Do the colored salt as usual and then put in bday candle with wax or wick and have candle. Also decorate with ribbon and some paint or decoupage and have votive candle cups. Could use many theme ideas for this.
You might want to try etching the glass
You could sponge paint the outside of them and put some floral clay in the bottom and do some small floral arrangements for residents at a nursing home or at a senior center!
Have you done the sand paintings with salt and sidewalk chalk? This is a way to make your own colored sand. Give each girl a paper plate and pour on a small hill of ordinary table salt. Rub the stick of sidewalk chalk over and over the sand to color it. It takes a little elbow grease, but the results are fantastic. Each girl does a different color and the colors are then "shared" to create sand paintings within the baby food jars. Layer in the different colors, then use a pencil or sharp stick to create impressions down the inside of the jar. Fill the jar to the very top (compacted) with sand before replacing the lid.
You can use them as organizers. {!This project would only be for OLDER GIRLS!} First you paint the lids with a brightly colored paint. Then you nail the lids (as many as you want according to the size of your board) to a board. You then add "corner things" (I don't know the "real" name of these) so that you have a shelf. You can then put things in the baby food jars and screw them onto thier lids. This is a really neat project and a great organizer!
Fill them with poppuri and covered top with netting for mother's day gift.
You can make water snowglobes but be sure to seal the lid good with a water proof glue. Use small plastic ornaments (wood gets soft and yucky) cement glue them to the underneath side of the lid and confetti stuff before sealing the lid on tight.
Plant beans in them close to the edge so you could see it grow.
Take the baby food jars and glue them bottom to bottom. Put something of a decorative nature on a painted lid. Screw it on to the bottom most jar. Decorate the outside of the top jar with paint, glitter, what ever. Take small candles and using some clay (I know this isn't the right name for the stuff) stick them inside the top jar. You have candle holders.
Beautiful Christmas Trees - 17 jars - any size Jr. or the real little ones. Put a hole through the center of each lid just big enough for a mini light to go through cement Glue (not hot glue) the jars together, with the open ends all on the same side. Put a small piece of silver garland in each jar. Replace covers and push a string of mini lights (one light thru each hole) into opening of each lid. You can glue the base of the bulb to edge of hole if light slips in or out. I like using multi colored lights but you could use one color with a different color bulb for the top jar.
How about filling them with Camper's Cocoa or a recipe of Tang Tea.
They are great to put in with baked goods for a breakfast in a basket.
Many things can be done with them....pour candles into them...scented for the appropriate season....add a label made by...then embellish the label, and the lids..maybe spray paint the lids gold or silver... and then the lid can be put on to put out the candle...
Could be a set of six primary color finger paints for kids..
Use jars for play dough.
Could be an earring jar
Use for Bath Salts decorate and put a pretty covering on the jar lid.
Cut slit in lid for penny jar.
Fill with blue water (food coloring) and oil (like the lava lamps), and with the glittery confetti cut in shapes that you can buy now.
Make snowmen decorations out of them . Just clean three of them out well, pour white paint (use any kind you happen to have handy) INSIDE the jars,swishing it around until the entire inside of the jar is coated. Let dry. Paint the OUTSIDE of the lids white and let dry also. Then hot glue the jars on top of each other. Make a little stocking cap out of ribbing with a little bell ( You can use baby socks for this also.) Hot glue buttons down the front, a piece of orange twist paper for the nose on the top jar, and paint a happy, goofy little face on the top jar also. hot glue some little twigs on the sides of the second jar for arms. Use a scrap of material for a scarf and you're done!
Use brown paint in one and make a reindeer instead.
Fill with potpourri, cut lace circles of about 5" diameter. Place over top of jar and secure with rubber band. TIe ribbon over band. Sachets ! Even little kids can do this.
Make jam and put in clean, sterile jars. Pour layer of melted parrafin over top to seal. Makes great little Christmas gifts.
Another candle holder idea is to paint them with different colors of nail polish on the outside and sprinkle with glitter.
How about filling them with little hair do-dad things and giving them to the homeless shelter.
Fill them with candy and decorate the outside to look like a Turkey and give them to Meals on Wheels for tray favors or to the homeless shelter for the Thanksgiving meal.
Make paperweights by filling with stuff (shells, marbles, etc.)
Giggle Jars Use standard "wide mouth" jars for best results. The juice jars just don't look quite right. With the lid on the jar, glue two large or three small cotton balls to the lid of the jar. Then run a bead of tacky glue around the edge of the lid. Next cover with a 4 to 6 inch square of some sort of pretty cloth. Hold in place with a rubberband until glue is set - about 15 to 20 minutes (dry is better). Before the glue is set, kinda slide the cloth around to "even out" the folds and pleats.
Take lid off the jar and using scissors, trim the cloth flush with the bottom edge of the lid. Remove the rubberband and trim the edge of the lid with lace, or rick rack, or narrow ribbon or ??? You should now have a jar with the lid looking kinda like an understuffed pin-cushion. Print up the following sayings onto a sheet of paper. (business card size) Punch a hole in one corner. Tie a short piece of ribbon to each tag. Have the girls take the lid off a jar hold it close to her mouth and "giggle" into each jar. Then quickly replace the lid, pinching the tags ribbon in
the jar.
You say this jar is empty,
Well take another look!
This jar is filled with giggles,
In every little nook.
I put them there for you to save,
For when your life seems low.
So open up when times are sad,
And let my giggles flow.
Use wax crystals and wicks and make candles.
Make a snowman: Fill with styrofoam peanut bits. Put the lid on, glue a face on the front of the jar and make a hat from a black felt circle glued flat to the lid and a big pom pom on top. (I have also seen bunnies, scarecrows, as variations.)
Fathers Day paperweights - for those extra lids - have the girls collectrocks on a nature hike and glue those in lid. Have them paint decopague on entire peice and let dry.
Nuts and bolts holder for Dad - Nail lids to board evenly spaced apart and while holding board with lids toward floor screw jars into lids. Dads can mount board up-side down in garage or work room and fill them with junk/stuff.
No cook Jelly - have girls make no-cook jelly and seal in jar. Decorate lid with felt round, lace, and ribbons.
Sewing jar with pin cushion on top - Take round piece of material(about 6 inch round)and baste stitch around the edge of the material. Put fiberfill in middle of the material round on back side of material print. Draw the baste stitching up so that the round makes a ball with the fiberfill in the middle and tie off. Attach this ball, drawn-up side down, with hot glue to top of lid. Glue lace and ribbon around the rim of the lid. Put pins in the jar and attach the pincushion lid.
Flavored Tea - combine instant tea crystals with crystal light beverage crystals or presweetened kool-aid. Put mixture in jar and decorate lid.
Variation on the "snow globe" thing, but it's kind of cool. You take a combination of sand, soil, some bits of gravel, and put it in the jar (fill about 1/3 to 1/2 way full). Then fill the rest with water and glue-gun the cover. When you shake it everything gets all mixed up, then slowly the different strata of soil, gravel, etc., settle out. It's kind of cool to watch and really demonstrates the principle of a suspension.
Small jars are ideal for chutneys, flavoured mustards, cranberry sauces, jams etc., these could be given as Christmas gifts to the elderly or other needy people or sold to raise funds for service projects.
Put some sand, small twigs, small stones and shells and a nice lid cover - and you could do this to commemorate a camp. Let them gather a little piece of the camp to "keep". They could bring their "Keeper" to the following camp, distribute the contents in appropriate places and gather new "keeper" items for their jars.
What about making your own baby food & donating it to a women's shelter?
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