I must admit to a slight obsession. I love glass containers. I especially love old blue glass containers…
You know the ones our grandma’s had!
I use them for all kind of storage. I have one in my sewing room with old buttons in it. But I mostly use them to store food in. This one is destined to store orzo. I think the little glass lids are just too cool!
Beautiful, simple and made to last! I find them in antique stores, second-hand stores and at garage sales. They are great for storing things that you buy in smaller quantities, like chocolate chips.
Since I have switched to exclusively storing in glass everything except my very large bulk items like grains I have had to figure out how to label all my containers. I wanted something that could easily be changed. I have tried the making tape and marker labels but hated the sticky residue it left. I tried paper labels but they got torn. I finally hit upon something that works great for me…chalkboard paint. It is inexpensive, easy to find, and easy to apply.
If you have a smooth clean glass container it is as simple as masking off…I purposely wanted the edges uneven so I ripped the tape down the middle.
Apply the tape…
Just a little side note, it is easier to do with your jars empty. I of course did not heed this bit of my own advice and did it to a jar full of rolled oats…proceeded to forget them out overnight, it rained and I had to be creative with using up this many oats in a very short period of time as they got damp. So try for an empty jar…and a sunny day!
Apply your first coat of paint…
I learned that I needed 3 coats of paint for this project. I also learned that I needed to remove the tape after the first coat was dried. If you left it on for all three coats when you removed it tended to peel up the paint. Since I wanted a ‘rustic’ edge anyway painting coats 2 and 3 freehand was not problem.
I also painted each coat in a different direction, vertical, horizontal, and then vertical again to get a crosshatch look otherwise you tended to notice the brush strokes more.
Let dry well and voila!
Jars that have easily changed labels that hold up to hand washing and just are fun!
I have found glassware that is made in the USA by at a few shops in the big city but for me I get mine on amazon.com, I hate driving to the big city. They are made by Anchor Hocking and for the very large jars like I store my oats in you will pay $23.95.
My airtight jars are from Ikea they were not expensive but they are made in China…I am on the lookout for domestically made glass that is also airtight and easy to open and close. If I find it I will pass it along.
So next time you are at a garage sale keep your eye out for some great glass jars, they will be a great addition to your food storage plan!
omg I love it ^_^
Great Idea ~ love it !
I love this idea. I too love old glass lidded canning jars and have been searching for them everywhere. I genearlly can in them. I like the wire bail jars with attached lids for storage like you have. I don’t buy many though I have a lot of mish mash of saves peanut butter jars, salsa and pickle jars from friends.
I use the wax glass-crayons that my children have for drawing on windows and mirrors – I can label my glass storage jars and also my metal canisters without any permanent changes, it just polishes right off with a bit of buffing, but isn’t really impacted by grabbing with fingers.
Christina that is a great idea! That is the only drawback of chalk is that it smudges.
This is a great idea 🙂 I’d love to paint my jars this way!
I painted a couple of vases with chalkboard paint once as a gift, but the chalk would scratch the paint off-even with the 3 or 4 coats I used. Any ideas on how to prevent that? Did you etch the glass first or anything?
I saw this idea in a book awhile back, but always wondered about durability as far as the paint sticking to the jars.
Sarah I have not had a problem with the paint scratching or peeling off. I have heard of glass primer….maybe that would help you. Kim
When you use the older glass jars, where do you find the rubber seal? I got 4 very old jars at a yard sale once, I love them! but the rubber seal is either gone or hard as a rock. I’d love to be able to put something in these jars and make them useful again, but need them to seal.
Thanks for the help!
Jules I’m not sure where to find the seals. I use mine without to store things that don’t have to be airtight like chocolate chips.
I would love to find seals so I could store things like dried fruit in them. If I find where to get them I’ll let you know. Kim
Great idea. Looks good aswell, could be a good label for homemade products sold at fairs
Thanks for the tip on the glass primer. I hadn’t tried it, but I think I’d heard of it sometime too. The paint might work better on jars than on smoother glass vases anyway 🙂 Either way, my flour and sugar jars are getting this treatment soon!
Sarah let us know how it goes! Kim
So beautiful. Thank you for this lovely idea!
Hi,
Thanks for sharing the pictures and idea. I have find the seals at the CONTAINER STORE.
BYE