22 Clever Pill Bottle Crafts and Reuse Ideas You’ll Actually Use
From fire starters to seed storage, discover 22 pill bottle crafts and reuse ideas that turn empty containers into something useful and fun.
I do my best to rely on herbal remedies around here, but I’ll be honest… plastic pill bottles still sneak in now and then. And since I hate tossing things (seriously, it makes me twitchy), I’ve gotten pretty good at finding new uses for old containers. At this point, I’m probably an upcycling addict. But honestly, there are worse habits to have.
So when I found myself staring at a mountain of empty pill bottles, I hopped on Pinterest for inspiration. (If you’re not following me there, you should. It’s where I stash all my harebrained homestead ideas.)
Here are some of my favorite ways to repurpose pill bottles: some practical, some just for fun.
#1 Fire Starters
Pill bottles make easy little fire starters. I’ve seen people call this a fun project to do with kids… I’m not sure my crew qualifies as calm enough for that, but if you’ve got responsible kids, this could be a good bonding project. Stuff them with cotton balls or dryer lint dipped in wax and they’ll catch fast, even if the wood’s a little damp.
#2 Hide-A-Key
Make a cheap, quick hide-a-key by gluing a rock or pinecone to the lid. I can’t promise it’ll last forever outside, but since it costs basically nothing, replacing it now and then doesn’t hurt. Pro tip: pick a spot that blends in naturally and rotate locations so it’s not too obvious.
#3 Travel Bottles
These bottles are just the right size for shampoo, conditioner, and lotion when traveling. I’m pretty sure they meet airline liquid rules, but double-check before you pack so you’re not stuck tossing them at security. I slap some painter’s tape on them so I’m not stuck guessing which one’s conditioner halfway through a shower. Permanent marker (it turns out) isn’t actually permanent.
#4 Portable Sewing Kit
Turn a pill bottle into a mini sewing kit with a bit of thread, a needle, and a few buttons. Bonus points if you glue a tiny pincushion to the lid. I like keeping one in the car for those “oops, lost a button” moments. Toss in a couple safety pins, too. They’ve saved me more times than the needle and thread.
#5 Survival Kit
My outdoorsy boyfriend has made about twenty of these survival kits, and they live in every glove box, backpack, and tackle box he owns. I’ll admit, they’ve saved the day more than once on hikes. Think waterproof matches, a bit of fishing line, and a couple of bandages (the kind of little things that feel huge if you’re stuck outside).
#6 Crafting Storage
These little bottles are perfect for craft odds and ends: cake piping tips, beads, needles, paper clips, safety pins. I use them to keep the gems from my diamond painting kits corralled, too. A quick label on the lid makes it easy to know what’s inside without digging through a drawer.
#7 Halloween Decor
Spray paint a few bottles and turn them into Halloween potion bottles. I made some last year for the mantle, and they were a hit! Just the right touch of spooky to mix in with my pumpkins. A ring of hot glue around the cap gives you that old ‘wax seal’ vibe if you really want to go all in.
#8 Snowman Ornament
Not into spooky? Use them to make winter snowmen. My youngest once built an entire snowman village out of pill bottles. Did they clash with my vintage Christmas village? Yep. Did I still display them? Absolutely. Paint sticks better if you rough up the plastic with sandpaper first.
I’ve got plenty more thrifty holiday craft ideas where that came from. Check out my favorite Christmas decorating projects on a budget for more Santa-approved inspiration.
#9 Rainbow Crayons
Use pill bottles as molds for rainbow crayons. Extra credit if you’re also upcycling broken crayons. (Yes, I hoard broken crayons too. Don’t judge.) Just remember the bottles aren’t oven-safe. Melt the crayons first, then pour them in.
#10 Unique Vase
Nest pill bottles together and you’ve got yourself a faux bamboo vase. The vacuum seal makes them watertight without glue (bonus science lesson included). Wrap them in jute or give them a coat of paint and they actually look pretty classy.
#11 Nail Polish Remover
Make a quick nail polish remover tub: stuff a pill bottle with cotton balls and pour in acetone. It’s way less messy than pouring from the bottle, and you’ll waste less polish remover too. Cut a sponge to size and swap it in if you want that salon-style dip jar.
#12 Ammo Storage
Pill bottles keep ammo dry and organized. Around here, those bottles get tucked into an old Christmas cookie tin in the gun cabinet. Sadly, it’s not cookies. Toss in a silica packet and it’ll stay dry even longer.
