Snowman Treat Jars

 I have  a friend that does craft shows throughout the seasons.  She is a pro at painting.  I asked her to teach me some skillzzz this summer, and she delivered.  Another friend of mine gave me a ton of old baby jars she found in her attic.  I took the lids over to Terry's house and painted some pumpkin face jars (I posted in October) and these little snowmen.  I'm going to give a more detailed painting tutorial soon, but....in the meantime.  I love these.

I used regular ol' paint.  The base of the snowman is called sand.  It took two coats.  I then took a watered down brown and ran it over the sand to make it a 'dirty' snowman.  Next up were the face details (the coal mouth was made with the end of a paint brush) and then I flicked white paint over the whole thing.  Once he dried I added a coal of clear sealer and then some twine.

Dino Jars

 Here's my next thirty craft using the stuff I recently snagged at the Dollar General.  I've seen versions of these jars around...in particular one for Easter using small bunnies (still looking for those little bunnies).  You could certainly use old mayo jars etc at instead of these jars, but I found these in the Christmas section on sale for 25 cents, so I decided to splurge. I also found a pack of dinosaurs for a buck.  I use little dinosaurs for a lot of random crafts, and I have been buying some for 'half off' at the craft store-the original price is 10 dollars!  The only difference I see, having used both, is the packaging!  I've got a few more ideas for these dinos, but in the meantime...a jar.

I'll be making these in multiple colors.  These would be cute for party favors, storage in rooms, gifts, whatever.  I glued down the dino with E6000 (any strong glue would work).  When it tried, I used a primer (b/c it's plastic) then some green spray.

DIY Snow Globe

 

I know it's a little early be talking St Pat's Day...but...on that note, it's a little late to be talking Christmas-unless, of course, you are already planning for next year.  In that case, let's be friends.  I put together some snow globes to share on GMT today via the Exec Producer's request.  :O)  I went a little bit crazy trying to find new and fun ways...and the only thing that limited the projects I brought was a lack of time, space in my car, but I may have found a new passion.  First up, the traditional globe.  The other two I'm sharing are Valentine's Day oriented, so I wanted something fun and spring-ee.  I've seen these water globes using trees from the doll house section of the craft stores, toys from the dollar bins in stores, but I found this little clover cookie cutter and coins and decided this would be fun with some gold glitter.  

For supplies, grab some distilled water at the store, glycerin (found near the cake decorating supplies-used to 'freshen' old food gels, or buy the skin care in drug stores), you can also use baby oil.  I also got some E6000 glue-gorilla glue would work as well, or even hot glue.  I just really wanted to make sure it was stuck for life.  You want to make sure the objects you put in your globe don't have paint that will chip off because it will color the water-so plastics etc work best.  

I used the E6000 to glue down my cookie cuter and a few coins at the bottom of my tray.  I actually have the cookie cutter glued to a bottle cap to make it stick up over the lid, and I used the coins to over up the cap.  I let it dry for several hours before moving on to step two.  

 I added about a Tablespoon of glitter, a teaspoon of glycerin (don't add to much or it will make it murky, but you probably do want to add it b/c it helps the glitter float more slowly to the base) and then top with distilled water.  Close off your jar, shake and enjoy.  One tip, I would prefer recycled jars like mayo and pickles b/c the seal seems to be made for liquids.  If you have to use a jar that doesn't have a strong seal, run some hot glue around the edge to help the seal.

A few other projects I'll be sharing are these waterless globes.  I blogged about those earlier this week...

...and edible snowglobes.

I'll post a link to my facebook page later.

Waterless Snow Globe

 I'm working on some snow globe projects...and now I'm obsessed.  I made this little waterless snow globe.  You could do this for any season, but since Valetine's is around the corner....it seemed like a good plan.  All you need is a jar, foam (if your object isn't flat on the bottom), and twinkle flakes (glitter or confetti would work as well-I chose this b/c it clings a little to the side).

 I took a piece of foam and glued it to the top.  If you are using a flat bottomed object, just glue it directly to the base.

 I cut down this little plant pick (found this guy at Hobby Lobby for a buck-I usually wait for a sale-these go on 30-50 percent off almost every other week, but I was under a time crunch).

 I poured some of these twinkle flakes into the jar (about 1/8 cup) along with some little heart confetti I found.  I found this 80 percent off at Hobby Lobby near the Christmas stuff, but they also sell stuff like this near the tissue paper etc).

 I decided to wrap some twinkle grass around the foam since it was green.  They have all sorts of colors of this on sale right now near the Valentine's 'stuff' in the craft store.  I also added a foam glitter heart...

 I screwed the lid on and shook it up-the flakes sort of cling to cupid and the walls of the glass.

 I added a ribbon and another little heart around the base.  If I can hold something still for more than 21 seconds I think a ribbon makes everything better.

Edible Snow Globe

This Christmas I saw a snow globe made out of cookies.  I decided to adapt that to candy...and Valentine's day.  I used this little heart ring, some sprinkles, and a baby jar.

 You could cut off the bottom of the ring to hot glue it directly to the jar lid, but to raise it up a little I used a little piece of foam that I glued to the jar lid, and then pressed the ring down into the foam.

 I added some sprinkles to the jar.

 Ta da!

You could adapt this for any holiday-little foil chocolate Santas, bunnies, or lollipops.  I'd have a baby just to collect more of these little jars-the possibilities are endless.  I have two more snow globes coming up this week...

