It’s officially summertime! We’re all about spending time by the lake, playing outside, and doing & seeing lots of fun things as a family while school is out. One thing we’re focusing on this summer is to remember to hydrate, especially on those scorching hot days. It’s so so important to drink enough water throughout the day, but this can be tricky when you’re not at home. Enter these reusable water bottles! As we’ve said a million times, we are huge fans of making crafts from upcycled and recyclable materials and these are no exception.

Kids will have the best time customizing their reusable bottles with paper scraps, gift wrap cut-outs, and magazine clippings. We even added some playful charms on top using extra beads and yarn we had lying around. Three cheers for using up left-over materials!

Our go-to for anything decoupage is, of course, Mod Podge! For these bottles, we used the dishwasher-safe formula to keep them nice and tidy all summer long. If you already have reusable water bottles at home, why not add some flair to them? We tend to think that anything customized and made by hand is a bit more special and kids might be less likely to lose track of their bottle. So grab your water bottles, gather up some scrap paper, and get ready to Mod Podge the afternoon away! See below for the full how-to.

• Mod Podge Dishwasher-Safe Gloss
• Mod Podge Brush
• Empty water bottles
• Colored paper scraps
• Scissors
• Paper punch

Step 1
Begin by cutting out shapes from scrap paper, magazines, wrapping paper. etc.

Step 2
Use the brush to apply Mod Podge onto the outside of the clean bottle. Place a paper shape onto the Mod Podged area and then apply more Mod Podge on top to seal it in place. We used the Dishwasher-Safe Gloss formula so that we can pop these bottles into the dishwasher as needed.

Step 3
Repeat this process all over the outside of the bottles. Let dry completely.

Note: we used a mix of recycled glass bottles (the little square one from juice, the larger one from a jar of passata) and a plastic reusable water bottle. Repurposing glass bottles is awesome for the environment (yahoo!) but may not be the best choice for younger kids so keep this in mind.

Step 4
If you like, you can add charms around the necks of the bottles. We used yarn and beads – when attaching onto the bottle, make sure you can remove them for washing later.

Voila! You’ve got some super cute reusable water bottles to use all summer long!

We just learned about the #plasticfreejuly movement and are super excited to have these DIY bottles ready for the month! This is a great activity to make with kids and discuss the environment, being thoughtful about recycling and waste, and how to take care of Mother Earth!

Plus, once your kids’ friends see their super cool bottles, they’ll want to make their own too! It’s so so easy and an awesome little thing to do to help save the planet!

Happy crafting!!

This post is sponsored by Plaid Enterprises.