#13 Yarn Baller
Knitters and crocheters, this one’s for you. Use a pill bottle to make a center-pull yarn ball so your skein doesn’t roll across the floor. Before my friend gifted me a “real” yarn ball winder, this trick saved my sanity. Drill a hole in the cap for the yarn to thread through. It keeps the tension nice and steady.
#14 Ink Dauber
You can even make ink daubers. At first, I had no idea what those were (BINGO night, maybe?), but it turns out scrapbookers use them too. Glue a bit of felt on the bottom and you’re good to go for stamping or blending.
#15 Coin Storage
Need a spot for quarters? Toss them in a pill bottle coin holder and stash it in the glove box. Handy for car washes, vacuums, or laundromats. (Not that I’d know. My kids swipe my change before I get to it.) Adding a slit in the lid makes it a mini piggy bank for kids.
#16 Party Lights
I’ve seen pill bottles turned into quirky amber-colored party lights. I’m not sure when you’d use them. Maybe at a med school graduation party? Still, it’s a quirky little project if you’re the crafty type. Paint the outsides different colors for a string-light effect.
#17 First Aid Kit
Mini first aid kits in pill bottles are a lifesaver. I keep one in my purse for scraped knees and mystery bruises. (Let’s be honest… usually caused by one rambunctious child in particular, but I won’t name names.) A couple of antiseptic wipes fit in there too, and trust me, they’re worth their weight in gold.
If you want to take it a step further, here’s how I stock a homestead first aid kit that actually works. You’ll find practical, affordable essentials that go way beyond a few bandages in a box.
#18 Tooth Storage
Parents: this one’s for you. Put a tooth in a pill bottle so the Tooth Fairy can actually find it in the bed sheets. Trust me, it’s a lot less stressful than digging through stuffed animals at midnight. A dab of glitter nail polish on the lid turns it into a magical “Tooth Fairy jar.”
#19 Hair Supply Container
Perfect for corralling bobby pins and elastics. I swear I’ve been working off the same pack of bobby pins for 15 years because they just vanish. The elastic bands wrap nicely around the outside of the bottle too. Add a strip of magnetic tape inside to keep the pins from scattering.
#20 Q-Tip Holder
Keep cotton swabs in one so the kids don’t decide to “help” each other with ear cleaning. (Yes, that happened here. Never again.) Stick a label on it if you also keep them for makeup. No one wants ear swabs touching mascara wands.
#21 Seed Storage
Don’t want to make printable seed packets? Pill bottles are perfect for storing seeds, and the childproof caps mean no accidental spills all over the floor. Taping a seed packet label to the outside helps keep varieties straight.
#22 Battery Organizer
And finally, battery storage. Because the bottles are watertight, your batteries are less likely to corrode. Group them by size so you’re not digging through a messy junk drawer when the remote dies.
Your Pill Bottle Upcycling Questions, Answered
Still curious about what to do with those bottles once the medicine is gone? Here are a few of the questions I hear most often about reusing pill bottles and the simple answers that make it less of a headache.
If you liked these ideas, pin the image below and share it with your Pinterest crew.
Health doesn’t come from a plastic bottle, but if it does, at least you can turn that bottle into something useful afterward.
Want more ideas? Check out 12+ Fun Ways to Upcycle Holiday Cards After the Season, Mason Jar Crafts You’ll Love to DIY, and 12 Uses for an Old Milk Jugs.
Repurposing pill bottles proves a little creativity goes a long way. From seed storage to quirky decor, they definitely don’t have to end up in the trash.
What’s your favorite way to reuse pill bottles? Share in the comments. I’d love to hear!
I love all these ideas posted! I use them for my super glue and just add tiny broken pieces that need to be glued on. It is the longest my super glue has ever lasted. I also use them for thumb tacks and other sharp things in my junk drawer. I covered a strand of white lights with them with labels attached and hung them as an Over-the-Hill party decoration. For the same party we made up funny ‘prescription labels’ and filled them with candy and such and then put them in white paper bags (like those you get at the pharmacy) and glued small logos like ‘Rite Age Pharmacy’ on the bags. It was tons of fun and everyone loved the decorations. I am now getting ready to sort some ‘out-of-control’ sewing supplies using them. They are perfect for my scrapbooking embelishments I will be using in the scrapbook at hand.
I use them for dental flossers and keep in my car or when traveling.
These are some great ideas! I use some of mine for earbuds, q-tips, laundry quarters, gum, tooth flossers/picks, nail clippers,and other little items. I also save them for the local vet to use. I think it is a great idea to re-purpose various items.