Cupcake Liners and Mason Jars

 I'll post all the details from Melissa's shower on Friday, but here is one little detail from the shower.  Laine said she saw this on Pinterest, and I was game....I happen to be in possession of probably a hundred mason jars in all shapes and sizes....so anytime I can bring them out and justify that expense....
As we were...what's it called?  Partying doesn't sound right at a baby shower?  Showering seems weird?  Conversating at baby shower includes something my spell check rejects....but whatever....
BUT a cupcake liner over a drink is probably a great addition to a July 4th BBQ as well....keeps those outside bugs out...and it's so simple!
We popped the lids off the jars, but kept the rim....

 We punched a hole in advance for the straws by folding one edge of the paper in a little, then screwed the lids on....

Lemonade ready to go...

Frosted Doily Candy Jars

 Here is a super fast and easy idea for packaging up some Valentine's Candy.  I was on Good Morning, Texas and I brought some projects to share using the doily.  I'm sure this has been done before, but here is my idea for a little something....old love (frosted spray) meet new love (doily).  I took an old gravy jar and covered the lid with scrapbook paper and mod podge using this tutorial (so easy-transform any jar). I used a quick spray of adhesive spray to temporarily stick the doily to the glass.  It pulls on and off if you don't love your initial placement.  Once you are done spraying you jar, it peels off again.  I did put the glossier side down just to make it an even easier peel without any little piece of paper that needed to be cleaned off.

 One it was 'stuck' I took my frosting spray and gave it a coat (I stuck my hand in the bag and held it so I wouldn't frost my nails).

 It dried in about three seconds, and now it's ready for some candy.....which would be a great gift for a friend if I could prevent myself from eating the contents.

Recycled Jars

Everytime I throw a jar away I feel an incredible sense of guilt.  I'm fortunate to live in a city that provides a recycling bin along with a trash bin, but I still....I just feel like it's missing some piece of it's little journey being chunked so quickly.  Add this information to the fact that I'm in love with tossing things in little mason jars as gifts, and the guilt starts to make sense.  (I have reused pickle jars to store baking flours in the past, see the tutorial for that here).   I wish I had started listening to the jar guilt months ago and saved more b/c now it's Christmas season, and true to form everything I'm giving this year seems to be finding a home inside a jar before it's wrapped.  I've used approximately 4.3 million mason jars in the last week, but then....I found a few jars I had set aside a week or so ago and I decided to give them new life.  I saw the tutuiral for cover a jar lid somewhere, lots of somewheres.  It's not my idea, but I'm not sure where it began....I'm also unsure about the chicken or egg debate, but I tend to lean towards the chicken.  The jar though...it's really easy, and I'm just popping up this tutorial for anyone else that feels pasta jars, olive containers, and soup vessels deserve a chance to celebrate Christmas this year too!  Also, the above jar gets a bedazzling later this week with ribbon and tags, and instructions on the innards, stay tuned....or not, but here's the life changing lid tuturial...cut out a scrap of scrapbook paper a little larger than your lid (enough to fold down and cover the sides).  Snip the edge up to where the flat bottom begins every 1/4 inch or so.

 Apply Mod Podge all over the top of the lid. 

 Press the paper down, and along the edge. 

Give the top of the paper a coating too.  OK, and it might be that your great Grandmother's dog sister's sister's best friends, barber's friend invented mod podge, and you may know all about this, BUT I didn't know when I first began working with 'the stuff.'  It applies like glue, but dries clear, so....don't fret. 

I'm now off to empty every jar in my pantry so I can recyle it and fill it into Christmas gifts, it's so something I'd do for a good jar, I'm not even sure if I'm kidding! 

Homemade Dill Pickles

I'm a pickle fan....if dill pickles had a facebook page, I'd 'like' them for sure! I've always wanted to can something...or pickle something....or somehow excuse the wall of glass in my garage that is my mason jar collections....which have never jarred anything but cake, and lemonaide in their little jar life....with a side of rubber duck in the bathroom.
In an attempt to avoid cleaning my house (mission accomplished on that score)....I pickled some pickles.
I googled a recipe...and googled from there...and so on...and so forth. Then I tossed out most of what I read and just threw some cucumbers in a jar, and it all worked out well enough for me to be able to check 'homemade pickles' off my list.
Here's the process I used....
A lot of the recipes call for pickling cucumbers, which are smaller than....well this...

All I found in my intensive search at one whole grocery story was a larger cucumber, so I decided I'd use this guy and go with a pickle spear.....
I sliced him up....and got this...

I know that picture was necessary, but food doesn't complain when you take it's picture, so sometimes I get carried away.
All the spears from one medium cucumber fit in one mason jar. I had put 2 garlic cloves, and dill at the bottom of each jar (3 total). It actually called for a spring of fresh dill in the bottom of each jar too, but I didn't see it off hand at that one store I dragged myself too, and so I just added dried dill from the aging jar in my pantry. Sure, it floated around and was sort of stuck to the pickles a little bit when I pulled them out, but they are for my consumption alone....and trust me, that jar of dill needs a bigger purpose in it's life. Plus, dill and cucumbers are friends, I read it in a book once.
I then made the following 'pickling' mix: 2 quarts of water, 1 c. vinegar, 1/4 c. sugar, 1/3 c. kosher salt. I put it in a pan, brought it to a boil, and stirred until everything dissolved. I then turned it off, and let the mix cool almost completely before pouring it over the cucumbers in the jar (just so they wouldn't 'cook'). The recipe said it makes three jars of pickles....
You are supposed to house the pickles in their solution for 3-7 days before eating. A lot of recipes also said to place a grape leaf into each jar before sealing it for the alloted pickling time. Apparently grape leaves help a pickle stay crispy. I didn't do this, and my pickles still crunched....but I only didn't do it b/c I have no idea where to acquire a grape leaf. It was not a rebelious pickling point. I'm still a fan of the dill pickle, despite my attempt to abuse him.