Oil Preserved Photos In Mason Jars

My husband works for an organization where many volunteers come and serve the community.  He was in charge of planning a night to celebrate and recognize those volunteers.  He asked for my help in making the room special by decorating the tables. The place we held the celebration had an old wooden winding staircase, and was full of all kinds of nostalgic type memorabilia.  I played off the nostalgic feel of the place in my decor.  I used all sizes of mason jars, some holding bright sticks of licorice from our local gourmet licorice store, some tiny ball jars holding tea light candles and some full of junior mints. Larger mason jars were full of white daisies to create height and add some nature.  I had buttons that matched our licorice colors sprinkled on the table, and also used them to embellish wooden clothespins that were put at each setting and used in a mixer game.

I needed a personal touch and had pictures of the kids that the volunteers serve and spend time with.  I looked for a unique way to display them, and the world wide web did not fail me in finding a great idea!

I googled mason jar decor and these vintage photo mason jars from Happiness Is came up.  I instantly knew they would be the perfect, personal touch.  Not just a great table decor, but one that some of the volunteers could take home with them as a thank you gift.  The oil preserves the photo and gives it a vintage, aged, yellowing effect.  The jars at Happiness Is shows an added sprig of lavender to the jars, which was a beautiful touch.

{back of the jar}

They were so easy to make, I just bought the cheapest vegetable oil I could find, in bulk, and filled the jars.  Then I put 2 black and white photos, back-to-back, and slid them down into the oil.  I twisted on the lid then added a thank you tag held on with jute.  Simple!