How To Turn An Old Mason Jar Into Vintage-Style Home Decor

While beautiful vintage pieces can be an easy way to add classic style and grace to your home, good finds can often be challenging. The older the item, the harder it is to find, typically. Even new reproductions of vintage décor can be expensive to buy from trendy home retailers. For true antiques, you will pay quite a bit, even if you find the perfect piece. A fun tutorial from a YouTube DIYer, however, shows how to create a pretty and distinctive DIY vase using only an upcycled jar, some embroidered lace, and air-drying clay. The final product is a faux-metallic carved vessel perfect for a vintage or gothic-inspired room. 

Not only is this a clever way to reuse glass jars, it is inexpensive and very eco-friendly. You can also customize the look and style of your vase according to your aesthetics, depending on the motifs and materials you use. 

Begin by thoroughly cleaning the jar of any grease or residue both inside and out with soap and water or acetone. Use some painters or masking tape around the center to create a line, then paint half the jar marked off with black acrylic paint. Once the paint has dried, remove the tape for a clean line. Use some cut up pieces of floral embroidered lace to add texture, adding some black paint to them before gluing them along the surface of the jar. Allow some of the details to go down below the painted portion, like tendrils, leaves, and flowers.

Use air dry clay and a border mold to create both a braided rope to go around the top of the jar, as well as some smaller molds to create flowers and leaves. While still wet, add some glue to the back and press them in place. When everything has dried, use a coat of copper metallic paint over the black, which will give the jar an aged metal look.

While this clever DIY creates a more gothic and ornate piece, a similar approach can be taken with other kinds of details. For a more cottage-inspired look, use the same decoration, but paint it with a white paint over the black to add a weathered wood look to the appliques. Create a more beachy vase by using molds of sea details like plants, shells, and small fish instead of flowers. Opt for bright and glossy colors for a more modern aesthetic, or use brown or gray paint to create a stone or concrete effect that compliments more rustic and farmhouse décor interiors. You can also cover the entire surface in lace and paint over it with a rich gold.

Use these beautiful vases to hold flowers, or try the same treatment on a smaller jar to create a votive candle holder with vintage carved details. You can also create charming hanging lanterns to light up your outdoor space by looping some wire around the top of the jar or punching it through the lid for hanging outdoors.