23 Clever Ways To Repurpose Empty Vinegar Bottles Around The House

Vinegar is an essential item that any household probably already has on hand in one form or another. Distilled white vinegar is useful in the laundry and as a non-toxic household cleaner, and other types like balsamic and apple cider vinegar are staples in the kitchen. Vinegar is sold in containers of all different shapes and sizes, depending on the type. Distilled white vinegar is typically sold in a large plastic jug with a handle, and vinegar used in the kitchen usually comes in pretty glass bottles of varying shapes and colors. Since vinegar jugs are made of plastic, they're very easy to cut and fashion into handy household items, like a soap caddy for your shower, a mini greenhouse for your garden, and even a handheld dustpan. Glass vinegar bottles can be upcycled into lovely holiday decor, fragrance diffusers, and other unique and decorative housewares.

While recycling the vinegar containers when you're finished with them is possible, you can also do the planet (and yourself) one better by upcycling your empty vinegar bottles and jugs. Upcycling helps the environment in ways recycling alone can't, reducing the number of unrecyclable and hard-to-recycle items we throw away each day. Plus, you'll gain several new and useful tools to use around your home and garden by repurposing your empty vinegar containers.

Is your crafting room in need of some serious organization? Fortunately, you can easily upcycle your plastic vinegar jugs into simple storage bins for your crafting supplies. All you need to do is cut the top off your vinegar jug so it's open, line the top with some fabric to cover the sharp edge, and you'll have a storage bin ready for all your fabric scraps, craft papers, and more. You don't have to decorate the exterior of the bin, but you can always use cute scrapbook supplies to make it match your craft room aesthetic.

Whether you have a glass vinegar bottle or a smaller plastic one, you can easily transform it into a beautiful flower vase. For the glass bottle, you can take the label off with the help of a blow dryer. Then, either place the flowers in and leave the exterior plain for a minimalist look or decorate it with twine or spray paint. If you're working with a plastic bottle, you can largely follow the same process, except you'll likely want to glue on some decorative paper to give the bottle a more elevated appearance.

Party decor is expensive and often made from single-use plastics that are highly detrimental to the environment. However, it's still possible to have fun and flashy party decor that suits the theme of your event, whether it's a bridal shower, baby shower, or birthday party. All you need to do is take a tall glass or plastic vinegar bottle and spray paint it into an ombre design with colors that match the party theme. Then, you can place your decorations on your dining table, shelves, or gift table.

Old plastic vinegar jugs aren't just useful inside the house— they can also be incredibly handy in the garden. If you cut the top off of the jug, you can place it over small seedlings and plants in your garden to start a mini greenhouse. This will not only protect the little plants from pests and other critters but also give your plants some extra humidity to help them thrive. Using a jug as a greenhouse is also an affordable way to extend the growing season of your plants and protect them from frost.

If you have several old vinegar jugs accumulating at your house, you can use them to build a cheap and easy-hanging garden. First, you'll want to cut the tops off of all of the jugs. Be sure to drill some holes in the bottom so the plants can drain. Then, fill them with potting soil and your favorite plants, and attach them to your fence in a row for an adorable elevated garden. You can also paint the jugs to give them a different look or leave them as-is to keep it simple.

Keeping your bathroom neat and organized can be tricky, especially if it's on the smaller side and has limited drawer and cabinet space. Basket organizers are a good solution for this, but they're not cheap from the department store. For an affordable bathroom storage solution, you can cut a plastic vinegar jug low at the bottom and give it a scalloped design that will make it look elegant while also keeping your toiletries on display and easily accessible. Feel free to decorate it with cardstock, ribbon, or other accents, like beads.

It can be difficult (and costly) to find planters for all of your beloved snake plants and Monsteras. One affordable and stylish solution is to transform an old vinegar jug into a creative houseplant container. For this DIY, you'll cut the bottle in half and use the top piece as a stand and the bottom piece as a planter. You can trace out a scalloped pattern to give the planter some texture, hit it with spray paint, and attach it together for a uniquely shaped houseplant plant holder.

If you have a smaller plastic vinegar bottle on your hands, you can easily turn it into a nifty holder for your pencils and pens. All you need to do is cut the top off of the bottle and then decorate the exterior. You could paint it, wrap it in twine or pipe cleaners, or attach decorative paper to the exterior. However you decide to decorate it, it's probably just a good idea to make sure the top is covered so you don't leave the sharp edge exposed.

With some careful tracing and clever cutting, you can transform an old vinegar jug into a cute swan-shaped napkin holder to up your table-setting game. To start, trace a swan outline onto both sides of the bottle. Then, carefully use a utility knife to cut along the line. Once you've cut out the swan, go ahead and wipe off the marker marks and file the napkin holder along where you cut it to avoid leaving exposed jagged edges. You can either leave it as-is or add a coat of paint to it.

A clever and unique way to repurpose a plastic vinegar jug is to turn it into a lampshade. To start, cut the jug in half and add short vertical cuts all the way around the top. Then, fold the cuts down into themselves and glue them so they create a fringe pattern. After that, flip it upside down and cut a hole in the top for the light piece. When you've finished all the cuts, you can spray paint the jug and run the light fixture through it to complete your simple DIY lampshade.

