How to Tint Mason Jars for a Vintage Look

We love the versatility of decorating with mason jars. These little jars have morphed from strictly utilitarian objects to one of the most popular home decor items ever. I have an easy and fun project to dress up any mason jar. Let me show you how to tint mason jars for a vintage look.

Most mason jars are clear glass. Tinted ones have become one of the most popular flea market items.

If you can’t find the color of mason jar you want or don’t want to buy the higher-priced tinted ones, you can create the mason jar color of your dreams.

The iconic shape of mason jars with screw top lids has been around since 1858, invented by a man named Mason, of course. Mason patented his invention, gave the jar his name and the rest is history.

Today, mason jars come in different sizes and shapes and are no longer used just for canning fruits and vegetables.

I have been collecting blue mason jars for over 15 years, but the price has risen considerably in the last few years.

I think I paid $8 for my first one, then $11, then $14 and the last large ones I bought were $18.

Since then, I’ve seen prices as high as $24.

I was thrilled to find out that you can get the look of vintage mason jars with a little DIY ingenuity. Tinting mason jars for a vintage look isn’t as hard as you would think.

Give Mason Jars a Vintage Look

Here are a few of my vintage mason jars.

In previous posts, I’ve shared how I use mason jars: to hold flowers, for seasonal decorations, and even make them into outdoor lighting.

Mason jars can be used to organize any item from flowers to dried food items, buttons to paper clips to rubber bands, hold pens and markers, twine or ribbon.

With or without a lid, mason jars are both practical and pretty, especially when you want a vintage or farmhouse look.

Can You Use Other Types of Jars?

As much as we love the shape and style of a good old mason jar, you can use any jar for this project. A large mayonnaise or pickle jar is great for the tinted look. A free empty jar is also a plus for a DIY project. Check out How to Make Outdoor Lighting Using Mason Jars.

I came across this method to tint mason jars decided to give it a try. Here was an example of tinted mason jars using green food coloring.

To be honest, I was a little skeptical at first, but intrigued. I had to try this method myself.

Well, the process worked or I wouldn’t be sharing how to tint mason jars with you.

Supplies To Tint the Mason Jars

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You only need a few supplies to tint your mason jars.

• Mason jars – you can buy mason jars in 16 ounce and 32 ounce sizes
• Glue sealer – I used Mod Podge in the gloss finish. Be sure that your glue is labeled “gloss” and not “matte”, otherwise the finished product will come out dull and murky.
• Food coloring of choice
• Ramekin or small bowl
• Newspaper – I used wax paper.
• Cookie sheet

How To Tint Mason Jars

You won’t believe how easy this project is!

Step 1

Pour a few tablespoons of Mod Podge into a ramekin. Since I planned to tint 3 jars, I poured in about 1/4 cup.

Step 2

Add your color of food coloring, starting with a very small amount. You can always add more if you want a darker color.

I used blue gel food coloring since that’s what I had and I love blue.

Stir in the food coloring (I used a plastic spoon.) and approximately 1 tablespoon of water and stir to combine.

Less water will give you a deeper, richer color while more water will give you a more subtle tint. Stir the mixture until you have a consistent color. The mixture will be somewhat watery.

Step 3

Pour the glue mixture into your mason jar.

TIP: Do this step over a piece of wax paper. You do not want to get the glue mixture on your countertop. I placed a piece of wax paper inside a sheet pan.

Step 4

Coat the mason jar with the glue mixture.

I turned the jar around and around, getting closer each time to the mouth of the jar until it was evenly coated with the dyed glue mixture.

Do this over the ramekin so that excess glue will fall back into the ramekin, which you can reuse for your next mason jar.

Step 5

Pour the excess glue back into the ramekin to use on the next jar.

Step 6

Let the jar dry upside down on wax paper for about 30 minutes. Check it periodically and wipe away any excess paint that may collect on the lip of the jar.

TIP: I kept a damp paper towel ready to do this.

Setting the Paint in the Mason Jars

Step 7

Set oven to “warm” (about 175° F).

Step 8

Place the mason jar upside down on a wax-covered cookie sheet and heat in the oven for 10 minutes. Flip the jar over and let it dry for another 20 to 30 minutes.

When the jar is done, it should be clear with no streaks. If the jar still has streaks, place it back in the oven for 10-minute increments until they disappear.

TIP: I found 25 minutes worked best.

Step 9

Remove the tinted mason jars from the oven (Keep them on the baking sheet) and let them cool for a few minutes.

Once cool, you can use them to decorate your home decor. You can’t use them to store food items, but we are all about the decorating.

You can control the shade of color, which is great if you need a particular color for your home decor style.

Displaying Your Tinted Mason Jars

I used my tinted mason jars on our mantle.

Pink hydrangeas from our backyard looked lovely with the pale blue-tinted mason jars. You can see the center mason jar, which is the last one I tinted, is darker than the others.

NOTE: When I was taking these pictures, I started worrying about what would happen to the set glue inside. I poured out the water and reset the glue in the oven for about 10 minutes. I realized that you CANNOT put water in the jars or it will dissolve the glue. So you have to use fuax flowers.

I used more food coloring on it and I like it best. It looks almost exactly like the real vintage blue ones that I have collected.

The one on the right was the first one I tinted when I didn’t know quite how much food coloring to add. I added more with each jar

I also plan to try to tint mason jars with pink food coloring.

The large jar and the three smaller ones on the left are real tinted glass that I found at an antique mall.

Tips for How to Tint Mason Jars

Here are some takeaways from learning how to tint mason jars.

#1 – It takes a little more food coloring than you think. It’s amazing how the glue mixture lightens up after you turn the mason jar right side up for the final 20-30 minutes in the oven.

#2 – Food coloring can stain so be careful. Have some damp paper towels for clean up.

#3 – I tinted my first mason jar late one afternoon. I had leftover glue mixture in my ramekin. Rather than throw it out, I wrapped it carefully in plastic wrap and it was perfect the next morning for my 2nd jar.

I added a little more Mod Podge, a little more water, and more food coloring. After tinting my 2nd jar, I rewrapped the glue mixture. Later that day, I just added a little more food coloring and I had plenty of glue mixture for my 3rd jar.

Ideally, you would tint multiple jars at once, but as this was my first time testing this method and I only had snippets of time, that’s why I did it at three different times. We DIY when we can, right?

#4 – When I finished my last jar, I placed the ramekin in the sink and ran the water until all the glue mixture was gone. Then I washed the ramekin in the dishwasher.

NOTE: If you want to remove the tint from the jars, fill them with water and get them set for a while until you see the glue “lift” away from the sides of the jar. Using a bottle brush inside the jar, “scoop” up the tinted glue and discard.  Wash the jars in the dishwasher.

SO DO NOT PUT WATER INSIDE YOUR TINTED MASON JARS!! 

I hope you loved this project as much as I did. It was easy, very inexpensive and you get a lot of bang for your buck.

Here are some other painted glass projects:

• How to Make Sea Glass Bottles
• How to Paint Glass for Summer Decor
• Fun Way to Decorate Glass with Paint

I hope that you will PIN this project to your favorite DIY or vintage boards. Check out my DIY Projects and Paint Projects Pinterest Boards for more ideas.