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DIY Christmas Bells

Vintage Christmas Bells are all the rage this holiday season and although they can be hard to find if you are looking for actual vintage bells, they can be expensive if you are purchasing newer ones made to look vintage! Alas, you can make your own DIY Christmas bells using plastic cups and water bottle tops!

DIY Christmas Bells hanging from the fireplace mantel with red velvet ribbon

Okay, so you know how HEB gave me the wrong plastic cups in my order and I made those awesome concrete Christmas trees out of them? Well, in the process of trying to find something to make the pointed top of a Christmas tree, I cut off the top of a water bottle…and although I didn’t think it looked much like a tree…it did look exactly like a Christmas bell!!!

DIY Brass Christmas Bells - these are fake vintage brass bells made from plastic cups and the top of a water bottle

How stinking cute are they?! Y’all, that is a water bottle top and a freaking plastic cup!😂I don’t want to say that I’m crazy talented or anything, but if the boot fits!🤣😜 Bwahahaha! I’m so kidding, but they are awesome nonetheless, right?

You have to have seen all the vintage brass bells that everyone hangs from their mantel and on their wreaths! Well as I have explained before, we have no good places to shop for vintage goods near me so I am pretty much SOL when I love something that is vintage! Now, I do know some stores have started selling replicas and I think even Amazon ended up with a cute set(affiliate link)!

But you know me, I have to try and replicate my own! LOL!

I used them on my mirror as well, and made two different tops for them!

DIY Christmas Bells adorning the fireplace mantel and wreath on the mirror

Look how vintage they even look where the water bottle top meets the cup! My inability to make straight cuts and all the imperfections in my work actually worked to my advantage on this project! 🤣

My hubby said, “Sweeeet Babe, our Christmas decorations cost like 3 dollars and 24 cents!”😂🤣😂

Me: “Well, I am just doing my part to watch the budget, and you are welcome!”

Him: “Umm, haven’t you changed out the whole fireplace decor like three times over the last week? I am pretty sure that cost more than $3.24!”

Me: “Did you already forget that I made bells out of plastic cups and USED water bottles? No respect for my talent at all!” 😂🤣😂

DIY Look a like vintage brass Christmas bells

Funny as it may be, I really love them! Lol!

DIY Christmas bells hanging on the mirror over the fireplace with a gold and red Christmas theme

So, what do you say, do you want to make your husband so proud of how tight you are keeping your Christmas decorating budget and make some pretty much FREE Christmas bells?

Here we go!

Gathering the Supplies Needed for the DIY Christmas Bells

***NOTE: Amazon links below are AFFILIATE LINKS! Affiliate links are a method for me to make a tee tiny percentage back off of sharing products with you! If you make a purchase after clicking one of my Amazon links below or anywhere in this article, and make a purchase, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you! I appreciate it anytime anyone makes a purchase from my links as it helps pay for the upkeep of this little ole blog and keep the projects coming at ya!

Materials to make the Christmas bells:

Making the DIY Christmas Bells

Okay, after gathering your supplies, start by cutting the tops off of your water bottles. On Crystal Geyser water bottles, there is a small ridge that you can cut along right at the top of the label.

Cutting the top off of a water bottle to make the DIY Christmas Bells
Cutting the top off of a water bottle to make christmas bells

Next, get your 9 oz cup and hot glue around the top rim. Affix the top of the water bottle to it! Make sure and use low temp on your hot glue gun or let it cool just an extra second or two before putting it on if you hot glue gun is a hi-temp! It will melt the water bottle…ask me how I know! Lol!

Cup needed to make the vintage brass bells as Christmas Bells
Adding hot glue to the cup to attach the water bottle top to make the bells
Making the DIY Christmas bells that look like brass bells

You can see the bell taking shape!

Now I ended up making two different tops for the bells, one leaves the bells as is and wraps twine around the part you drink out of…cannot for the life of me think of what it is called! Oy! Anyway, so that you know which way you want to make them, let’s look at both styles again!

Easiest way to make them:

Christmas bells as Christmas ornaments of the Christmas tree

To make this style, head on outside and spray paint your bells! If you want to make the slightly more complex version that looks like this:

DIY Christmas Bells hanging from the fireplace mantel with red velvet ribbon

To make this style you will have to use a saw to cut the top of the water bottle off! It isn’t hard, just takes not being afraid of the saw…if you don’t hold it tight it will jump around and ultimately ruin your bell! (See photos below where I am drilling the holes in the lids to see the two I messed up!)

DISCLAIMER: I am not responsible for any accidents that may occur because of trying this method to make Christmas Bells, you must do so at your OWN risk!

To make them, as I said, you will need to cut the top off! I didn’t know that I was going to do this to some of them so all of mine were painted already but you can wait until you cut them to paint them!

Cutting the top off of the water bottle to make christmas bells that look like vintage brass bells
Showing the after of cutting off the water bottle lid

Now you are going to need to cover the hole you just made! Lol! I just took and cut a small circle out of a smaller white plastic cup but you can use the same cups you made the bells out of if you’d like!

Adding a small piece of plastic to cover the hole on the DIY Christmas bells
Hot glueing the small piece of plastic to cover the hole on the christmas bells

You will need to drill holes through the lid. I used a 5/8″ forsner bit. You will want to screw the lid onto a water bottle to drill the hole, it makes it so much easier than trying to hold it and drill it.