If you cut the bottom side of an old vinegar jug into a triangle and drill a hole in the top of the triangle, you can fashion a makeshift soap caddy for your shower. Just be sure to cut some holes into the bottom of the caddy so it can drain properly. This DIY works with either a larger vinegar jug or a smaller plastic bottle, but the shape of the caddy will vary depending on what type of vinegar bottle you use.

Using a sponge caddy can help keep your kitchen sink neat and organized. Rather than buying one from the store, you can fashion a sponge caddy out of an old vinegar jug. A simple way to do this is to slice your vinegar jug in half at a diagonal. Using the bottom half of the bottle, cut out the bottom corner into a slit that can rest in the middle of a two-compartment sink while leaving two pockets on the sides that can function as holders for your sponges. 

Most plastic vinegar jugs have a narrow handle on the top, making lifting and pouring the bottle easier. If you cut this handle off, keeping its cylindrical shape, you can use it to create a dish-scrubbing brush. All you need to do is wedge a sponge or piece of steel wool into one side of the handle, and then you'll have a little extra leverage to wash your dishes. Be sure to buff out the other side of the handle so you don't catch any sharp edges.

Make your guests feel welcome in your home by creating a cute welcome home sign or mantle greeting out of a plastic vinegar jug. To start, cut a wide cylinder piece out of the jug. Then, wrap it in twine. Use leftover pieces of the bottle to cut into half-sphere shapes to attach inside the cylinder and add a warm greeting with felt letters, paint, or whatever type of material you like. You can customize this with different colors, fake flowers, or cute buttons.

Many of these plastic vinegar jug upcycles involve slicing the bottle in half and using the bottom, but that doesn't mean you need to let the top part of the bottle go to waste. The upper half of a vinegar jug can work great as a shovel or hand scoop for soft gardening soil. The handle of the vinegar bottle functions great as a scoop handle, and you can leave these scoops in your various potting soil bags for a little extra helping hand in the garden.

Some large plastic vinegar jugs come in more of a rectangular shape than a cylindrical one, and more square-shaped containers can be transformed into adorable mini bookshelves. For this to work, you'll need to use your utility knife to cut it from the bottom at a diagonal. Then, buff down the sharp edges, add your favorite books, and enjoy your new mini, upcycled bookshelf. To give it a personal look, you can also paint it in the theme of your favorite book series or add decorative paper and stickers to the exterior.

Another useful way to repurpose a rectangularly shaped plastic vinegar bottle is to cut it into a mini dustpan. Since you'll want to be able to use the handle, it's best to cut the top half of the bottle into your dustpan. You will need to find a little mini hand brush, like this Crojetry Hand Broom, to use to sweep crumbs into your dustpan or repurpose an old paintbrush.

An incredibly easy, no-frills vinegar jug upcycle is to turn it into a watering can. All you need to do for this DIY is cut holes into the lid of the vinegar bottle so the water can come out at a slower trickle rather than pouring out all at once. You can also cut off part of the handle and use that as the pour spout. 

You can use either a glass vinegar bottle or a smaller plastic vinegar bottle (not a jug) to build a DIY bird feeder. To turn a small plastic vinegar bottle into a bird feeder, you can either put spoons through the bottle so the birds can access the seeds or cut it open and hang it lengthwise with the seeds exposed. To turn a glass bottle into a bird feeder, you can fill it with birdseed and set it upside down on a platform so gravity will allow the seeds to spill out.

Vintage glass vinegar bottles can be turned into beautiful candle holders. You can either use a tapered candle and insert it into the mouth of the bottle and leave it as-is or get creative decorating the bottle. Some exciting ways to customize the bottles include painting, wrapping them in twine, or adding dried flowers to the inside for a delicate and lovely floral look. Tip: You can also repurpose old olive oil bottles into beautiful candle holders. 

A fun and whimsical way to reuse glass vinegar bottles is to turn them into wind chimes. For this upcycle, you will need to break out your glass bottle slicer, like this Camdios Glass Bottle Cutter, since you'll be slicing the tops of the vinegar bottles to build the chimes. Then, you can hang shells, buttons, bells, or whatever item you'd like to function as the chime piece. This project will work best with the taller, rectangular-shaped vinegar bottles than the smaller, vintage-looking ones.

Both glass and plastic vinegar containers can be converted into adorable (or spooky) holiday decorations. For Halloween, one option is to spray paint the containers orange and draw on spooky little motifs. You can get even more creative by turning old glass vinegar containers into witchy potion bottles. You can also spray paint glass vinegar bottles white and add a little cap and snowman features to use them as Christmas decorations—there are a lot of opportunities to have fun with this.

Elegant glass vinegar bottles can be made into lovely little fragrance diffusers. To kick off this DIY, you'll need your favorite essential oils, some rubbing alcohol, and reed sticks. Mix up a solution of the oil and alcohol, pour it into your clean vinegar bottle, slide the reeds in, and you're good to go. Glass vinegar bottles are typically very elegant in their own right, but you can also decorate your new fragrance diffuser with paint, twine, or crafting paper if you'd like to really make it your own.