28 March 2006
When I went to the Country Living fair last weekend, I saw some lovely little hanging jars -- some had candles inside; others had little bunches of cut flowers. We asked the seller what they cost, and she told us to buy them from her website -- she was ordering some more in a couple of weeks and didn't want to sell us the ones she already had. Fair enough, I suppose; as Rob just said, there's a reason why some businesses remain small.
Anyway, I wasn't too picky about the shape of the jar, so when the strawberry jam ran out, I made my own:
I made the hanger out of some heavy duty silver plated wire, and Rob soldered the open bits closed. The 'necklace' is made from a few purple and pink shells I collected in Portugal last October, and some little jangly. . . bits. I don't actually have anywhere to hang it from at the moment, but it's nice and beachy and perfect for a rainy day like today.
that is so cute. i may have to make some of those for my porch this spring! thanks for sharing!
loves!!
posted by stephanie at March 28, 2006 05:44 PM
Anna (and Rob),
That turned out VERY cute. In fact, I think it's cuter than the ones we saw at the Fair. AND, such a good idea to recycle. Mmmm, I bet those would be pretty if you could somehow paint the inside with glass paint in a swirly motion so the candle light would flutter through it.
posted by momma at March 28, 2006 06:09 PM
I was a little surprised to see this project because Anna generally considers candles a dangerous, dangerous fire-hazard - even unlit ones, because you never know... I suppose she can always screw the lid back on firmly and throw the whole thing in the river if she thinks the flame isn't behaving.
Also, I think it's nice that some firms stay small, but it should be because they made a decision, not because they've got butt for brains.
posted by Rob at March 28, 2006 06:10 PM
It's nice but it does look a bit dangerous. I'd hate to see a small child try to drink from that jar with a lit candle and all! I thought it was some sort of voodoo thing with a mouse head and a snail strapped to it but you say that those things are shells, which is better and less voodooesque.
.d
posted by .d at March 28, 2006 07:44 PM
Ooo -- love the lantern, but how was the fair? Aside for the people who didn't want you to buy what they were there to . . . sell. . . .
posted by Alicia P. at March 28, 2006 09:09 PM
Looks lovely and the shells make it so sweet and personal.
Top Tip...
I made some for the garden a few summers ago and had problems with the wind and light rain so I punched holes in the lids and use them if the weather changes.
And at halloween I wrap orange paper around them and cut the tops all jaggedy, very seasonal.
posted by cally at March 28, 2006 11:15 PM
oooh pretttty
posted by erinscissorhands at March 29, 2006 06:01 AM
ARGH! i didnt finish typing before i accidently posted! anyway...
i made some of these last fall and covered them in vellum that i painted over- i made a yellowish orange wash of paint over it and then glued little leaves to it...i loved it and was mad that fall was over because i wanted to keep it out!
posted by erin scissorhands at March 29, 2006 06:12 AM
It looks lovely. I've recently discovered your blog. Very pretty.
posted by Adriana at March 29, 2006 06:24 AM
I was right when I said you could make some much nicer ones yourself!
posted by Jane at March 29, 2006 03:45 PM
These are fantastic, I saw them at the fair and had made a note to make some for my new house.
I like what you have done with the decorations
nice one!!
Lesley
posted by Lesley at March 29, 2006 04:47 PM
That makes me sad that you didn't mention the artist who you originally got the idea from. She is probably just trying to start out a business and now everyone is just scamming her idea and even if I wanted to buy one from her I can't because you didn't give her credit. Sorry.
posted by robyn at March 29, 2006 11:55 PM
I was there, at the Fair, and the person we tried to buy one of these from did not MAKE them, a manufacturer made them and she was SELLING them. She told us to check her website in a few weeks because she was ordering another lot of them. They were not homemade so there is no scam. There was nothing individually creative about them. They were jars MADE (mass produced) for hanging candles or flowers in.
As I pointed out to Anna, at the time, if this business woman had been a good 'business' woman, she would have sold us one since she had 6 others hanging around as decorations and the Fair was ending in 2 hours. She not only would have made a little money from selling it, but more importantly satisfied a customer instead of turning one away. A customer that might remember her, buy more things from her website AND refer her to friends.
I think Anna's is much more creative because she took something made for something else, that could have been thrown away, and recycled it.
Sorry, my Momma Fur is ruffled.
posted by momma at March 30, 2006 12:14 AM
the lantern is lovely, great idea! let me guess where you collected the shells: Algarve? and guess where i´m from...
posted by Gisela at March 30, 2006 10:46 AM
It looks lovely, but just a little warning: when choosing your jar, choose one that can handle high temps.
I did this as a kid and the jar wasn't tempered. When the heat within the jar, from the candle flame, got sufficiently hot, the glass cracked. A small, dime-sized, triangle of glass shot across my room like a bullet and hit my leg. I still have a scar from it nearly thirty years later.
posted by mamaloo at March 30, 2006 04:31 PM
Love it! I'm actually using similar lanterns at my wedding reception but I love yours. The fact that it was recycled just makes it so special and somehow more romantic. Looks like you did a great job with that wire too - I know it can be hard to work with. Beautiful!
posted by Andrea at March 30, 2006 10:06 PM
It is beautiful! I love how you photographed it with the rain against the glass in the background. Lovely!
posted by Stacey at March 31, 2006 07:24 AM
No reason to be sorry, I appreciate you clarifying that. I did not know that they were a mass produced item. The way it was described above just made me think that the woman did not have enough of her handmade product anymore on display and was encouraging people to visit her website and buy one from there. That makes me feel a lot better, knowing that it wasn't how I originally read it. Thanks for clarifying.
posted by robyn at March 31, 2006 07:29 PM
Martha Stewart did these (was it Martha? I have a terrible memory) with little jelly glasses -- the old-fashioned juice-type glasses with vintage decorations -- then strung them together. So cute.
I love yours. It's beautiful.
posted by Lori at April 4, 2006 01:32 PM
Maybe it was Mary Englebreit. Mmm. I need some ginko biloba.
posted by Lori at April 4, 2006 08:53 PM
I love your jar (although I never knew a jar could be so controversial)...
I'm just catching up on your blog after being away from blogging for awhile due to a move...great inspiration lately--i LOVE hearing about your garden/houseplants and i love the picture of your finches. We had a pair, that stayed behind with a family member..i didn't think they could manage the 20 hour drive...
posted by molly at April 7, 2006 07:01 PM