Mason jars are incredibly handy to have around and are, strangely enough, rather hip these days. You can usually get them at Value Village and other op-shops for about <$1 a piece, or pick up a box of a dozen at the grocery store for around $12. They’re crazy-versatile and infinitely reusable, so I have no problem having a healthy collection of them taking over my pantry.
1. Re-packaging tomatoes & other canned food
I love chipotle en adobo peppers, but they always come in cans that are far too large to use up all at once. Because of their tomatoey sauce, they’re too acidic to store in plastic containers without them eating away at the plastic. And that plastic, of course, dissolves into your sauce. Ew. So I love using mason jars to keep acidic leftovers in. Much better.
2. Pencil/Brush storage
I have too many brushes and other such vertically inclined type things to just scatter on my dresser without it looking like I’ve just lost a game of Jenga. So I store them in a mason jar. It’s pretty handy.
3. Storing lotions, body butters, etc.
I love using mason jars for packaging my lotions and body butters. They look super classy and add a really nice weight to the item.
4. Vase
A larger jar makes a great vase for tall flowers, a smaller one for close-cut buds.
5. Storing loose change
Poke a coin-shaped hole in the lid & you’ve got a great piggy bank. You could even make a few; one for loonies, one for toonies, one for pennies, etc.
6. Spice Jars
The smaller 125mL jars make great spice and herb jars.
7. Souvenir storage
If you’re the type of person who likes to take sand, seashells, or other such natural tidbits home from vacations, a mason jar makes a great storage vessel.
8. Soap Mold
If you’re looking to make a round disc of soap, the bottom of a mason jar makes a great mold.
9. Water tea light display
Float a lit tea light in some water in a mason jar for a lovely tabletop display.
10. Candle holder
Fill the bottom half of a 500mL mason jar with sand, and wedge a candle in it.
11. Glass
Mason jars, with or without handles, are very trendy drinking vessels these days. They look especially lovely filled with something like pink lemonade, and the tight-fitting lid is great for making mixed drinks or sealing your drink for later.
12. DIY Magic Bullet
All mason jars will screw right onto blender in place of the standard blender container, so you can make a smoothie or milkshake in the same container you want to drink it out of.
13. Spray Bottle
For those of you who are home-improvement inclined, Lee Valley makes a handy mason jar spray add-on. It’s air-compressor powered, and great for things like paint or stain.
14. DIY Cake mix
Layer the dry ingredients required to make a cake, brownies, or some other baking item. Seal, and include instructions to complete the recipe. Makes a great gift!
15. Decant your bulk-purchased items
I love bulk bins as much as the next frugally-minded person, but I’m not a fan of all my ingredients existing in cheap, overly large plastic bags. Mason jars are great for storing your bulk bin purchases in—just be sure to label them clearly so you don’t accidentally swap baking soda for baking powder (which I have definitely never done. Nosiree bob.).
What do you use mason jars for?
Tags: baking soda, brush, cake, craft, dessert, food, ideas, instructions, natural, recipe, sauce, soap, tea, tips, tomatoes
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i am totally confused about how one would use a mason jar as part of a blender. i’m sitting here trying to picture it in my head and it’s just not working! i’m really curious! explain?
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I just added some pictures for you! Hopefully that helps, Meghanne!
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I’ve read that a parmesan lid will screw onto a mason jar too. You know, the Kraft Parmesan in the green plastic shaker? Great for bulk spices, talc, homemade dry scrub for household cleaning, etc.
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Brilliant! Thanks, Dana!
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I love your mason jar and blender mesh up! I am excited to know I don’t have to replace my broken Magic Bullet! Yay, thank you.
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I use the 4oz ones to send in school lunches, jello, fruit, puddings, whatever. I use the 8oz to take my yogurt! I love the white lids for them too!
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Great idea—they’re much sturdier than you might think a glass jar would be, and far more leak proof than many plastic alternatives!
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23+ yrs ago, moved to the farm. Kids, farm boys, barns, traditional glass ware didn’t cut it. Have been using wide pint jars for years for our glasses! You can nearly throw em against the wall, and they don’t break! What’s funny!! My ARMY son still uses them with his family, well, all my kids do!
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I’m having a glass of water out of a mason jar as I write this
They sure are wonderful!-
Have you bought any with the handles on them? I just bought 2, one for my grandson and his room mate. I got them a box of hot chocolate mix, too.
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I never have, but they sound awesome! Where do you get them?
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Blender use is AWESOME for nut butters — no muss, no fuss. Happy to say I’ve used Mason Jars for nearly every purpose here. Haven’t purchased the spray bottle lids yet, nor the soap dispenser lids. Still looking online for these truly amazing lids I got from a craft fair here in NoNV years ago. They are beautiful hand-worked wooden lids with regular screw lid inserts. Gorgeous. Can’t find them on Etsy or anywhere else, but they must exist somewhere out on the internet (I have a knack for searching things out but no luck with this one). They live in my spice and bulk area. I’d top almost every jar with one if I could afford it! ☃
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Those lids sound beautiful—be sure to let me know if you ever find them again, Cheryl!
