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Bettesworth Construction
Craft Safety

Easy-to-Make Icicle Ornaments From a Plastic Bottle

Reuse a plastic bottle to make twisted icicle ornaments or a no-heat glittered cutout, with practical cutting, hanging, and candle-safety guidance.

By Bettesworth Construction Team 3 min read
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Turn a clean plastic bottle into lightweight icicle ornaments by cutting it into tapered strips, gently warming and twisting them above a candle, then letting them cool before hanging. If you prefer not to heat plastic, cut flat icicle shapes from clear plastic and decorate them with glue and glitter instead.

Choose a twisted icicle or a flat cutout

Method Heat Result Finishing supplies
Twisted strips Gently warm a strip above a candle; never put it directly in the flame. A curled, three-dimensional icicle. Thread, yarn, fishing line, or ribbon for hanging.
Clear-plastic cutout No heat. A flat icicle shape. Clear glue, glitter, and thread or ribbon.

The City of Bellevue Parks, Arts & Recreation describes the twisted-strip method in its Plastic Bottle Icicles instructions. The no-heat cutout approach is described by Happy Hooligans. Choose the cutout if you want to avoid candle work or heating plastic.

Make twisted icicles from bottle strips

Gather materials

  • A plastic bottle
  • Strong scissors
  • A candle and matches or a lighter
  • Thread, yarn, fishing line, or ribbon for hanging

A larger, thicker bottle makes bigger icicles; a smaller bottle makes thinner, more delicate ones, according to Bellevue’s instructions. Strip widths of about ¼–½ inch are a practical starting point; Make: describes strips around 1 cm wide. Adjust the width to suit the bottle and the look you want rather than treating either measurement as a fixed specification.

Cut and twist

  1. Prepare a tube. With scissors, cut off the bottle’s top and bottom so the middle becomes a tube.
  2. Cut tapered strips. Cut the tube lengthwise into strips about ¼–½ inch wide. Taper each strip slightly so one end is narrower, giving the ornament an icicle-like outline.
  3. Warm one strip carefully. Light the candle and hold a strip above the flame, moving it as it softens. Bellevue’s instruction is explicit: “do not put the plastic strip directly in the flame.” Keep the strip moving and work quickly.
  4. Twist, then cool. Once softened, move the strip away from the candle and twist it into shape. Hold it in place while it cools and hardens; do not handle it as finished until it has cooled.
  5. Make a hanger. Bend the wider end into a loop, then tie on thread, yarn, fishing line, or ribbon. Make: describes another finish: cool the strip straight, make a hole, and thread it for hanging.

Make a no-heat cutout

  1. Choose a clear plastic container large enough to cut out the size of icicle you want.
  2. Cut out an icicle shape and check that its edges are not sharp enough to cut fingers.
  3. Punch a hole near the top, brush the shape with clear glue, and add glitter.
  4. Thread string or ribbon through the hole to hang it.

This method makes a flat ornament rather than a twisted spiral. Skip the glitter if you prefer an undecorated clear-plastic look.

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Cutting and candle safety

  • Have an adult handle or supervise cutting. Crayola’s guidance for a related bottle craft calls for adult assistance; cut plastic can leave sharp edges. Inspect each ornament before hanging.
  • Keep candle work controlled. Do not put plastic in the flame, and avoid burning your fingers while shaping a softened strip. Keep the candle out of reach of children and away from the tree, curtains, and other materials that can catch fire.
  • Keep finished ornaments away from young children and pets. Health Canada advises keeping sharp or breakable decorations and ornaments with small removable parts away from them. Check the cut edges and hanging parts, and supervise children around the finished craft.
  • Choose the no-heat route if you do not want to warm plastic. The craft instructions describe candle heating, but they do not establish ventilation or emissions guidance for heating the specific plastic in a bottle. Do not treat the heated method as risk-free.
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Adjust the look to the bottle

Use narrow strips for finer spirals and wider strips for more substantial shapes, keeping in mind that bottle thickness also affects the result. Slight tapering helps distinguish the narrow tip from the wider hanging end. For a flat ornament, choose a container broad enough to cut out the shape you want and make the hanging hole near its top.

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