Drilling a hole in a water bottle lid to be the ring on our bell
showing the hole I drilled in a water bottle lid to make the ring on the Christmas bells

Glue that water bottle lid on its edge to create the ring to hang them from.

Gluing the ring onto the bell

Now at this point, you would go spray paint them…I did it out of order!

Anyway, I used the metallic gold spray paint from Home Depot.

metallic gold spray paint that I used to paint the christmas bells
Spray painting the bells to look like vintage brass bells

Now that they are painted a solid gold, we need to add a little vintage brass look to the bells!

I was able to easily get this look just by adding a little bit of brown acrylic paint. Dip your paint brush in a cup of water, then dip it in the paint to add water to the paint. Then using a napkin I would just dip it in the paint that was pretty watered down and roll my cup along the napkin. Make sure not to press to hard as to wipe everything off.

I tried several different ways to get the look I wanted and this was the most subtle but perfect patina I felt!

Adding a little aged character to the bells with a little brown paint
Adding a little aged patina to the bells with brown paint

Next, add a little ringer inside! I used small jingle bells just as a silly idea so they make noise when you ring them!

All I did was hot glue one end of a small piece of rope to the bell, and glue the other end of the rope to the inside of the cup.

Adding the jingle bell to the inside of the brass bells
How to make DIY Christmas bells that look like vintage brass bells

Now the easy style bell still needs its rope to make a hanger! All I did was start hot glue underneath the lip of the lid and kept running beads around and around until I made it to the top!

Wrapping the twine on the bell to make a way to hang
adding the twine to the neck of the bell to hang
adding more hot glue and rope to make the bell hang
wrapping the rope around the top of the bell to hang
making the way to the top with the rope to hang the diy bells

Once you make it to the top, you will cut the rope and stuff the end of the rope down into the swirl of rope, glue it first.

making the loop for the bells to hang from
style one of the Christmas bells completed
Bells waiting to be hung by the fire with care

Boom they are done! Hang with rope or ribbon as you wish!

DIY Brass Christmas Bells - these are fake vintage brass bells made from plastic cups and the top of a water bottle
Christmas Bells hanging from the esge of the mantel

They both are beautful and have characteristics that I love!

DIY Vintage Brass Christmas Bells- Make look a like vintage brass bells

What do you think, which is your favorite?

I can’t wait to see your versions of these DIY Christmas bells!

Heading off to do a little building instead of crafting, hope to see you soon!

Cara - The Inspired Workshop signature says XOXO, Cara

Want to save these DIY Christmas Bells for later? PIN IT!

DIY Christmas Bells that look just like vintage brass bells but are made from plastic cups and a water bottle top! Perfect Christmas craft to get together with friends and make!
Christmas bells as ornaments on a tree and hanging from the fireplace mantel and over a mirror
Christmas Bells hanging over the edge of the fireplace with garland and red velvet ribbon
DIY Christmas Bells

11 Comments

  1. HI Cara..Thanks for the reply …Just finished in a flat hour, 6 bells…Thought I had gold paint handy, but not..Did have some silver leaf, that have had a hundred years and took only a “tad” to paint each bell..Found some multicolored round “somethings” too small for napkin rings, painted them and attached to tops. Distressed the silver a little and found some old sisal, had forever and Voila…so darn cute!!!…Looks like yours, only mine are silver. the inside jingler bells I made from a pkg of small ornaments from DG last year for a $1.00. Will put ribbon on tomorrow and make more, probably a dozen. The cups I have had stashed for 18 years from a party……Thank you so much for the inspiration and save from the dumpster..Ordered on the cheap a lot of greenery, so these little bells will probably cost …..hmmmm…$6.00 total at the most. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL AND TO ALL, A GOOD NIGHT!!!

  2. Absolutely adorable and I have many cups and goodness, water bottles. Have you figured out something for the bottoms of the water bottles? Will get started on this project and give to some friends. Thank you and have a MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A WONDERFUL NEW YEAR 2024!!

    1. Hey Emma!

      I am sorry, this is a wee bit late… but thank you so much for your kind words! They absolutely made my day!😘 I haven’t figured anything out yet, but man I sure would love to! And to answer you other question without it sending you three emails…lol, no that is not real greenery, I got it at Hobby Lobby! 😉 And, just to let you know, your reply didn’t show up because I have a spam filter set so comments don’t automatically post because of awful people putting awful things in the comments! Lol! Not mean to me, but you know, inappropriate things I don’t want on my site! 😵🤭😂 I hope your bells turned out perfectly, and you have the Merriest Christmas as well! Thanks again!!

      Cara

  3. These bells look amazing 👏
    Am in the process of making my own bells but now going to add the water bottle at the top. You are so clever! Thanks for sharing & have a wonderful Christmas 🎄

    1. Hey Jane!
      Thank you so much, you made my day with your comment! I hope you have the merriest Christmas as well! And I hope your bells turned out perfectly!

      Cara

  4. thank you so much our class theme is Carol’s of the bells and our community project tree is bells so this is so simple for 4th graders to make and understand simple directions…. thank you again
    4th grade home of Lancheros Guam GDOE

    1. Hey Mims!
      Thank you so much for your kind words! I am so excited that you will be able to use this tutorial with your students! I would LOVE to see the community project when it is complete! Thanks for stopping by all the way from Guam! Have a wonderful day!

      Cara

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