mason jars « a summer lifestyle

Sooo I’m like three months behind. I should be ashamed, but damn I’ve been busy. Started new school programs, been traveling back and forth for work, and oh yeah… I MOVED again.

Oh yes, I said it. I have moved again. But before I get to that, here are my last thoughts on studio living. While it was only six months, I loved living on my own in a tiny shoebox. I will definitely take the sustainability and basic living along with my new space. Here it goes:

1. Don’t let a small kitchen prevent you from cooking. No really, don’t. Enjoy cooking, and figure out a way to organize all of your equipment. Check it:

Here, I hung a coat/towel rack and embellished hooks onces used for jewelry to hang my pots and pans, mugs, colander, and dish drying rack (when I wasn’t using it). In the middle is an Ikea bathroom shelving unit that I used to store all of my dishes and baking sheets. On top, you’ll see recycled jars I kept to store my silverware.

Magnetic knife strip: best. purchase. ever. Ok, maybe not best per say, but seriously, this saved space, and it actually got me using all of them, rather than than just a simple pairing knife. At the bottom right is a metal paper organizer I purchased in college for my desk. I hung it on the wall and actually kept mail, coupons, and recipes in it. Really helpful, and brought a little more personality to the space.

So, that’s the kitch. See at the bottom right, my mini fridge. Perfect for one person. On the front is a magnetic hanging rack that I hung scissors, hot pads, and measuring cups on. It was purchased about a decade ago from the Container Store. Note to future self: Never age yourself by dating your kitchen equipment. Above the fridge is my favorite DIY item ever – spice rack in a mason jar.

Moving on…

When this studio was first built, a murphy bed was up in the closet where my bed is placed. As you can see, the perimeter insert is still there, making somewhat of a nook for my bed. It makes it private. Additionally, I placed my beast of an Ikea dresser as a room divider, between the bed and living area. When you walk in the front door, you can’t see the bed, and honestly, most assume it’s what’s behind the closet door. Win. For studios, less is more, and spacing things out the best you can will definitely help.

Lastly, you should definitely try and make one of these mason jar racks. They’re WAY fun, super easy to make, great storage, and just plain rad.

Cheers to fabulous studio living!

I hate finding bobby pins everywhere. Or Q-tips at the bottom of your bathroom cabinets. If your bathroom is small like mine, you probably don’t have a lot of counter space to hold hair clips, tweezers, cotton balls, etc. I saw this project done on a couple other blogs, and decided to take it on… turned out pretty great. Below are step by step instructions – and photos! – for how to do this. One note: I spent exactly $25 on everything. Next time, I’m going to use recycled jars, which should reduce the cost like $8- $10.

Final product:

for the record, living alone means not caring about having tampons out in the open. boom.

What you’re going to need:

1. A drill – if you don’t have one, buy one. Mine cost $60 – it plugs into the wall, which means crappy batteries won’t be an issue. Trust me.. invest in one, and you will not only be pleased with your purchase, but damn will you feel independent.

2. A piece of wood – pick out the size you want. I bought everything I needed at Ace Hardware, and they actually sell scrap wood for $1 a piece. Perfect.

3. Rubber fixtures – one for each mason jar. These are what attach the jars to the wood. They are found in the plumbing section.

4. Mason jars! Use an old spagetti or jam jar. I chose to use different sized jars, because I knew I wanted to hold long items (like mascara) and small short items (like bobby pins).

5. Automotive circular hose clamps – one for each mason jar. Found in the automotive or plumbing section

6. 8 screws – two for each mason jar. These will be used to screw the fixtures into the piece of wood

7. 2 big screws – to attach the piece of wood to your wall. Because I have cement walls, I needed cement screws. Check with an employee at Ace to help you figure out which screws are best.

8. Paint – I used what I had left from a previous project (see bathroom cabinet)

9. Flat head screw driver

10. A good eye, a piece of string, or a measuring tape – to make sure you drill the screw in at the right level.

Here’s how to do it –

First, paint the piece of wood. I wanted just a lite, rubbed-on coat. I took a paper towel, and lightly painted the wood in the direction of the grain.

Drill two holes in the wood – on the outer sides. This will be where you screw the piece into the wall. If you want to get fancy, and make your piece extra sturdy, use a large bit to drill into the wood a little bit, then finish with a smaller bit, and go all the way – this will create a holder for the screw.

Next, organize each mason jar with a clamp and rubber fixture. Decide what order you want the jars to be placed on the piece of wood. At this time, use your screw driver to tighten the clamps around the jars. Remember: lefty loosey, righty tighty. 🙂

Stand them up, and put them in the order you want. Next, measure out the distance between each jar on the wood. You will use your drill to screw in the rubber fixtures.

Finish drilling in the fixtures. Helpful hint: It may be easier to do this with the mason jars OUT of the clamps. Simply loosen the clamps, and put the jars back in after you’ve attached the wood to your wall.

Attach the piece to your wall – mine is in the bathroom – and there you go! A pretty simple, and somewhat fast project that will create space in your bathroom, recycle jars (if you are smarter than me) and decorate your space in a unique and artistic way. Next, I’m going to make one for my kitchen to store utensils – mine are currently in jars as there is no drawer. Thanks!