Spice Containers

So with all those herbs from my herb planter, I needed something to keep them in. I never could find a spice rack that I really loved so one day while walking through Hobby Lobby (which I do way more frequently than I should) I found some adorable small glass jars for only $1!! Immediately I knew exactly what to do with them! (I apologize for the dimly lit photos, it's a rainy, dreary day here in Cincinnati).

Want to make these? Here's what you'll need:

• Metal Letter Stamps-I used 1/4" size. I bought them from Evie's Tool Emporium on Etsy. http://www.etsy.com/shop/EviesToolEmporium. I really believe these are an investment worth making for any crafter!
• Small Containers-Again, I bought mine for $1 at Hobby Lobby. I'm sure you can find similar ones at any craft store. OR try this website! So awesome: http://www.specialtybottle.com/spiceglassjarsmi.aspx
• A metal bench block for stamping. I bought mine at Hobby Lobby, but you can find them at the same Etsy shop as the stamps.
• A metal hole punch. I found this on Amazon. Mine is 1.25mm.
• Aluminum Rectangles. I used 3/8 x 1 1/2" 20 gauge. I bought them from Bopper on Etsy. http://www.etsy.com/shop/Bopper
• A hammer.
• Black (or whatever color you prefer) acrylic paint.
• String-I used hemp.
• Scissors

Step 1-Place aluminum rectangle on bench block. Use metal letter stamps to stamp in the word you'd like to appear on your rectangle. Depending on the gauge of the rectangle, it doesn't really take much to stamp the letter into the aluminum. A few decent taps with the hammer should do it. I experimented with one to get a feel for what worked best. Be sure to leave enough space on the ends or tops of the rectangle to poke a hole in later for the string.

Step 2-Once you have the word stamped into your rectangle, you'll notice it's kind of light. Many tutorials for metal letter stamping suggest coloring stamped letters with a sharpie and then sanding off excess. This has never worked for me, so I tried painting acrylic paint over the letters and wiping the excess off. It worked beautifully! Simply paint over the word, let dry for a few minutes and then use a paper towel to wipe off the excess paint.

Step 3-Now you'll need to punch a hole into the rectangle so that you can attach it to your jar. I tried using a nail and hammer at first, but this didn't work well or easily. I finally broke down and bought the hole punch. It's amazingly easy to use and makes a clean hole.

Step 4-Finally, all that's left is to use the hemp string to attach the tags to the jars. I chose the hemp because of it's wax-like coating. This made it easy to string through the small hole without it fraying. The easiest way is to cut the string at an angle and feed it through. Then, tie the string around the jar any way you wish. Easy, right?