I also use them for storing wood matches along with the strip on the side of the box to start the match….zippers don’t always work!! I use to live in the Northeast and carried an emergency preparedness kit/plastic bin in the car just in case I got stuck in snow, ice, mud…whatever, and this came in handy along with other things I had for those “just in case” trips!! I also buy the larger economy size bottle of Excedrin migraine med and put them in a smaller bottle for the car. Very helpful when sitting in traffic. They’re also good for carrying small candies for quick low blood sugar fixes until you can get something more solid to eat. Something else we do with them is to make peel & stick labels for every day of the week times 2 for my dad’s meds. We line them up on Sunday…usually…then fill each one with all the meds he’s going to need for each day….MORNING AND EVENING. Then we put 7 in a small plastic container for the morning and another one for the evening meds. Extra tip…..the A.M. meds container has a bright yellowish orange lid for daytime…YELLOW FOR MORNINGS….and the evening meds lid is red…RED FOR BED. Makes life LOTS easier for all of us and the confusion over WHICH med to take WHEN is 100% eliminated!! EVERYBODY’S HAPPY!!
Great tips!
I usemineforcamping, putting wooden matches in to keep dry.
Save them,spray paint with green, red and or white and make a Christmas Tree!!
Lights for a doctor’s graduation party — too funny, Jessica! I like the travel sewing kit and travel first aid kit best, since I don’t know a lot of graduating doctors! 😀
Love these ideas. I use mine for seed saving. Sharing!
I use them to bring condiments to work. They fit in your lunch bag. Keeps other employees from “borrowing”, but never replacing..Plus, if they do get too icky, you are not wasting a lot. Just bring fresh mayo, etc. the next day…
Also works with salt, sugar, or powder creamers….
Speaking of salt, I keep a small pill bottle with salt/pepper in my purse. When we go to certain restaurants with the salt or pepper grinders, it is hard to operate them with my arthritic hands…
Congratulations! You had good ideas! I liked and shared them with my brazilians friends!
2 ideas: I sometimes have trouble sleeping without earplugs. When I travel, I put them in a pill bottle so they are easier to find and don’t get squished or dirty. Second, at Renaissance Festivals they sell qhite expensive little metal bottles to fill with ice and put in your cleavage to help you stay cool. A pill bottle would be great for this in summer, Fest or not!
The cleavage suggestion has to be the best suggestion ever offered. Brilliant!
Yes,brilliant. Can’t wait to try this one out.
I’m in AZ and some of my relatives and friends are in FLA. I can’t believe I’ve never heard of this!!!l So cool!
Ha, love that idea, especially for hot menopausal days
Rather than try to fill it with ice, you could fill it with water and freeze it. I bet it would last a little longer that way!
Facebook post: Pill bottles: they are those translucent orange soldiers that pile up all around us… in our drawers, bags, cabinets… sometimes I wonder – if I had saved every empty pill bottle since I got sick, what would that look like?
Mountains of Pill Bottles
One of the things I have always hated the most about being sick, is you often need more help than you can give. That’s not always true, but there are definitely days or weeks like that for even the most functioning among us. I see those specials on tv and think: I want to build a Habitat for Humanity house or dig wells in Africa (this might be a late night, insomnia induced thought but the general sentiment still stands).
Neither of those will be happening in my lifetime, but that’s okay. There really are other things we can do, all of us, to help other people no matter how sick we are. Here’s one idea that only requires a bit of energy…
“Medicine Bottles for Malawi” is a project with an idea so simple, it’s brilliant. I’ve tried this myself so I can vouch for how easy it is to do and how good it feels to pass on something you know will help others.
Imagine you’ve walked miles to a remote village or hospital to receive any form of medical care you can find. You are given the medication you desperately needed and now you have to start the journey back home. You don’t shake the pill bottle maraca as you walk because there is no pill bottle, heck there’s barely medicine. The pills you received are wrapped in a tiny scrap of newspaper.
A scrap of newspaper is all the protection your precious cargo has. The more I thought about this, the more I realized it’s a bigger problem than it sounds like: no safe way to carry the meds home when you are most likely walking miles, no way to really protect the meds from moisture, loss, damage once you get them home. Apparently those orange bottles do more than you think and so can you…
How to Help:Screen Shot 2015-08-20 at 2.43.33 AM
Step 1:
Take your meds and when you finish the bottle, don’t throw it away! This includes bottles you might receive over the counter like for Advil, Motrin, vitamin bottles, supplements – as long as the bottles aren’t large, send them on! (Large bottles just cost too much to ship).
