Apothecary Four Ways

 

Tarnished german glitter glass is a lovely foil for the beautiful vintage jars.

Tarnished German glitter glass is a lovely foil for the beautiful vintage jars.

My inspiration for this article was a monogrammed handkerchief from my grandmother, Mary Keifer.  I have had it for years, but it sits in a drawer and that seems not to honor her.  And in a moment, I had this thought that I could tie it around one of my many apothecary jars, kind of like a vintage label with the “K” monogram on the front.  I really couldn’t think of a better vessel to display her lovely little gift to me.  Vintage with vintage.   And it is in a spot in my house that I see every day and in doing so, smile at her life and her memory.

As I was arranging the handkerchief around the bottle, it reminded me of all the other ways I use vintage apothecary jars, so I thought I would share them with you.

I hope you find some inspiration.

Always,

Cindy

A wide mouth apothecary jar holds lovely scented votive candles.

#1:  A wide mouth (for filling and grabbing) apothecary jar holds lovely scented votive candles.

 

 

Elevate a vintage jar by setting it in a vintage matte white pottery piece.

#2: Elevate a vintage jar by setting it in a vintage matte white pottery piece.

VIntage Handkerchief as a label of sorts.

#3: Vintage Handkerchief as a label of sorts.

An homage to Grandma Kiefer

An homage to Grandma Kiefer

A variety of vintage jars collected from all over next to a vintage reproduction clock.

A variety of vintage jars collected from all over next to a vintage reproduction clock.

 

A lovely little apothecary jar found for $2 now holds make up remover in the most lovely way.

#4: A lovely little apothecary jar found for $2 now holds make up remover in the most lovely way.

Vintage lamp, a variety of jars used in a number of ways, old bathroom mirror agains a crisp white back drop make for a lovely vignette.

Vintage lamp, a variety of jars used in a number of ways, old bathroom mirror agains a crisp white back drop make for a lovely vignette.

 This blog article is in honor of my Grandma Kiefer, who I miss dearly.

My dad's mother, Grandma Kiefer.

My dad’s mother, Grandma Kiefer.

 

 

 

 

 

Some of the Best Solutions are Very Simple.

My inspiration from Swedish Interiors.

 

I fell in love with this book.

 

Same house from the kitchen photo above.

 

Some of the best solutions are very simple.  Part of the mandate of my kitchen remodel was to keep the existing lower cabinets.  However, they were construction grade, big box, off the floor cabinets that possessed neither quality or style…but I had to make them work on a budget.  One idea that crossed my mind was to mine the Internet looking for door and drawer fronts and while there were some at reasonable prices, there wasn’t anything that would fit my very modest budget.

The solution was to clad the existing door and drawer fronts with a simple bead board fascia and paint the cabinets.  A leak under the sink had bowed out the two lower cabinet doors so the budget conscious solution was to use a fabric curtain.  For continuity, the same fabric that was used for the roman blinds was also used for the sink curtains.  It took very little time and helped salvage drab cabinets and give them some character.  The cherry on the sundae were the over-sized, vintage, reproduction glass knobs.  Total cost for bead board and new knobs/pulls: $43. I couldn’t be happier with the results.

Love Always,

Cindy

Before.

After.

Result.