Another bright idea – transform light bulbs into oil lamps!

We’ve already shown you how to create a vase from a busted light bulb, but here’s another great way to repurpose old light bulbs that won’t leave you in the dark.

You’ll need:

• A clean light bulb
• A cotton shoe lace
• A metal bottle cap
• A rather large washer / spacer
• Two small magnets
• A drill / punch
• A drill bit a little smaller than your shoe lace
• Tape
• Lamp oil
• Some sand
• Water

Instructions:

1. Disassembling/Cleaning the Light Bulb: First, take your drill/punch and tap at the bottom of the light bulb, until you break the black glass. Then tap on the inner tube inside the bulb with the wire in it, and extract the insides of the beast. Now, go grab your sand or another granular substance and put some into the bulb. Add the water and swirl the mixture, while you are swirling you'll notice that the inner white coating will flake off. Once all the white coating has detached itself from the inside of the bulb, rinse the bulb thoroughly and set it aside.
2. The Cap: After you have cleaned the innards of the bulb and washed the inside, grab your bottle cap and shoe lace. Locate the centre of the cap and drill your hole - start with a small hole and work your way up to just under shoe-lace-diameter. Before you cut your shoe lace, tape the middle with a little bit of tape, so when you do cut (in the middle of the tap band), you won’t have a frayed mess. Thread your taped end into the fresh wound in your bottle cap and pull the lace through. Screw the cap (with the lace threaded) onto the top of light bulb and do a measure test, you want a little slack at the bottom, but not much. Take off the cap and find where your magnets have run off too.
3. Making the Base: With your washer/spacer in hand, and magnets stuck to some valuable electronic devise, put a small length of tape on the one side. Flip it over and centre one of your little magnets on the tape. Cut another length of tape and stick it on the washer/spacer, trapping the menacing little beast inbetween.
4. Finishing: Go ahead and find your lamp oil. Before pouring the oil, put the other magnet into the bulb, and set on the base. Carefully pour about 2-3 teaspoons of lamp oil into the bulb. Find your cap, complete with shoe lace wick, and screw the cap on to the light bulb. You may need to roll the liquid around a bit to get the wick a little damp. There should only be no more than about a centimeter of wick poking out the top of the cap. Grab your lighter, and light it up!

Be sure to head on over to the Instructables  page, where this tutorial by bumpus was originally posted. You’ll not only get a chance to see how others adapted the idea, but you’ll also find a large dose of inspiration and motivation.