Give Old Glass Food Jars a New Life for Spring

I admit it; I'm a glass jar hoarder. I have a hard time throwing those glass food jars in the recycling bin, because I know they can be so functional as storage or other projects. I searched through my bin of glass jars and found a few that would work perfectly for my spring centerpiece.


I've finally figured out a process to remove even the most stubborn of labels. You can read all about it here. These labels were really stuck on, but my tricks for getting those labels off worked like a charm!



After cleaning off the jars well, I do a final clean with rubbing alcohol.



I used a chalk paint specially formulated for glass on the jars. It's different than ordinary glass paint because it doesn't wash off. This is a MAJOR plus in my book! I've included links to the project in my post - just head on over by clicking on the link at the bottom of this post. Thanks!



I planned to distress the jars, so I only gave one coat per jar. The paint covered really well though, especially for painting on glass. Once they were dry, I used 220 grit sandpaper to lightly distress the paint.



To give the jars that permanent finish, they need to be baked in an oven. I give all the details for how to do this in my blog post which is linked at the bottom of this post. This step in the process allows the jars to be washable. In fact, you can even wash them in the dishwasher!



That's it - super easy and super cute, if I do say so myself. This little bird family is perfect for Spring! If you enjoy reusing items to decorate your home, you'll love my other projects. You can see all my seasonal upcycled projects here.
Jenny @ Refresh Living
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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  • Mindy Mindy on Apr 15, 2017

    Cute ideas! I too have a large collection of various glass jars / bottles. What kind of paint? I see that they are in the oven. How long; what temp? What did you use to "distress" them? Sorry for all the questions, but I don't see a link for tips or pointers.

  • Sandra Sandra on Mar 28, 2018

    Are they safe to drink out of them after you paint them ? What is the purpose of baking them ?

  • Laura Martin Laura Martin on Mar 29, 2018

    Your blog doesn't say at what degree for how long to bake the hard to set the paint.

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