Painted Jar Flower Vase and Other Upcyling Ideas

I was recently inspired to make something involving flowers after discovering the online flower delivery company, BloomNation.  I love reusing things, so came up with this craft project upcyling old jars and turning them into something beautiful, which I could fill with flowers to decorate my home!

For this project I will show you how to colour jars with glass paint (which is waterproof so won't be washed off when you fill it with flowers and water!) and then embellish the jar with paint, lace and twine.  Decorated jars look lovely as home decor and if you're planning a wedding they would make great table centres too!

You will need:
Glass jars (washed!)
Glass paint (I used Pebeo Vitrea 160)
Nail varnish remover
Paint brush
An oven
Paper (copy paper is fine)
Craft knife
Sticky tape
Gold acrylic paint
Cotton lace trim
Baker's twine

First you will need to thin the glass paint by mixing it with nail varnish remover. If you want to just tint the colour of your jars add more nail varnish remover, or for a darker colour thin the paint with less nail varnish remover.
By mixing 'Oriental Green' with 'Laquer Blue' glass paint I made a lovely teal colour.  I also tried an ombre version with blue / green paint at the bottom of the jar, graduating to yellow at the top.  Have fun experimenting with different colour and patterns!

Paint the insides of your jars and leave to dry over night (in a dust free area).  Then bake in your oven for 40 minutes at 160°C / 325°F.

Once the jars are cool you can decorate the outside...
I created a star template (which you can download here).  Please note it is for personal use only.  If you would like to share the template please include a link back to this post (not the download link).

Cut out the stars with a craft knife.  Arrange the stencils where you would like them on your jar and attach with sticky tape, then paint the stars with the gold paint.  Carefully remove the stencils once the paint is dry to avoid smudging.

Then cut a piece of lace trim slightly larger than the circumference of the jar.  I secured the ends with a few stitches for a neater finish, but you don't have to do this.
Finally, wrap the baker's twine (I used gold sparkle twine) twice around the jar and tie with a bow.

I filled my new vase with some pretty white and yellow carnations.  I found the perfect spot to display the flowers in the hallway at the bottom of my stairs.  The table is a recent addition to my home, although it has been in the family a long time - my great-grandfather made it!

If you are looking for more inspiration on upcycling items for displaying flowers, I've been pinning more ideas to my Flower's board on Pinterest...
  Follow Hazel's board Flowers on Pinterest.
These are some of my favourite ideas:
Light Bulb Vases
Leather Trimmed Hanging Vases
Gold Painted Bottles

BloomNation support local florists across the US by showcasing their floral creations on their marketplace.  If you're looking for floral inspiration why not take look at their blog, Instagram or Pinterest pages?