I really love the idea of a rustic Christmas. This year I thought it would be fun to incorporate that style into Christmas tree ornaments. I wanted to somehow take a mason jar and make it work as an ornament but that just didn't seem possible. It seemed out of the question to hang a mason jar from a Christmas tree so I needed to come up with a solution. As far as I know, they don't make tiny mason jars, then it hit me. Baby jars sort of look like small mason jars so why not just use them!
This past summer I learned how to make hanging mason jars. All you need is some thick gauge decorative wire and round nose pliers. Once you get the basic technique down, it's fairly simple. I'll show you exactly how in this step by step tutorial.
To begin you need to form a small loop bending the wire towards you with your round nose pliers. The loop should be formed near the thicker side of the pliers to achieve about 1/8" circle.
Place the loop and wire against the jar with the wire coming out towards you and the loop sticking out to the side.
Bend the wire half way around the jar and stop. Now bend the wire outwards away from the jar using your fingers. Cut the wire about 1/2 inch out from the bend.
Form another loop bending the wire away from you (it should be going in the same direction as the loop on the other side of the wire)
Now take the wire away from the jar and hold it in one hand. Now take the wire on the spool and feed it through the loop. Make a loop with this wire bending towards you.
Now you should have the half circle wire linked with the wire on the spool. Now you are going to repeat the first step pressing the new wire against the jar to form the opposite side of the circle. (It might feel like you are bending the wire against the jar the wrong way but it's Ok you want to press the "side" of the wire against the jar.
Now like in the previous step you are going to make another loop after bending and cutting the wire. The loop should link inside the other one.
OK..... That was the hardest part. You should now have the wire encircling the top of the baby jar with the loops on both sides. It should be snug against the glass in the treading or grooves. If it's loose you can take the needle nose pliers and tighten the loops on both sides to pull the wire snug against the jar....it's a little hard to explain but play around and you'll get the hang of it!
All that's left to now is create the handle. insert some wire downwards through the loop on either side and using the pliers bend it up to form a loop. ...... let the natural curve of the wire lead you to the other side of the jar.
Clip the wire after you insert it through the opposite loop. Make a loop bending upward and link the two wires together.
That's it. you're nearly done. You should have a wired hanging "mason jar".
Now it's time to dress it up.
Place a tiny bit of burlap in the bottom. (in my case I used green burlap wired ribbon.)
Put the flameless candle in the burlap. Tie the raffia around the top in a bow.
YOU'RE DONE.
Now you've got a great little ornament that you made yourself. You can hang it from the tree or make several and line them up along the mantle. Either way you've got something that was easy, fun and inexpensive. Stay tuned to my blog for some more great projects I'm working on for the Holiday season.