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Nov 2010

Getting Creative With Glass Jars

November 11, 2010 By 15 Comments
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Ihave always been fond of drinking my iced tea from an old mason canning jar. That’s how we did it growing up. That thick glass kept the tea colder and safer than regular glass jars. We could take them outside without fear of getting in trouble for breaking mom’s good glasses.. I remember my dad and uncles having quart canning jars full of iced tea sitting on the hay wagons on hot summer days.

My mom and grandma also used glass jars to store leftovers or freeze soups instead of using throw away plastics. They not only used the mason jars, they saved pickle and jelly jars and whatever jars had nice large openings to easily get things in and out of.

I’m not sure what took me so long to use jars in my house. I have had my own pint jar for iced tea for a while, but that’s it. On our trip out east to see my friend Sandra, she was telling me about her new found love for pickle jars as drinking glasses and how she would love to replace her glasses with jars. It was a major “duh!” moment for me. She had a great new idea that was an old one I had ignored! Since then, I have been on the look out for glass jars!

When I go grocery shopping, I often look for products with the best jars. (I avoid plastic packaging when I can. It is toxic and even if I can’t use the glass jar again, glass is easily recycled!) I have found the greatest glass jars in all shapes and sizes! It is kind of a game for me to find ways to use some of the jars.

Here are some of the ways I have been using glass jars:

* drinking glasses
* storing leftovers (cheaper than pyrex!)
* home decor
* storing homemade spice mixes
* keeping small things organized
* container for homemade salad dressings
* ant farms
* science projects

What creative ways can you think of to use glass jars?

Marci Goodwin

Marci has a passion for helping people get the busyness and clutter out of their lives so that they can slow down and enjoy what is really important. She is proud mama to an 9 year old daughter (the homeschooled entrepreneur) and a 5 year old son (110% boy). Head over to Marci’s blog Overcoming Busy to read more about how she cuts the clutter and gets organized!

About Marci


Marci has a passion for helping people get the busyness and clutter out of their lives so that they can slow down and enjoy what is really important. She is proud mama to an 11 year old daughter (the homeschooled entrepreneur/ice princess) and a 7 year old son (the hockey star). Head over to Marci's blog Overcoming Busy to read more about how she cuts the clutter and gets organized!

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Filed Under: diy, green & frugal living, your creative corner
  • Cynthia Penta

    I have been a glass jar user for a while now. It’s a great way to recycle. Plus, I love country décor and antiques (especially old mason jars). A few different ways I’ve used glass jars are: #1. Baby food jars (stage 1) are great to use as favors for baby showers. Just put a tea light candle in the jar, decorate the top of the jar with fabric and raffia, and put a little note asking the guests to light the candle (and say a prayer) when Mama goes in to have baby. #2. Another use is for all of my daughter’s hair ties; it helps to keep all the little barrettes and bows, etc. neatly organized. Great post!

  • http://www.angiewarren.com Angie

    Marci I loooove glass jars. I especially enjoy getting them at antique shops and sales – they are usually quite weathered and I imagine what they were used for in a past life.

    It is a goal of mine to collect enough mason type jars to use them for our glasses :)

  • http://www.onepartsunshine.com/ Cindy @ OnePartSunshine

    I love the idea of using mason jars for glasses! I have been collecting them lately and using them to freeze fruits and veges from the farmers market. I also just used a couple to make homemade yogurt and it turned out great! I’m going to find some pretty ones and use them to put homemade granola in for holiday gifts. Thanks for the tips.

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  • Hannah

    I love glass jars too. I have a growing collection- I love large ones for flowers, medium for seashells and rocks. I also love old glass bottles- I’m always looking for both at thrift and antique stores.
    I agree Angie- I would love to have enough to use them as our everyday glasses!

  • http://www.theprairiehen.blogspot.com The Prairie Hen

    Dear Marci,
    I too grew up drinking out of Mason jars… they are comfortable and my mama uses them still. There is a project on my to-do list using quart mason jars in the blue/green glass they used to be made out of. I am going to make a hanging light fixture like the one I saw in Pottery Barn.

    Love,
    Plastic Out the Window in NE

  • Greta S.

    I just had the “duh” moment not too long ago myself when a neighbor gave me flowers in one! I thought to myself, that is sooooo neat!
    At age 33 I am now making a collection. I use them right now for vases, but I know there are other cool ideas lurking in my head (like Xmas ideas).

  • http://dutifuldad.blogspot.com/ Lance

    While I don’t think there is a better use for a mason jar than using it to drink sweet tea out of :) I do know of an organizational tip I picked up a few years back using mason jars and their lids. I knew a guy that took the tops of mason jars and attached them to the bottom of a shelf above his work bench. Then he filled the jars with all of the various screws, bolts and other little things that were rolling around loose on his work bench and screwed the jars into their lids. This suspended the jars above his work bench at about eye level. It was a great way to capitalize on space and, since the jars were clear, he could quickly find whatever screw or bolt he needed.
    Thanks for the post and the ideas, although I don’t think my wife is going to be too happy about the ant farm I’m envisioning ;)

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  • http://lifeloveandpickles.blogspot.com/ Rebecca

    When we first got married we were gifted a lovely, plain glass set of drinking glasses. With as many animals around the house as we have, they were always getting knocked over/onto the floor (and I’m a wee bit clumsy and drop them on a regular basis). I think we are down to 3 or 4 glasses left from the original set. Every other glass we have now is either a mason jar of varying sizes or a “set” of green Coke glasses that I love from the dollar store.

    We can’t afford to buy sets of “actual” drinking glasses when they get broken so often, but we would be hard pressed to not be able to afford mason jars. Especially since they aren’t as likely to break when we drop them. In fact, I think we’ve only broken 2 or 3 since we started using them as drinking glasses.

    Also, ant farms? What a splendid idea!

  • http://www.oahumom.com Lisa @ Oahu Mom

    I love glass jars too. My moms group recently etched glass jars. A really easy craft that turns regular jars into something even more special.

  • http://www.organizing-life.com abbie

    I love the ant farm idea! We drink from mason jars too. We use two sizes, one smaller and a little lighter for the kiddos. Great post Marci!

  • http://www.strungbycolor.blogspot.com Jenny @ StrungByColor

    This is so great. I posted a link to your website when I wrote about homemade cleaners last week on my blog (http://strungbycolor.blogspot.com/2010/11/homemade-cleaning-solutions.html). I love the green ideas you guys share – keep ‘um comin’.

    http://www.strungbycolor.blogspot.com

  • Kati Resnick

    Love love love! This is totally our style! The hubs and I have mentioned that we like the mason jar-as-drinking-glass idea.