Hey everyone! Today I wanted to share my latest patriotic project with you. Like pretty much everyone, I love mason jars and will jump at any excuse to use them in a project. I also love chalky finish paint, so I combined my two loves to make this set of patriotic lanterns.
UPDATE: If learning how to make these via a YouTube video is more your style, scroll down to the bottom of the post and check out my time-lapse video on how to make them!
I used one half gallon and two quart-sized jars that I picked up from Michaels. I wanted to create a mask that I could peel off later to allow light to peek through, so I used some leftover vinyl and cut out 1/4″ dots and 1/2″ stars for the jars. I just stuck them randomly all over the jars.
I painted the jars with Americana Decor Chalky Finish Paint in Everlasting.
For the smaller jars, I used Frog Tape painter’s tape to mask off my stripes. I just evenly placed the tape on the jars and then painted the stripes with Americana Decor Chalky Finish Paint in Romance.
I peeled the smaller dots off of the jars after all of the paint dried.
Before painting the larger jar, I cut out 1 3/4″ vinyl stars and stuck them to the jar.
I painted the entire jar in Americana Decor Chalky Finish Paint in Legacy.
Once the paint was dry enough, I peeled off both the larger and smaller stars. Once I was sure the paint was completely dry, I sanded all of the jars with 220 grit sandpaper to distress them a bit.
I set them out front on our patio table and stuck a tea light in each of them. They lit up perfectly and added some much needed light to this otherwise dark space in our courtyard. I am so happy with how they turned out and I love that I’ve got some fun and festive decor for the front porch now!
Katie
Love all your projects, thanks for sharing.
Thank you Shawna!
That is absolutely adorable! I love it! Great job Katie. I am so making those!
Thanks Janet! Can’t wait to see yours!
Totally in love with these, Katie! Pinning and sharing!
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Thank you Tasha! 🙂
Katie this is awesome! I love how they glow when they are lit up. Wonderful idea and perfect for July 4th!
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Love this idea!! I will be doing this! Where did you find the paint?!
Thank you! You can find the paint at Michaels or Home Depot. You can also order it online from DecoArt.
I love these! I noticed your picture at night with them lit up the glass looks shiny not chalky. Did you put a clear glossy coat over the chalk pain?
Thank you! No, I didn’t do anything to the chalk paint after applying it:)
LOVE THESE!! I’m working on them now. Did you do 2 coats of white or just 1? I LOVE THEM!!
I love hearing when someone makes a project I’ve shared! I used two coats of white:)
Where did you get the vinyl for the stars and dots? What is it called in a craft store?
I order it online at Expressions Vinyl, but you can find adhesive vinyl at craft stores.
Loves these! Does it still work if you don’t use the chalky paint?
I think it would, although I’ve never used anything but chalky finish paint on them. I’d love to hear how it works for you if you choose to go with acrylic or latex paints.
I am in the process of making these with acrylic paint. I will let you know how they turned out!
Great! I can’t wait to hear how they look!
I just finished using acrylic, and it was a DISASTER 🙁 The acrylic sort of creates a plastic-y film that peels off along with the stickers. It was a mess! I spent so much time trying to touch up everything afterwards. I even made sure I let each coat dry before repainting or adding stickers/tape. Spend a little more and use the chalkboard paint! I have not sanded them yet as I am still touching up all the peeled areas, but I have a feeling the acrylic is not going to sand well.
Also, for those who tried it and the paint peeled off with the stickers/frog tape, it could be either because you were using the wrong paint, didn’t let the paint dry completely before applying the stickers, sticker adhesive was too strong, any number of reasons really. I think a good starting point would be to wash the jars first with lots of soap. I noticed on the new jars I bought there felt as if there was some sort of coating on them. Good luck!
Angie, I’m so sorry you are having so many troubles! I do agree that the chalk paint is a great paint to use because it is a flat paint, which minimizes how much the tape and vinyl will stick to it. Sadly any type of satin or gloss finish will probably peel. You should see how much patchwork we had to do in my oldest son’s room when we he had a hot wheels wall track held on with command strips. It not only took paint, but also the paper off the drywall!
Love these! How many coats of paint did you use?
Hi Maggie! I used two coats of paint for each color.
