Painted Mason Jars for my Basil Plants

My mother-in-law and I made caprese fruit skewers for Brian's cousin's baby shower recently, which ended up being a surprise hit! They were comprised of strawberries, watermelon, fresh basil and homemade mozzarella that we hand-stretched the night before, topped with a balsamic reduction. I was a little nervous about how it would turn out, so I didn't even take pictures. But now that I know how great they are, I've officially added it to my list of things to share with you all soon.



The reason I bring this all up is to show you what I did with my basil plants. My mother-in-law (bless her) opted to get basil plants from the supermarket instead of bunches of picked basil for the fruit skewers -- and now I will have basil for as long as I don't kill these plants! Woo hoo!

I decided to try my luck at planting the basil in mason jars. I had recently picked up a box of twelve mason jars from Walmart for about $8 to use in various projects, so I grabbed two of my jars and wiped them down. 

I taped off a wide stripe on each jar using Frog Tape. I intentionally did not put the stripe in the same place on each jar.....but that's just my personal preference.

I covered the area I did not wanted painted with plastic wrap.

And then I got to work painting! I started with my favorite oil-based primer that it so amazing, it would literally stick to water itself (ok maybe not, but you get the point...the stuff sticks!). I used a foam roller brush to apply the paint.

I applied two coats of primer.

Next, I grabbed some leftover light blue paint from this project and applied two coats.

Once the paint dried, I sprayed it with a light coat of satin acrylic sealer, to ensure the paint wouldn't chip or peel. Once everyone was dry, I peeled off the plastic wrap and the tape. How cute are these jars?? You could use them nearly anywhere in your home. You could fill them with treats in the kitchen, or with q-tips and cotton balls in the bathroom. You could fill them with flowers in the family room or with votive candles in the dining room.  

Today, as the title of this post suggests, I'm planting herbs in them. :)

I put a layer of rocks in the bottom of each jar. Before I go on, let me pause for a moment to explain that I do not claim to have any sort of green thumb whatsoever. In fact, I'm pretty good at killing plants. The only things I've successfully grown are forgotten potatoes and onions, and a vengeful parsley plant that I left outside for dead two winters ago that has voraciously come back to life....and I'm pretty sure it's plotting to murder me. Anyway....chances are good you know more about plant-care than I do, so please don't assume I know what I'm talking about in the slightest.

So, yeah, I put a layer of rocks in the bottom because the Magic School Bus book series talk me as wee lass that rocks help with drainage if there are no drainage holes in your plant pot.

I poured soil on top of the rocks and then, much like getting into freshly washed jeans in the morning, I squeezed my basil plants into the jars (yeah, I didn't really plan that one through, but at the end of the day, everybody made it in the pool).

Ta da!! And now the countdown begins to see how long I can keep these bad boys alive. 

Cheers!
PS. I'm linking up here: