Thread: Specimen Jar Help

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This is my first attempt at specimen jars. I feel that something is 'off' with them.

Maybe I need to age the jars? How would I go about that? Age the twine?

Perhaps paint the lid black of the heart bottle? Since it's yellow at the bottom, I think it looks weird being clear on top.

Maybe don't add twine at all to the "invisible eyes"?

Everything looks too 'new'. Can I dirty them up after what I've already done?

Should I cover up the little bare spots with twine so you can't see through at all?

Help is appreciated!! Thanks in advance

I like your labels although I think they overpower your small jars. That plus the twine on the small jars doesn't let people see what is inside. My suggestion would be to change the label size on the small jars and or lose the twine on them. I think the witch's heart jar looks good. Maybe you could have something that looks like goo on the cap and running down the side of those? Dirty-ing them up would go along way to aging them. I assume you want them to look like they have been sitting on the shelf for years. Some rust on the lids would look great. Maybe some spider webbing? You could also look for a few other bottles or jars with some different shapes to add some more visual interest.

Some brewed tea could be used for aging the labels. Some regular dirt could help scruff them up. Red dripped wax could look like blood or some fingers dipped in washable black or dark gray paint paint could be used to add some fingerprints to a jar or two. Good start.

Agreed. I find that with potion and specimen jars, the smaller the label, the better. I use fine ground coffee and a spray bottle of water to dirty up and age any twine/ fabric used. Try metal tops for the jars, or for a more rustic look, squares of leather. Great progress, keep us posted with photos of what you do!

Thanks for the ideas! I didn't want to go through all the trouble of taking my crazy amounts of twine off, so I just added more to the top of the little ones (bad, I know). I'm trying to make a ton for a pumpkinfest this weekend that I'm selling at. The label that is covering up the whole thing actually has "Invisible Eyes" in it, so there is no need to see what's inside. If I didn't stick the sticker on already, I would have definitely made the label smaller. Too late now! :-/ I have a ton of others lined up. Can't wait to share!

OK - so I need some help with the aging jars part. If I slosh around glue/paint/whatever to the inside, I am afraid that everything will wash off when I put water inside of it. I also want people to actually be able to see the contents of what is inside.

Is it possible to do something to the outside of the jars to make them look dingy, but still be able to see what is inside? I've been trying to find stuff online and on the forums, but I'm just not sure what will work. Thanks!

I agree with the others - but wanted to add that my personal opinion is that lab or specimen type displays would not have twine at all; that is more a witch potion type of add-on. They would not use twine or other organic type items to seal their jars. Just science lab looking stuff...

As far as aging the jars, I've used all sorts of things... regular white school glue with a slight tint of color mixed in (greenish or rusty) and then brushed on with a brush on the outside, maybe even let it dry and then go back and rough it up with your fingers to peel some off. I also use enamel paints like for models - since it is pretty much waterproof after it dries it's perfect for using inside the jar, outside the jar... just make sure you have lots of thinner to clean up. I've used sponges and brushes to apply it and even paper towels to get a little of the fibers caught in the paint for a dusty cobwebby effect. If you screw up, you can just wipe it off with thinner and start over. (big plus for me)

Thanks for the tips all!

I tried sanding the outside of the glass, but I'm not seeing any 'roughed upness' going on. Aging a jar is probably the simplest ever, but for some reason, I'm just not getting it. I think I'm going to head to Home Depot and maybe get some rougher paper. Hopefully that will work!

people use stain glass spray ( never used it myself ) and dirty up the water a bit to make specimens more mysterious. but i think it looks great.