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DIY: Rockin' Vinyl Record Bowl

Tue, 07/24/2007 - 8:57am by casasugar
13,747 Views - 33 comments

I love crafts made from recycled records, like this blue-vinyl wall clock and ring-binder journal. It's a great way to re-purpose damaged or dorky vinyl, and the items have a lot retro charm. One of my favorite projects is this Rockin' Vinyl Record Bowl, which is a ridiculously easy DIY endeavor you can complete in less than half an hour. Here's how to make one.

1. Choose a record that you (obviously) don't mind destroying; I found this Kingston Trio vinyl at a thrift store. Choose one with a cool-looking label, since that will be the bottom of your bowl. Then, locate an oven-safe bowl that's about the same size as the bowl you want to make.

For the next steps, read more

2. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees. Turn the bowl upside down on a cookie sheet, and balance the record horizontally on the base of the bowl. When the oven is hot, place the cookie sheet, the bowl, and the record inside and set your timer for 8 to 10 minutes.

3. After 8 to 10 minutes, the vinyl will have conformed to the bowl; just use a potholder to check that the vinyl is soft enough to shape. The vinyl cools quickly, so you'll be able to work with it within seconds, but don't forget that the bowl and cookie sheet are hot!

4. Holding onto the oven-safe bowl with a potholder, peel the record off the bowl and place it inside, so that the sides of the bowl hug the record. Now, you can shape the edges however you'd like; more precise folding will give you finer scalloped edges like on my bowl. If the vinyl gets too cool to mold, just stick it back in the oven for a few minutes.

5. Your record bowl is ready to use! These work well as fruit bowls, catch-all trays, and containers for potted plants, or you can hang yours on the wall as art.

If you end up doing this DIY project, please do share the results!


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33 Comments Add a Comment

  • zc's picture
    zc
    1

    looks really cool and no too hard to make, ill try if i can get my hands on some old records.

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • vintagesugar's picture
    vintagesugar
    2

    This is fun. I have done it and it is easy. I once did *Annie* the musical for a baby gift for a girl named Annie.

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • jhuck's picture
    jhuck
    3

    Is there any way to prevent anything happening to the label when you clean the bowl or use it to hold something liquidy?

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • redsugar's picture
    redsugar
    4

    Wow, my parents have tons of Kingston Trio LPs. They would be heartbroken.

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • ALSW's picture
    ALSW
    5

    I love crafty ideas that come from things around the house! And this is a really cute idea. I have some old Sesame Street records...Smiling

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • bfly1133's picture
    bfly1133
    6

    I have to do this for our amusement room! We are going with an entertainment theme (movies, music, and sports) and this would compliment it so well. Thanks for the idea! Now I wonder if my parents will let me raid their records....

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • WhereSheShops's picture
    WhereSheShops
    8

    I had a friend do this a couple of years ago and it turned out great! I always said I would try it, but forgot all about it! Thanks for the reminder! You can find records at antique shops!

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • Ms Arrogant's picture
    Ms Arrogant
    9

    I am so going to use this. I create unique living environments for my clients or as some people would say, I'm an interior designer....so I'm always looking for things that are a little different.

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • ashleyk4214's picture
    ashleyk4214
    10

    Cute idea!! I might make one of these for my sister's birthday since she just got a new house and doesn't own too many decorations yet.

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • ccsugar's picture
    ccsugar
    11

    This looks really cool and easy, but... Wouldn't that melting rubber smell make the house stink??

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • LaLaLaurie06's picture
    LaLaLaurie06
    13

    there is a thrift store near where i went to college that had these things. they also decorated picture frames with candy wrappers. they were very creative people!

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • fairy_MK's picture
    fairy_MK
    14

    those are so awesome. several people have been selling these on www.etsy.com and now i know how to make them. this is a neat-o cool project that will impress many. Eye-wink

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • lintacious's picture
    lintacious
    17

    oh might i add, i just used them as coasters, and put clear packaging tape on both sides of the hole.

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • JBlondie's picture
    JBlondie
    19

    Wow! This is a terrfic and easy idea! Thanks so much! My hubby and I just moved into a downtown loft and this will go perfect with the rest of the place!

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • rubialala's picture
    rubialala
    20

    Hmmm, I'll have to try this with my hubby's original Beatles records. Haha, just kidding, he would kill me. Maybe I'll start with the Sesame Street/Cookie Monster records I had as a kid.

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • joe bliffen's picture
    joe bliffen
    23

    i have also made coasters out of records in a similar way. you just heat them in the oven then cut out the center label and attach cork/foam to the bottom.

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • nines heartbreak's picture
    nines heartbreak
    24

    I've made these for my apartment and some friends homes too, once I bought cassettes and removed the tapes and placed them into the vinyl bowl and then on top of this I placed glass spheres for a living room in a loft I designed, and it turned out killer!

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • ViolentlyHappy's picture
    ViolentlyHappy
    25

    Yay! i'm always wondered how to do this, I just never bothered looking for directions online. I have to try this! It'll br a cool addition to a wedding gift for some friends!

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • Fab_Kitty's picture
    Fab_Kitty
    26

    I've done this a couple of times as inexpensive gifts for friends who are esp. musicphillic. W/out fail, they've said the bowls were awesome.

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • calamityjen's picture
    calamityjen
    27

    Cool! As I was reading this, I thoughtof a nifty gift idea: take the record bowl, and make it into a gift basket, with some kind of cool theme like "old movie night"...throw in some packets of microwave popcorn, and a DVD of a classic old movie, and maybe some candy. Wrap it up in cellophane and voila: a cute gift for a hostess, or housewarming, or something. (Sorry so random...it just came to me and I thought I'd share!) Smiling

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • Random's picture
    Random
    30

    I was looking for a unique housewarming gift! This is perfect!

    1 year 6 weeks ago Report Comment
  • Nightwind's picture
    Nightwind
    31

    These are very expensive in the stores, I would much rather to it myself for a fraction of the price.

    1 year 5 weeks ago Report Comment
  • posey's picture
    posey
    32

    i've made a couple of these as gifts...REALLY easy, but the vinyl does cool down quicker than i always think it will, so i end up reheating a few times. i've tried different edge techniques - some work out much better than others. Smiling

    i wouldn't dream of doing this to any of my own records, but you can get used ones for so cheap at garage sales or thrift stores. i try and find ones that have pretty damaged sleeves or scratches on the actual record, so that i don't feel like i'm ruining a perfectly good album.

    i would like to try this with colored vinyl, but i've yet to find a damaged color vinyl album, and i can't bear to destroy one in good condition!

    1 year 5 weeks ago Report Comment
  • JaimeLeah526's picture
    JaimeLeah526
    33

    This is a cool idea for a rock 'n' roll home. It looks like something I would like if I could do my home all up like that.

    1 year 5 weeks ago Report Comment

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