OK, so this is not a new project, at all. In fact, I made these white “ginger jars” about 5 years ago. The thing is though, they remain two of my absolute favorite decor items in my living room, along with my over-sized black and white photos, to this day. And I’ve never shared them with you! How rude, right? Well, today I’m going to fix that. Right now, actually.
So here are the jars in question:
They just make me feel happy about stuff.
These jars subtly set the tone of the room for me, along with those big black and white pictures in the background.
If you think you’d like to make some white ginger jar type things of your own, here’s all your need to do!
First, visit your local thrift store and keep your eyes open for something with a great shape, but really tired and outdated colors and patterns. I think these types of jars were often used in the 70’s as kitchen canisters, so they seem pretty easy to find.
Something like this:
Or this:
Next, you’ll want to clean it up really well. Use soap and water and then dry thoroughly. Finish up with a bit of rubbing alcohol to really get the grease off.
Make sure it’s super dry!
Or don’t.
Here’s what happens if you spray paint over areas where there are still some water drops.
It’s actually kind of a neat, crackly-aged look, but it was totally a mistake. I just left it though, because whatever. Now I kinda like it.
OK, so for real, it’s time to spray paint now.
Separate your lid and your jar and place them on some newspaper or an old box or something outside.
You’ll need to do about 3 really light coats to get a nice even finish. Let it dry for about 5 minutes between coats.
As for the paint, honestly I’ve used all different kinds on different pottery pieces, even the really dirt cheap stuff, and it always works just fine. The only difference is how easy or difficult it is to use. The cheapo paints tend to drip more easily and therefore you need to do more coats and make them lighter. Because of my impatience, I like to use a good quality paint like this to make the job as easy and fun as possible.
A nice gloss white is always my favorite on pieces like this, but feel free to experiment! It’s only paint and you can paint right over it again if you don’t like it!
So that’s pretty much it!
I’ve been seeing white ginger jars like this showing up in trendy decor catalogs more and more over the last couple of years for BIG bucks. If you like the look of them, why not save yourself like $100 and just paint some yourself? It’s an easy DIY project!
Courtenay Hartford is the author of creeklinehouse.com, a blog based on her adventures renovating a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural Ontario, Canada. On her blog, Courtenay shares interior design tips based on her own farmhouse and her work as founder and stylist of the interior photography firm Art & Spaces. She also writes about her farmhouse garden, plant-based recipes, family travel, and homekeeping best practices. Courtenay is the author of the book The Cleaning Ninja and has been featured in numerous magazines including Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, Better Homes and Gardens, Parents Magazine, Real Simple, and Our Homes.