Donate Pill Bottles
Step 2:
Remove the label.
I find it’s easiest just to peel them off, takes a few seconds, but you can also save up until you have a pile of the bottles and dump them into a bowl of boiling hot water.
Step 3: Snail Mail
Send them off!
I used a large flat manila envelope, it’s cheap & easy to mail.
Address it to:
The Malawi Project, Inc.
3314 Van Tassel Drive
Indianapolis, IN
46240
Tip: Take a photo of that ^ address on your phone & save it as a contact! When you have enough bottles to send off, you won’t have to log back in here to find the address. I do this often and it definitely saves some energy to take photos of info.
Bonus Benefit:
I saw someone online arguing that we shouldn’t send them to Malawi because they won’t be recycled when they are finished being used. I thought this question was silly since they are so desperately needed there but I like the answer all the same: Nothing goes to waste in Malawi. Your medicine bottle, when it’s empty, will be used in 100 other ways. Imagine you have very little and then think of all the ways a bottle with a sealed lid could be helpful.
The medicine bottles we don’t need or want anymore, that probably lie around in drawers reminding us we need that medicine to begin with, to someone else, it’s a gift. What better way to use a little bit of energy and send them on!
I use the empty bottles to hold items such as small screws, nails, brads, nuts, bolts, etc.
I didn’t read all the posts, but I have donated mine to the local animal shelter. They need them for doggie/kitty medicines. I just remove the labels.
Our animal shelter is always in need of pill bottles for stool samples to go to the vet’s office.
you can use the taller ones to carry tampons in, roll up a pad in another, taller ones good for gum sticks too, any size for single round peppermints. its great for in the purse, so they dont get ruined by something.
I put my toothpicks in them. The toothpick boxes are always falling apart and make a mess in the kitchen drawer/cabinet, depending on where they are kept at the time. So I stick them in pill bottles. I can get a whole box of 250 into one of the short, fatter kind of pill bottle. Smaller bottles can also be kept in your purse, travel kits or car.
That’s a great idea. We get the toothpicks that come in packets of 200 in little paper bags. The seams always tear and I end up with toothpicks all over the drawer. The real bummer is when they get caught along the drawer seams. I will have to start storing them in pill bottles instead.
The toothpick holder is also an excellent idea to store toothpicks in our camp trailer, my dad always kept sinkers, swivels and fishing hooks in old pill bottles for his fishing tackle box.. that way, if the box tipped over, the sinkers, swivels and fishing hooks didn’t go everywhere!
That is a great idea and it seems like I always have misc items like that in my car
I have an obscene amount of empty pill bottles that I use for numerous things in my craft room, but there are a couple things they can be used for that I didn’t see mentioned. For one…when storing nails or bobby pins, glue a small magnet to the inside lid. They will adhere to it so you don’t have to dig your fingers into the bottle. Also I keep a medium sized one in my purse to put straw/candy wrappers, and other small trash in. Keeps your purse tidy!
I use a empty pill bottle as a expedient sharps container for my diabetes testing supplies while camping/traveling. It works until I can get to a real drop off point or return home.
I have pill containers that are white, not amber or opaque. Are those containers acceptable to your project? I will be saving mine in the future.
Thanks for saving the pill bottles from going into a landfill.
Those ones work great as well.
Love the post! I think you could use pill bottles for a crayon holder ( glue a couple bottles together an put crayons in it).
I used the pill bottles to store my loose drill bits, etc. I also use them to put nails or screws that I have left over from projects.
Baby food jars are perfect for this as well! U can even screw the top of the jar under a shelf then screw the jar in! U can see everything in the jars and u also make use of the bottom of the shelf!
Love your story! I use mine for all kinds of things, including holding plastic grocery bags. One will scrunch up in a pill bottle nicely for camping, glove box, etc. Learned this from GeoCachers!
That’s a great idea. I love geocaching. I haven’t been in forever.
I’ve seen where people make a small fishing kit to include in their shoebox for Operation Christmas Child.
I have found old pill bottle make excellent cases for those pesky headphones that are always somehow getting themselves all tangled when left to their own devices.
I have dogs I attached one of the pill bottles to collar with medication and plastic bag in it
Those daubers are perfect for card making, art journaling and other paper crafts. Use them to apply inks and paint. They sell similar “finger” daubers for this. Thanks for the idea!