taking something old... making something new.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

milk glass vases


Wow. It's been a long time since I've posted and I guess it's for a few reasons. First of all, I'm realizinig that time is quickly slipping by and my wedding will happen before I know it. So I've decided to hang up the dresses (pun totally intended) and focus on working on wedding details.

With a very small budget, I'm determined to make this DIY wedding still stunning. So I'll start posting my projects as I do them, keeping in mind that the postings will follow my attention span. Since Thanksgiving is almost here, let me use a thanksgiving dinner analogy. When I fill my plate for Thanksgiving, I like to take a bite of each thing first, tasting everything. Then I go back and work on something that I especially like. I jump around quite a bit and like to enjoy all the different tastes in no particular order. Bartek, on the other hand, is a compartmentalized eater. He will start with one thing and eat it completely before even trying the next. In fact, he also will ALWAYS save the sweet things (fruit, jello, etc..) for the last. Me on the other hand, the first thing to go is the sweet :)

So my friends, that is how my planning will be going. I jump from project to project as I feel inspired...often leaving things undone until I feel inspired by it again. Now, it will all get done, but it will get done when it's meant to get done!
Enough blabber, this is my project for today. I have been collecting jars over the past several months so I can use them as vases for flowers and my top secret table centerpieces that I'm thrilled about. I wanted everything to be colorful, but also have a cohesive feel since they're all different shapes and sizes of jars. So I decided to try my hand at making faux milk glass jars. It was quite simple, actually.

First step: I collect my assortment of random jars, pull labels off and clean them inside and out. If I can get rubbing alcohol on the inside, I clean it with that as well. Make sure it is completely dry before doing anything with it.


Next, I prepared my paint. I bought these paints from Michaels. It is called Gloss Enamel and is meant for wood or glass. I wanted the paint to be a little thinner so I used a little water to thin the paint a little.


I poured the paint inside the jar and swirled it around the jar slowly until the entire inside was coated with paint. If I added too much water, it would be a little see-through so I'd have to thicken it a little with more paint.


I poured the excess paint back out into my original paint cup and wiped the lip of the jar to keep it looking nice. There should be no paint on the outside of the jar. After letting it dry for a bit, I needed to do a second coat for some of them.


Here is the almost finished product. I like the look of these so much better than if they were spraypainted on the outside. Because the paint is on the inside it gives it a high gloss look. So what I'll do next is let them dry for 48 hours, then I actually bake them to set the paint. You put them in the oven and then let it heat to 325 and bake it for 30 minutes. This should then make it so the paint won't come off when you put water inside. Keep in mind that these are not safe to put food in! I plan on finding a cute yellow ribbon to put around each one as well.


My colors are not red, white, and blue. In fact, I don't plan on having any "colors." My colors are going to be anything bright, cheery and springy. I want my wedding to have a vintage feel to it with a lot of color and vibrance. I just think that red, white, and blue are colors that complement most other colors.



So FYI, here is the place we're going to get married. Quite excited, it's on 75 acres with a spectacular view of Mt. Si

4 comments:

  1. I think these turned out spectacular!

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  2. You are so talented! I love this idea and want to try it for something around here. I saw a link for your blog that Sarah put on FB, and it's fun to see all your projects. Keep sharing. :)

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  3. I like how these painted jars turned out. I know you tried to explain it to me earlier, but I didn't fully understand. This is a great way to get enough jars of certain colors for a big event like a wedding.
    And...Wow! you picked a great wedding location!

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  4. What a rad project! I can already tell your wedding is going to be AMAZING!

    I think my mom wants to cater your wedding (if you still need a caterer). She said she saw your craigslist add and was looking at your blog and felt that you and I were like...I don't know, kindred spirits (if I may borrow from our dear Ann of Green Gables)--sorry if this is sounding a bit creepy. I think it's just that I also sewed my own wedding dress from scraps and thrift store findings, didn't have particular wedding colors (just anything fall-ish - it was an october wedding) and 90% of my decor was either found at a thrift store or in someone's back yard. :)

    Anyway, She catered my wedding a couple years back and loved it so much she's done rather a lot of catering type gigs since then, some for pay, some for fun. She's kinda one of those crazy awesome moms who goes all out. Thing is, she felt shy about contacting you. She's funny that way. So she sent me a link to your blog and said "I think I want to do her wedding." lol.

    She mentioned something about bartering/trading for her services...but I figure you two could work that out.

    So! If you're still looking for a caterer, we are local (from Snohomish) and you can check out my blog to know we're at least semi-normal folk. :) www.bookwood.blogspot.com

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