Painted Ball Jar Flower Vase

In my past life I did a LOT of canning.  I made all our jams, hot sauce (my husband still pines over that hot sauce and I haven't made it in years), applesauce and others.  But sadly, I haven't done much of that lately.  And sadder still, I have boxes of Ball jars that I'm storing.

I saw this idea online somewhere and was excited enough that I immediately went to Michael's (40% coupon in hand) to get the paint.  I'm happy enough with the outcome that I think I'm going to make some red ones to use at Christmas and Valentine's Day.

Look for paint called Vitrea 160 in the stained glass section of your craft supply store.  In addition to whatever color you want, pick up a bottle of their thinner.  I also had to buy a paint brush as I don't have any around any more.  I think I paid about two dollars for the one I used.

Pour a small blob of paint on wax paper or something plastic (I used the top of a disposable lunch meat container) and then add about a paintbrush full of thinner.  Swirl around to mix it up.

Use a clean, dry jar and paint it in nice even strokes.  At this point I will add that the directions I had said that it doesn't matter if you see the paint strokes on your jar as they will disappear.  I'm here to tell you that is not true, but in the end I decided it was ok.  So whatever you see at this point is about what it will look like when it's done.

Let your jar set for about 24 hours, then bake for 30-40 minutes in a 375 degree oven.  I did not believe these directions, so did research on the Ball site and yes you really can bake these jars.  Another bit of forewarning - I put this jar in the oven, set the timer and honestly forgot I was baking it.  About 15 minutes later I was in a semi-panic because I thought I smelled an electrical fire.  ;)

Let this cool completely before trying to add flowers and, more importantly, water to the jar!

In the end you'll have a beautiful rustic looking vase!  And looking at this picture you will see that I clearly do not have a future in floral arranging....


I"m adding this post to the Metamorphosis Monday post on Susan's blog - my first!  There are some seriously great craft/decorating ideas posted every Monday.