Apothecary Jars

Yet another pinterest-inspired project that has turned out to be a HUGE success. I found this little gem of a tutorial right around Christmas time but didn't get up the courage to make them until March. It turned out to not be too hard of a project, the most trouble I had was locating all of the supplies needed but after several trips to Hobby Lobby, Michaels, JoAnns, & some random crafting websites, I have found everything.

Here's how to make my version of these adorable Apothecary Jars that you can use for every season:


Supplies:

• 3 - Medium-sized glass canisters with aluminum lid
• Found at Hobby Lobby
• 2 - 6 3/4 in unfinished wooden candlestick (1 candlestick will later be sawed and sanded to create the smallest level apothecary jar)
• Found at Hobby Lobby (here)
• 3 - Curtain finials
• Found at Hobby Lobby (here)
• 6 - 4 in circle plaques
• Found at Hobby Lobby (here)
• 1 - 9 in unfinished wooden candlestick
• Found at Michaels
• 1 bottle of Americana Paint
• For the black jars I used - Snow (titanium) White
• For the white jars I used - Ebony Black
• Clear 9001 High Strength Adhesive 
• Found at Hobby Lobby (here)
• Gorilla Wood Glue
• Found at Hobby Lobby (here)
• Saw & sheet of sandpaper

Step 1: A few things will need to be done before painting to ensure the best end results.

• You will need to bend down the metal liner on the top of each of the candlesticks with some pliers. I didn't do this with my 1st set & soon found that the base will eventually detach if the top of the candlestick does not completely contact the circle plaque.
• Next saw down one of the 6 3/4 inch candlesticks right below the actual candle holding part of the candlestick. I have yet to find a 4 or 5 inch candlestick in any craft store or website so if you can find one then you can completely ignore this step. If not, then you will need to saw off the top of the candlestick and sandpaper the top.

Step 2: Paint EVERYTHING! The 3 candlesticks, 3 finials, 3 lids to the canisters, & all 6 circle plaques will need to be painted. I needed to put several coats on all of the items when painting the white set & several coats on the canister lids, no matter the color.

Step 3: You will need to paint the bottom of  3 of the circle plaques. These plaques will later be placed below the canister and will be able to be seen when the jars are empty.

Step 4: After everything has dried completely you can begin the assembly.

• For all wood-to-wood contacts you will use the Gorilla Wood Glue. This connects the bottom circle plaque to the candlestick to the top circle plaque.
• When the gorilla wood glue has dried with will foam around the outside of the candlestick ends which you will later need to paint over. 
• For the wood-to-glass contacts & the aluminum-to-wood contact you'll use the Clear 9001 Adhesive Glue. 
• This glue takes much longer to dry compared to the Gorilla Glue. Patience is key!

Step 5: When gluing the wood plaque base the the glass canister simply flip the canister upside down, apply the glue to the edge of the wood plaque, & place on the bottom of the canister. I applied pressure while having a fan blowing on the base to try to speed up the drying process.

Step 6: Next glue the finial to the aluminum lid of the canister using the 9001 adhesive again. Apply the glue to the bottom of the finial & place it in the middle of the lid.

Step 7: Touch up any spots that have been chipped or scratched as well as over any exposed glue residue.

Step 8: Put it all together & you have 3 amazing apothecary jars.

Now you can decorate them for every holiday :)

4th of July

Easter

I have yet to decorate them for Halloween & Christmas but I pan to use the word "BOO" for halloween & "Joy" for Christmas.... Stay tuned for pictures of how they turn out

Here is the site that gave me the idea for the holiday decor... 

Halloween & Christmas

Thanksgiving

They also suggest spraying the base & lid with a semi-gloss poly... I have not yet done this but I find it is easy to chip the paint so I plan to try the poly & see if that helps

Pinterest Projects

This week has been a tribute to one of my biggest obsessions...  Pinterest! I can "waist" hourrsssss on this website & by the end of it I have a million different crafts to make, recipes to try, & clothes to buy. 

Project 1: Green Velvet Cake Pops

They were delish! The perfect little St. Patrick's Day treat.

Project 2: Apothecary Jars

 The Supplies

 Almost Done...

 DONE! Well kinda, still have to get some ribbon for the bows on top... But they're pretty much done & I just couldn't wait to share my fun new decoration. For Easter I put some easter eggs, jellybeans, and robin's eggs in the jars. Can't wait to decorate them for every holiday to come

& here's Mikey messing around :) always fun in this crazy house

another project

This week I made Katy a hospital gown for when she has Brooklynn. She really wanted one and I thought I may be able to figure it out. She gave me an old gown that she had to base it off of and supplied all the fabric, thread, and trimming. It took me about a day to complete, I started mid afternoon and finished sewing on the snaps the next morning.

It turned out to not be as hard as I anticipated. She decided on hot pink with black trim. She is so ready for this little girl to come and is gonna look SO cute walking around the hospital when she finally does! She's getting "Brooklynn's Mommy" embroidered on the front.

I decided I'll be making these for all the mommas to be (again) in my life :) Can't wait!

'tis the season, to make some gifts

This year I decided to make some of my christmas gifts... so I got some fabric and set out to make 10 reversible aprons for my friends and family. It was a big task (especially making up the pattern as I went) but I managed to complete them all and everyone I gave them to loved them. Here are a few...

My neighbor Janis in her apron.

With my creative juices on high, I made my little niece Emma a christmas tree shirt.

I got the idea from a creative blog I found called Paige and Brooke.

what a little creativity can get you

Yesterday I had an urge to be creative. So I grabbed my things and headed to JoAnn's. This store is heavenly. I can go there and spend hours just walking the aisles gaining inspiration for future projects. But on this day I was focused on what my project was going to be... an apron. It is the WORST when you are trying to be all domestic & make a dinner or dessert or what have you & oils or batter or some other staining ingredient splashes onto your cute outfit. I have always wanted one for that reason but have never found one that was cute enough to buy, so I planned to make my own.

I love the black & white fabric but wanted a little splash of color... Red seemed really fun & is kinda one of my new favorite colors at the moment:)

Here is the finished product...

I'm obsessed! I'm sorry if you see this and I just ruined your christmas present from me but I had to share what I have been doing with my creative juices! Hopefully you will love it as much as I do :)