Cold, rainy days always make me think of cozy cabins with a nice warm fireplace. These kinds of images always stick in my head during the fall and winter. I always imagine famous authors going to these hidden hideaways where there is no telephone and they are at the computer with a warm cup of cocoa (tea in my case) and they are brainstorming their next novel. When I picture myself in this scenario, I am in the cabin (probably not writing) but thinking of unique crafts to surprise someone. In the kitchen, I am surrounded by a sea of mason jars. Each mason jar filled with fresh herbs that I have picked foraging in the woods. (yeah right!) Too afraid to be in the woods. But, it’s my dream so I can dream.
A great girlfriend (Kelly Walker) told me about a local store going out of the town and she had purchased several cases on mason jars. Kelly and I meet and end at our love for crafts, food, fun, fellowship and great wine. Kelly heard about my love for seamoss and the shakes that I was making for my patients and wanted me to try her mason jar sea moss gel and drink. This opened the door to our love for mason jars. (ok, so we are weird). By the way, her sea moss drink is amazing. If you are ever in the Columbus, GA area, please look her up on FaceBook for Kelly’s Kocktails.
But, back to my mason jar craze. In reality, I am surrounded by a lot of mason jars. I never quite thought about it, but I have a healthy relationship with mason jars. They are so useful and the functionality is endless. I recently made master batches of soups and guess where I stored them. In mason jars. Today I want to share with you a great do-it-yourself- idea with none other than mason jars. Before there was electricity we used oil to light our pathways (ha-ha). Seriously, oil was used in lamps to provide lighting. So today let’s make scented oil lamps. I have hyperlinked some of the ingredients. If you click on them you will find a resource to purchase. These are not affiliate links. For example if you are not in area where there are pinecones. It may be difficult. If you are in the Fort Benning area, Flat Rock and Cooper Creek have all the pine cones you need.
HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED
Oil (canola, olive, coconut) I use olive oil
Rosemary
Cinnamon
Cloves
Essential Oil ( I like fall scents this time of year)
Fill your mason jar with any herbs or botanicals you are going to use. I grow rosemary, thyme, and mint so I have those on hands. I love cinnamon and cloves so I keep them in my cupboard. Add dried or fresh lemon peel to the jar. Next, add essential oil for a more concentrated scent. Finally, add your floating wick and you’ve got yourself an oil lamp. A few years ago, I did this and added a little food coloring to make it even prettier.
Recently, I saw some cute mason jars on Pinterest so the options for decorating and adding different botanicals are endless. As I am writing this, I just had an idea. I have my bouquet from my vowel renewal that my best Leading Lady, Melanie Thomas- Carr (For Ella After Floral Design) created. It was so inspirational that I could not toss it. It is the cutest arrangement with my sister, and best girlfriend who is no longer with me. I think I’m going to add it to a mason jar for continued preservation. I think I might have an idea for Melanie to add to her business. Mel, if you are reading this. Mason Jar Bouquet storage. lol
