s the spirit! ;-)
We'd love to see what other ideas you have so feel free visit us on social media or leave a comment below and give us your feedback - tag us on Pinterest and we’ll pin your project to our ‘Upcycle’ board. :-)
Updated locally from an original post on Leonista.co.za