Absolutely love these…especially the small stars and dots…and all lit up! So creative!
~Ariean
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Thanks Ariean! I am totally addicted to painting mason jars now! I can see that you are loving them too! 🙂
Awesome idea! Absolutely love these! My paint peeled off when I removed the painters tape. Do you happen to have any advise? Thanks!
I made sure to let my first coat get good and dry before I put the tape on. How long had you waited before putting the tape on? That’s the only thing I can think of. You could always touch up any paint that peels off too:)
I’d say I let dry 3-4 hours….I only used one coat also, so maybe that didn’t help! Thanks for the info! I’m going to try again!
Hi! How did you cut out the stars and circles?
Hi Lindsey! I cut them out using my Cricut.
I love these, where can all the paint be purchased? The “vinyls?”
You can purchase the paint at Michael’s or Home Depot and the vinyl was purchased online, but you can also find it at Michaels or any craft store, really:)
Can you use any type of chalk paint..or any type of paint for that matter
You could. I just happened to use the Americana Chalky Finish paint. I’ve never tried acrylic paint, or latex paint, but I’m sure you could get similar results with those:)
Awesome
Love this project – even though we don’t celebrate 4th of July in Australia – we have Australia Day and our colours are similar. Just wondering if you could please tell me where I can buy this paint on-line that ships to Autralia. And also if anyone sells Ball and Mason Jars and ships too. Thank you in advance.
So awesome!!!! thanks for sharing
I’m such a patriotic geek and can’t help but to fall in love with the mason jar lanterns. I am definitely going to make these. Thank you so much for the darling idea.
Was the base white paint painted on the inside?
No, all of the paint was done on the outside:)
Thank u
I love these! I made these over the weekend and am wondering if you used anything to get the sticky left behind by the vinyl off the jars? Suggestions? Thanks so much!
I didn’t have any sticky residue left over on mine. I’m so sorry that happened for you! What kind of vinyl did you use?
My Paper Studio is the brand of vinyl–came from Hobby Lobby.
You could try using Goo Gone in a Q tip or even baby oil. I’m so sorry you had that problem. Their vinyl is not my favorite. It is not the greatest quality, unfortunately.
Ok, thanks! Will try Goo Gone. Thanks for the info on the vinyl quality. I will try a different brand next time. Thanks for sharing this great idea on the patriotic mason jars!
I love these. I ran to the craft store this morning to get all the supplies and my first coat is drying now! The paint doesn’t say how long to let it dry so I was
wondering how long you let it dry between coats and the vinyls and painters tape. Thanks!!
I let it dry for a couple of hours, just to be sure it was good and dry before I added the painters tape and vinyl.
Hi, Katie!
These Mason Jars are adorable! I am the host of a podcast called Suzie Homemaker on the Down-Low. This week I am recording a fourth of July themed episode and I would love to feature this tutorial. Please let me know if I can use some of the images on my website. I will link back to you and give you credit(of course).
Thanks!!
Hi Katie, thanks so much for your sweet comment. Of course you may use pictures:). I look forward to seeing your post!
I can’t find these specific paints even online. Where would they be available?
Hmm. DecoArt’s chalky finish paint website should have it too. You can also check Michaels.
I am thinking of using this project for a group of about 40 women. I wonder how much of the paint it would take?
Not very much, actually. You could probably get by with two jars of each color, but you could get three to be safe:)
these just might be the best mason jar diy ever, so so cute! thanks for sharing your step-by-step!!
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Thanks so much for your sweet compliment!
So cute, I love them lit up!
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Seriously … how cool are those! I can see a whole bunch of them on my stairs all lit up for the 4th of July.
Hugs & Blessings …
Lani
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That would be so cool!
Thanks so much for the gorgeous Patriotic Mason Jar Lanterns!!! I love them to bits. I just became a crafty person thanks to this post being shared on Facebook. I will be trying some other designs with the jars as well. Oh by the way I used acrylic/multi surface paint & they turned out great! Thanks again
I love how your lanterns turned out, and congrats on the Country Living feature plus the today.com contact! how fun is that!
gail
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Thank you Gail! It has completely blown me away.
After you used the candles inside, did you have a bunch of black soot left behind? If so, how do you suggest getting that off without ruining your finish?
