4 Pack Bottle Carrier From Discarded Cardboard

Bottles are going away in favour of cans for various reasons, but homebrewers still have many beer, wine (yes, we put wine into these small bottles) and cider bottles that we share with others. 4 pack carriers are rare and 6 pack carriers are becoming more scarce. Buying unbranded ones is expensive or requires the purchase of a whole crate - 160 carriers!! - and we weren't satisfied with any of the templates we found online so we disassembled several 6-pack carriers and designed our own 4 pack carrier.

This carrier should fit all standard (long neck) beer, soda, cider or other beverage bottles, regardless of height, and protect them from rattling against each other or falling over.

In order to complete this project, you will need some basic supplies:

• printer and plain letter size paper (colour printer not necessary)
• clear tape (the kind you'd use for wrapping gifts)
• cardboard - recommended size: 36 pack of macro beer (cans)
• scissors and/or utility knife (utility knife preferred for cutting cardboard)
• a piece of scrap plywood or extra layers of cardboard to cut on (a large cutting board would also work)
• metal ruler or other straight edge
• pencil or pen
• staples, white glue and/or packing or duct tape

We live behind a liquor store which regularly discards beer boxes (we don't know why!), and found that most of the macrobreweries 36 regular-size can boxes work well for this project. Boxes for 48 cans will also work but the fold lines may not line up as well with our template.

Note: you don't have to buy/consume the beer to complete this project! Just get the boxes. We always recommend drinking responsibly and being sober when using a sharp cutting tool.

Gather supplies!

Print all 7 pages of the template on regular letter size paper. Do not alter scale or your carrier will not fit standard beer bottles. It is not necessary to print in colour as the template's colour lines are in a different line type for easy ID.

Find the appropriate cardboard: however you get the beer boxes, carefully open all glued parts and lay the box flat.

Making the template is easy, though does require some care.

First, cut each piece of the template along the cut lines, including the shaded areas (the handle is easiest to cut by slightly folding the paper over and then snipping into the handle to get it started). Cut alternating pages to the cyan/dash-dot line so that only one page has a guide line to assemble.

The first page of the template shows you how to put it together. Assemble template - carefully! - by lining up one piece's cut edge to the cyan/dash-dot line on an adjacent page. Tape together with clear tape.

It is not necessary to fold the template on the fold lines.

Open your cardboard box, if you haven't yet, and lay flat with the plain side up.

Place the template on the cardboard. The bottom flaps will fit on the short flaps of the box and if your box is the same size as ours, 2 fold lines will line up with existing folds in the cardboard. This is a good thing! If your box is a different size, try to line up at least one of the fold lines with an existing fold line to make it easier later.

Trace carefully around the template with a pencil, pen or thin marker, including the cut lines for the dividers. Mark all fold lines on the inside of the template as well. We found it helpful to use full bottles to hold the template in place.

Remove template from cardboard and carefully cut along all cut lines. It is easiest to use a utility knife to cut through cardboard: place cardboard on a cutting board, scrap plywood or a surface you don't mind cutting into and ensure you are cutting in a direction that a slip will not result in loss of a finger or being stabbed with the knife.

Please be careful!! Take your time to make clean, straight cuts. You can use your metal ruler as a guide to keep your knife going in a straight line.

Do not cut along fold lines!

After cutting, it is necessary to make the folds. If your box was the "perfect" size, you will have some pre-existing folds.

Fold everything "up" (towards you), except the centre line. Turn the whole thing over to fold the centre line by lining up the notches.

The bottom flap fold lines are optional: these are only necessary if you want to collapse your box later.

Use a ruler or other straight edge to ensure the folds are in a perfect straight line and are crisp folds.

First, fold the dividers up, so they're in the centre of the box.

Referring to the paper template, you will see a line marked Edge A; fold/roll this edge of your cardboard towards the other side (paper template marked Edge A fold line), with the other edge on top. The notches in the centre should line up.

Next, fold along the centre line, bringing the 2 bottom flaps toward each other. Note: the bottom flaps should be on the outside of the box, not back to back. If they're in the wrong place, simply fold the centre line the other way.

We found that staples plus glue work really well, but you can secure the box with whatever you'd like.

A standard stapler should reach from the top to secure the dividers to the outside of the box. You can also staple the inside pieces together from the bottom or top or use glue and/or tape to secure the pieces together.

Fold over the handle flap (if using), and staple, tape or glue the top together.

Hold the sides squarely together, and tape or glue the bottom flaps together.

If using glue, you can put bottles in the carrier, push additional bottles against the side and wait for the glue to dry.

If you used glue, you must wait for the glue to dry before folding the box.

Simply push the box to the side and press the bottom folds firmly. The box won't be completely flat, but it's much easier to stack a few like this than when they're fully open.

You've just rescued discarded cardboard and made a super versatile 4-pack bottle carrier! You can customize the outside with stickers or your own labels.

Now you can use your carrier to share your homebrew with friends and family without the awkwardness of carrying 2 bottles in a 6-pack holder or trying to wrangle 4 bottles in a plastic bag. It should fit all standard beer, soda, cider or other beverage bottles, regardless of height, and protect them from rattling against each other or falling over.

This carrier will sit nicely in a trunk, on a table or the floor and it's so easy to make you won't even mind if gets wrecked!

Please remember to drink responsibly!