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Don’t understand how the bottom could be used for a soap mold? Would the jar have to be broken? How would you get the soap out? I use the jars for most of what you listed already but as a soaper always looking for a new mold. Thanks.
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If you use the smaller 125mL mason jars that don’t have a tapered mouth, you’ll be able to get the soap out without resorting to breaking a beloved mason jar!
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I use my canning jars for all kinds of things. Seasonings that I make up, left-overs in the fridge, and for canning, too. They are great storage jars. I have some gallon (used) pickle jars that I use for my canisters. I can see what and how much I have of each thing. (I do label them too.) I am in the process of Etching the name of what is in each jar. Looking forward to doing that.
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GENIUS SIMPLY GENIUS… addicted to this blog/website now and I liked your facebook page and am recommending to everyone on mine!!!!!
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Thanks, Melissa!
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I received a mason-jar wine glass as a Christmas gift from my mother and father in-law. All they did was glue a glass candle stick to the bottom of a mason jar…. it’s super cute and now my husband wants one too!!
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What a cute, creative idea! This would also be an adorable way to serve cupcakes, like a mini cake platter!
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i love my mason jar oil lamp.. you can buy the wick and chimney to screw on the jar,,, fill with lamp oil,, great for when the lights go out..
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I love this idea, Jeanne! Where do you buy the chimneys?
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I use mine for most of these things also, but one thing I love them for is sprouting. You can buy sprouting lids that fit Mason jars or make your own with the outer ring and a clean piece of plastic mesh screen material. You can then put them in the fridge when they are ready in the same jar. We love homegrown sprouts, especially the broccoli sprouts and they are much cheaper than the ones in the store. I also love the blender idea. My grandmother gave me her old Oster blender and it actually came with jars to make up dressings, or whatever in them and had lids for storage. Glad to know you could use a Mason Jar the same way.
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Ooh, what a great idea! Sprouts are really wonderful for garnish and sandwiches and the like, but not only can they be expensive, I find they can often be in rather sad shape at this time of year at my local grocery store.
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They are also great for displaying photo’s too.
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Do you submerge the photo in oil for this? I’ve seen it done that way on Pinterest, but it always seemed like a waste of a pint of perfectly good olive oil to me.
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No I don’t however like you I have seen that done. I have printed them black and white or sepia.
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My daughter makes her own salsa and when I discovered u could use the jars with the blender, I immediatly showed her, now she does it all the time. Thank You soo much for the tidbit, im looking forward to more
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Glad you’re having fun with your salsa! Thanks for stopping by
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Where’s the best place to buy – I heard Dollar Tree or .99 but didn’t find them there?
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I generally buy mine at the grocery store or Dollarama, but the best place to get good ‘ol vintage jars is definitely Value Village. I’ve had better luck at stores in smaller towns and cities, so if you happen to be road-tripping it somewhere, it’s worth a pit stop to see if you can score some great jars!
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I have some beautiful blue Ball mason jars that i found in my basement. I am so looking forward to trying some of these ideals.
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Ooh, I’m jealous! I’ve got just one of those, and I treasure it as a decorative item!
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We use small ones plus jelly jars as wine glasses. Kinds fun and works great outdoors.
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I have seen other blogs were people bake cakes,brownies, breads, and pies in mason jars. Then after cool says to serve it. Some even suggested ice cream deserts in them.
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This would be extra pretty with layered desserts! However, I wouldn’t bake in them as there is a risk of the glass exploding in the oven! Eek.
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I have been baking apple sauce cakes and carrot cakes in wide mouth jars for years at 325 degrees. For Christmas gifts I put them in baskets with some greenery or shredded papers .Makes a pretty gift.
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Mason jars are also a great way to store the “leftovers” of paint or touchups. There is not drying or caking because the lid is so tight.
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Wonderful idea, thanks MaryLena!
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The Mason jar lids are a great help in baking muffins for large groups. Fill a shallow baking pan with jar lids with cupcake liners and fill with muffin dough. Instead of baking one dozen at a time, you will make 3-4 dozen!
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A great idea, but it is worth noting that the manufacturers do not recommend baking in their jars, so do at your own risk
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Sorry to be confusing. You do not bake IN THE JARS. Instead, you take only the lid and put a cupcake liner in it and put your batter in that liner using the lids to hold the cupcake liner upright during the baking.
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AH! Thanks for clarifying, MaryLena, this sounds like an awesome way to bake up tons of cupcakes all at once
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