Hi Sara, these are painted on the outside, so any black soot on the inside could be wiped away with a damp cloth:)
I love your ” Patriotic Lanterns”. I’m going to make them, my daughter-in-law has an obsession with anything Americana or Patriotic, she would go crazy over these!!
Oh, I bet she’d love these then! Thanks for stopping by and checking them out:). Have a great weekend!
I tried to make these today.. When I pulled off the stickers all the paint came with them.. I did try to use acrylic paint (since I have a ton at home already)…. I was able to pull all the paint right off the jars, as if it was vinyl…. Any tips??
Thanks
How long did you let the paint dry? I’ve never done this with acrylic paint, on,y the chalky finish paint, but I’ve heard other day the acrylic paint came out fine for them. If it was a glossy acrylic paint vs satin, that could play a part in the paint sticking to the tape. I’m so sorry that happened! I would try with satin acrylic if you didn’t already.
I used Craft Acrylic paint in satin and it peels! So I will try chalk paint!
I definitely would. I haven’t had any experience painting acrylic on glass, but most who have tried it with this project have said that it peels.
HI Katie! I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these jars and am featuring them on my blog today. The addition of circles and stars was a great idea and I just love how they look all lit up at night! I hope you have a safe and happy Fourth of July!
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Thanks so much, Katie! I hope you have a wonderful 4th as well!
So I wanted to come back and write that I did have success with acrylic paint… I ended having to experiment to make it work since no store in 1-2 hours of us carries the chalk paint in any color… The secret is to be slow and steady… Clean the jar with rubbing alcohol first then put on your stickers… Then paint white…. Let it dry thoroughly … Like at least 3-4 hours of not overnight… The longer you wait the better. Then put other stickers on and paint over it with your color….. Let this sit overnight and then peel… Again the longer the better.. I have the top paint an overnight drying and stickers peeled off like magic and left the white behind with no problem…. It just must take longer to cure or stick to the jar.. But it can be done… I’ve done it for 40-50 jars for an anniversary party and its worked just fine.. I even used 3-4 coats of one if the colors since it was yellow to cover well! Good luck!
Glad you had success with the acrylic paint, Mara!
Katie, I was wondering what type of stickers you use on the jars to be able to paint over but still be able to get them off. I am making these for a banquet.
I used adhesive vinyl. You can find it at any of the craft stores. Contact paper could also work too.
hello!! I LOVE these!! I am trying them now…but I can’t seem to any kind of painters tape to stick the chalk paint?! I’ve tried the Scotch Blue and the Frogtape. Anyone else have this problem??
That’s really strange. Mine stuck just fine. Maybe try gently wiping the jars with a damp cloth to see if maybe there is some loose dust on them from the chalk paint?
How long would you say this project took from start to finish? Want to do it with a group of people and have a limited time frame!
With letting the paint completely dry, maybe 2-3 hours? I didn’t really time it and taking pictures between steps makes it take a long longer.
I love these lanterns! I am in the middle of making these right now. How did you get the larger stars to stick to the jars after they were painted? My vinyl stars won’t stick to the paint.
Thank you!!
It might depend on the vinyl you are using. Mine stuck just fine, but if it is a lower quality vinyl, it may not stick at all.
These mason jars are amazing!! Thanks for the tutorial. I hope you don’t mind I linked to them in my latest blog post. http://www.prettypracticalparties.com/2015/07/fourth-of-july-party-bang/
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Not at all! Thanks for sharing them!
How many coats of chalky paint did you use? And how long between coats?
Thank you!
I don’t remember exactly how many coats I used, but enough to get full coverage of the colors. Before adding the tape over the striped jars and the stars over the larger jar, I let the paint dry for a few hours so I wouldn’t take any of it up with when it was time to peel the tape and vinyl off. I also let it dry fully between colors.
I love chalk paint and Americana as well. Where can I purchase Americana chalk paint?
You can purchase it at Michaels, Home Depot and I believe at Joann.
Magnificent Idea..
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My daughter would love these. She has a major flag heme going on.
