Bubble Vase

DIY Bubble Vase: Upcycle Your Way to Trendy Home Decor 

Skip the store-bought bubble vase or belly vase as I have heard them referenced! Upcycle everyday items for a trendy, one-of-a-kind piece. Easy DIY project, perfect for budget-conscious decorators.

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Have you heard of the trendy bubble vase, otherwise known as a belly vase? Yep, I hadn't either until recently that is. 

There are those, and bubble candlesticks, and bubble candles, it seems bubbles are popping up everywhere - teehee. Well, if you are into the new trend of bubbles, then I have a DIY project just for you!

We shopped for months for new furniture for our tv room, and kept coming up short. 

I can now tell you more than I thought I would ever know when searching for new furniture, but I am happy to report, we finally made a decision. 

Which left the issue of our old couch. Now, I am all about donating, but our old couch just wasn't donate worthy. It had issues, and I am telling you there were many. See... not all of us bloggers have perfect homes! 😉

Plus, as it turned out, no one seemed to be able to remove it from our tv room. We had to wait three weeks for the A-team to be able to deliver our new furniture. 

The first team was able to remove the old couch and get as far as the hallway, but then they wanted to continue to remove it upright on it's side down the hall, and out the door. 

Only, we have low ceilings and an old fashioned brass lantern hanging from the ceiling in our hallway, and they hit it, and kept going, and going. 

I said stop, stop, with my voice being so hoarse, my husband had to step in and said STOP! 

This team shrugged their shoulders - like no big deal we damaged your lantern, and said this is a difficult delivery, we are canceling your order. 

That's it! No, we will try another way to remove the old couch, nothing! Just we're done, moving on, sorry about your luck.

So, hubby had to cut the couch length wise in two to remove it. It seems, I just do not have enough oomph these days to help carry the entire thing out in one piece, so chopping it in two worked. 

Which leads me to wonderful bubble vases... I know, the long road as I tend to go, but I felt I needed to share the background story too. 

We removed the bun feet from our old couch when we were under the impression the movers would be taking it out of our home. I had recalled the original movers removing the feet to get it through the doorframe, so I thought I was one step ahead.    

If you know me, then you know the idea came about by accident. As I was stacking the bun feet to make room on my end table, I said ohhhh... a vase, we will have to revisit this idea when I have the room put back together again! And so, this is how the bubble vase was born.

How to Make Your Own DIY Bubble Vase:

Materials:

1. 4 wood bun feet from furniture (you can find them at the thrift store too)
2. Cordless Drill
3. Spyder Drill Bits 1 1/2 inch 
4. Titebond Wood Glue
5. 2 large clamps

Instructions:

•  Remove bun feet from couch, you can even find these in thrift stores already removed for you 
• In a well ventilated area (I worked outside and wore a mask) place one bun foot on a work table, and apply 2 clamps to either side to stabilize the foot 
• With a cordless drill and large Spyder drill bit, (I began on the top of the foot since it already had a hole drilled to thread the foot to the couch), begin drilling into the wood to create a larger hole
• This takes some time to make it all the way through the wood, maybe 15-20 minutes (that wood was dense!)
• I found I had difficulty in making it all the way through the wood. I tried flipping the wood bun foot over and began drilling from the opposite side, but my drill bit got stuck, which led to needing a hammer to tap it off from the wood
• When I found I could not drill from the other side, I continued on the same side until the wood became very thin, and then chiseled out the remaining wood circle with a hammer and sharp object (an industrial size drill bit, it was what was available at the time)
• Clean all of the bun feet to remove dust from drilling before you begin gluing 
• Once I had three bubbles of wood with the centers removed, I began gluing them together
• Leave one bun foot as is for the base of your bubble vase. 
• Apply wood glue to the top of what will be your base, and then place the next wood slice on top.
• Apply a clamp to the bun feet and tighten down until you cannot tighten it further, allow to dry 24 hours
• The following day, repeat: apply wood glue to the second bubble, and place the third bubble on top, apply clamps to all three pieces, and allow to dry 24 hours
• The final day, repeat the last step so that you have 4 bubbles total in your bubble vase, and allow to dry 24 hours
• Add faux flowers or a candle, and style as you desire 

Use the already drilled holes for threading to get started

The finished side is more difficult to begin with, so I took the easy way, this is hubby getting me started 

I attempted to place the bun foot over a block of wood, but it was too difficult for me to break through

My fix was to use an industrial sized drill bit and hammer to chip away the bottom

My husband's donut looks the best with a clean hole through, but I was happy with my results too

Be sure to clean the wood up after the drilling is complete, and before the gluing begins 

Use as the bottom of the vase, without holes drilled through 

Side Note: this vase will not hold water so faux flowers are what should be used. Yeah for me, they are the only flowers I have on hand. 

If I can do this, you can too!

My husband helped in getting me started with the first wood bun foot. He drilled all the way through the wood, no problem. Then it began to pour down rain, so we packed up and said we'll finish on another day.

While he was at work, I thought to myself... I have seen enough of this project, I can finish it on my own, and so that is what I did. 

Talk about proud moment when I stood back and saw my finished project. I did not tell him I had been working on our unique bubble vase until I had the completed piece to share. I admit, he was also proud. I do not usually get into too much while he is away. 

If you knew my track record on accidents, you would understand why this is not something I typically take on alone. 

This is also why I am sharing with you, if I can do this, you can too. Just be careful when operating power tools, and be sure to tighten those clamps down tight so the wood does not move on you (something I learned from experience).

I am not typically a trendy person. In fact, I had the idea for the vase, and did not realize bubble vases were really a thing. I was stumped on what to call my DIY wood vase, because, that right there was as best as I came up with. 

UNTIL... I was scrolling, and I saw a bubble vase, and gasped and said that looks a lot like mine! I learned it wasn't exactly the ingenious idea I had thought it was (except maybe my materials were unique), but I was over the moon to find that I now had a name for my vase. 

Naming my projects is the most difficult thing for me. I have ideas a plenty, but knowing what to call them? Well, that is a whole other animal for me.   

I will tell you once I began researching wood bubble vases, I was so pleased to find they are expensive, and yet mine was free since we had everything on hand. Free are the best projects in my book, don't you think?

New Series Alert:

I recently shared a new project on YouTube that didn't necessarily require an entire blog post to be written. I am sharing it below, but I had a thought about a new series while working on this piece. 

If there is interest, I will move forward, I just need your input. I have shared before our basement and garage are full of items that were part of our family's home clean outs. I am considering a video of what I find in my adventures in the garage and basement, and how I either upcycle these pieces, or how I style them in our home. 

The $1 wood plaque I share below was actually something that came from my own stash, but I have all sorts of vintage finds just waiting to be discovered. I am betting many of these items you may have in your own home, or can be found at thrift stores, and you may be uncertain what to do with these items. 

I'd love to help you get started in making over those forgotten treasures by sharing ideas and ways to use these pieces for decor, but if there is not an interest, then I will abandon the idea, and we will go about our happy little blogging schedule.  

See how a $1 plaque from Walmart gets a new lease on life, I really love sharing with you ideas on how you can decorate your home with budget friendly decor, crafts, and DIY's! Happy Saturday, and enjoy the long weekend!

Ciao,

Cara