Beautiful!
Love the look of those glass apothecary jars in decorating magazines, but gasp at the price when you see them in the store? Never fear! I’ve got a super frugal tutorial that will give you great, one of a kind Apothecary Jars that can fit into anyone’s budget. You don’t even have to be all that crafty to make them.
(note: this tutorial is very similar to my DIY Hurricane Lamps tutorial)
Note: I purchased all the glass items at my local thrift store.
Materials:
Glass jars with lids
Glass candlesticks
E6000 glue
Directions:
Step 1: Wash everything well. There is no point starting out with dirty glass!
These items will make great Apothecary Jars!
Step 2: Match up your jars with candlesticks. I set them on top of each other in various configurations to decide which combination looked best.
Step 3: Glue your candlesticks to the jars with E6000 glue.
Applying the E6000 to the candlestick
Step 4: Let them dry fully before filling and using.
All different shapes and sizes!
There are many things that you could put in these jars. I am decorating for fall, so I decided that I wanted to fill one of the jars with candy corn. I wanted to share a merchandising tip with you.
Now these jars were pretty deep and wide. I estimated it would take about 4 bags of candy corn to fill up my preferred jar so it appeared full. However I didn’t really want to spend money on four bags of candy corn. . . so I cheated.
First I took a clear glass. . .
This will work!
And I set it in the jar upside down. Then I poured the candy corn around the jar.
See how the glass takes up space?
Tada! The glass took up space in the center, but is invisible to the viewer. Of course I finished filling the jar up above the glass. .
I would keep filling it up till you couldn't see the glass any more!
The problem with decorating using candy corn? It’s edible. We went through about four bags of candy corn anyway because hubs and I kept munching on it (luckily the kids couldn’t reach it). The level would go down and I’d have to buy more candy corn. The end result? Way too much sugar in my diet, and by the time I got around to taking the final mantle shot all the candy corn was gone!
No worries-I used some of the scented pine cones I made (tutorial coming soon) instead.
I can think of hundreds of ways to use these homemade apothecary jars in my decorating. You can switch the contents by season, use them in the bathroom to hold cotton balls, or even take the lids off and put pillar candles inside.
How is that for a very quick, easy, frugal decorating project that looks like a million bucks? What would you use these jars for?
My mom has a curio cabinet full of artistic glass pieces she’s found in thrift stores and at yard sales. I may have to snag a piece or two and fill with colorful goodies. Great idea!
Fabulous! I have been coveting these apocathery jars FOREVER! I can’t wait to go “thrifting” now! LOL!
Denise
You may be able to pick up a lot of items at the dollar store as well-I’ve seen something like this (sans the lids) made with those clear cylindrical vases & candlesticks from there. . .
I’ve wanted an entire collection of apothecary jars. With your fabulous tutorial I can now have them! Thank you!
Just discovered your site and love this idea! Have subscribed to your feed too. I will link back to this post on my blog next Saturday when I do a weekly list of good ideas I’ve found. It’s so nice to find ideas that are both frugal and creative!
cksknitter-I’m so glad to help out! It may take you a while to collect up the jars you need, but once you have the materials it is a 5 minute craft (not counting drying time).
Beverly-I’m happy you’ve found me, and flattered that you like this tutorial enough to link back to. I’ve got plenty of great ideas if you look under the DIY tag 🙂
hi frugal up state. visiting via Hometalk. Great way to recycle the glass!
Glad you liked the idea! I always love projects that are easy, classy & use recycled materials.
Thank You!! I just did mine and I’m so happy and proud of myself 😉 I did this for my Thanksgiving dinner that I will be doing this year for the 1st time in my home and for my son’s 2nd b.day party to fill with candy and other goodies!! I spend in total $12.. Once again THANK YOU for this great idea
How fun! I’m so glad you enjoyed both the project and the results. I still use the ones I made in this post all the time for decorating!