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hey i love love love these. I just finished my first 2 sets and I’d like preserve the finish I created. What kind of varnish or clear coat should I use that won’t interfere with the the holes of light coming through? Thanks so much for this post and any answers you may have.<3
Hi Taryn,
That’s a great question! If you were to use real candles, I’m not sure if there is a sealant that would hold up to the heat when the jars warm up. It could yellow the sealant or let off fumes. If you use battery operated LED candles, you can definitely seal it with a clear coat. Either a clear coat spray can or you can use polycrylic.
I loved this project so much I decided to do it for one of our monthly craft nights. I almost couldn’t get the blue paint online too since a ton of people were out of stock on it. But fortunately I found someone who still had some. I am debating on whether I should prep the jars with the first coat of white paint first though just so we don’t have to spend ALL night waiting for the paint to dry. I hope you don’t mind me using your finished product picture to show the ladies what we’ll be making. If you’d rather me not use it I understand. They look so cute! Great job! Thank you for sharing!
Of course not! Feel free to show them the inspiration pictures:) And prepping them with the white coat might be a good idea. Like you said, you ladies don’t want to spend your evening watching paint dry;)
I’ve never worked with vinyl. Can I get sheets of them at a craft ? Also, I’m assuming you used vinyl becaus they are easier to get off the jars instead of regular stickers?
Yes. You can purchase it from any craft store:)
Hi we just made these tonight. I lucked out with the chalk paint being on clearance for 50 cents a bottle!!! And I just bought star stickers in the scrap booking area of AC Moore for a dollar! I love them. They are so cute and festive. Thank you!!!
Wow! That’s a great deal! So glad you like them!
If you have acrylic paint,you can make it chalky with 2tbsp cornstarch and 1/4c water.
What’s the easiest way to pick off the vinyl stars after they’ve been painted several layers?
I use a vinyl pick. You can find them in craft stores near the cutting machines and vinyl supplies:)
The blue color look teal. Does is dry darker like the picture of them illuminated
Thank you. Can’t wait to make these.
Hi Sheila,
If you use the same colors I used, the blue will be a royal blue color.
Hi…myself and a couple friends are going to make these adorable patriotic jars. I was wondering why the blue jar looks like more of a French blue in your instructions but looks like a dark Royal Blue in the picture where it is dark outside and they are lit up? Thank you!
Pamela Barnabo
MN
Hi Pamela, I’m not sure what French blue is, but I would call it a royal blue color:)
Hi Katie, where did you get the star stickers?
Hi Debbie,
I cut them out of vinyl using my Silhouette.
I don’t have many crafting supplies at hand, but if I did buy the vinyl sheets, would I need to just cut the stars out by hand? Or, Do you think it would work to use star stickers? Not sure if paint would get under the stickers?
I would recommend vinyl over stickers. Stickers are a little too sticky and could peel the paint, plus be a bear to peel off. You could look for a large star shaped craft punch in the scrapbooking section and then use a regular hole punch for all of the other dots:)
Kylee, if you would like, you can contact me via my Etsy shop and I can create an order for you for all of the vinyl cutouts you would need. I know not everyone has a cutting machine and I can get them mailed out to you by tomorrow at the latest. https://www.etsy.com/shop/A2DCreations
Very cool idea. What tool did you use to remove the stars?
It’s a weeding pick. You can find them at craft stores or on Amazon:)
I’m unable to find the star sheet you said you purchased from Expressions vinyl. Can you tell me specifically what it is called? Thanks so much.
Hi Cindy, I did not purchase precut stars. I purchased a sheet of vinyl and cut the stars on my Silhouette.
Hi. Love these.. How long does the paint half to dry before you put on and peel the vinyl off?
Hi Lisa,
I let the paint dry completely, so I would wait at least an hour.
I went to Expressions Vinyl and there was a ton of vinyl choices. What was the vinyl that you chose for this project? Was it “EasyPSV™ Removable” ?
I used the oracal 631 removable vinyl for these.
What do you use to peel off the stars and how do you make the star ?
Hi Elizabeth, I use a vinyl pick to peel the stars off and the vinyl is cut with a silhouette machine.
This is so cool I’m making some for a few friends, myself even shipping a few to Kentucky, awesome idea. Thank you…. I have a lot of mason jars I always grab them at garage sales for a cheap price,,,it always pays off…..