Stop before you throw away your jars!
WHY NOT MAKE THEM CROCHET JAR COVERS INSTEAD!
I absolutely hate throwing things away and am always looking for ways to upcycle everyday objects that would otherwise be heading for the bin.
I have an obsession with saving glass jars and using them to keep all sorts in – pens, hooks, knitting needles, stationary and lots more things. Tall jars are great as vases and cost next to nothing to make. They are really boring to look at bare. So I make them jackets using jute (garden twine) to make them look very chic.
From this:
To this:
This is a quick, fun and easy project so grab your crochet hook and some old garden twine and give them a go
YOU WILL NEED:
Empty jars
Jute (garden twine)
Scissors
Crochet hook
Big eye darning needle
Stitch marker (optional)
FIRSTLY A QUICK NOTE ABOUT JUTE
There are different quality ones in the shops and I have used most. In my opinion, the only real difference in the cheaper ones is it tends to be lumpier and not as refined. But, it does give a more rustic look, so it really comes down to personal preference. It can also be a little bit harder on the hands, trying to work the thicker bits that appear along the yarn. But, if you slacken the tension slightly its fine
RIGHT LETS GET STARTED ON THE CROCHET JAR COVERS
In this tutorial, I have used the cheaper twine and a 5.5mm hook, which was fairly hard going as the hook was a bit too small. But, it did give me a tighter tension, which was the effect I was looking for.
If you are new to working with this medium, then start with a slightly bigger hook. If the tension is too loose for you, work down hook sizes until you find one that you are comfortable with and like the effect it achieves.
FIRST WORK A CHAIN THAT IS LONGER THAN THE CIRCUMFERENCE OF YOUR CHOSEN JAR.
I always make my chain longer than needed, as it is much easier to unpick any excess that you have after the first row has been completed. Once you have your foundation chain work a treble into the 3rd chain from the hook.
The stitch to the far right looks like a real treble, but is made up of the missed chains making it the dummy treble.
Continue to work back along the foundation chain with treble stitches until your chain is just shorter than the circumference of your jar.
We need to make it slightly shorter so that it hugs the jar. Basically, we don’t want it to fall off when we pick the jar up. However, we do need to have a total number of trebles on this row that is divisible by 4. I had 32 stitches on my base row so I knew that I would have a pattern with 8 sets of stitches in each row.
If you find that you are struggling to get the right length you may need to change your hook size.
Once you are happy with the length of your base row, close the row by working a slip stitch into the top chain of the dummy treble worked at the beginning of the row.
MAKE SURE THAT YOUR WORK ISN’T TWISTED BEFORE YOU CLOSE IT
Once you are happy with the base row, simply unpick the excess chains, up to the bottom of the dummy treble worked at the beginning.
Work a slip stitch in-between the trebles to the left of your hook to centralise your yarn ready to start the next row.
As I have already done a slip stitch, I personally like to work a two chain at the beginning of my rows as it gives me perfect height for a treble. But if you prefer, work a 3 chain which will count as your dummy treble.
Now work a further 3 trebles into the bottom of this chain to complete one pattern on this row.
As I have 32 stitches, 32 divided 4 = 8 so I will complete 8 sets of these in total for this round.
NEXT, MISS 3 CHAINS AND WORK 4 TREBLES INTO THE NEXT CHAIN SPACE.
For this row, I like to work the trebles into the top of the stitch as opposed to the big gap at the bottom.
CONTINUE IN THIS WAY UNTIL YOU HAVE COMPLETED THE CORRECT NUMBER OF SETS OF 4 TREBLES.
If you have done it right, then before you close the round you should have a 3 chain space.
To close the round work a slip stitch into the top chain of the dummy treble worked at the beginning of the round.
For the next round, we will working the set of 4 treble stitches in the middle of the previous row set of stitches. To get to the right place in order to start the next row, we need to work a slip stitch in the middle space of the previous rows 4 trebles to the left of your hook.
NOW WORK A 2 OR 3 CHAIN (WHICHEVER YOU PREFER) TO MAKE YOUR DUMMY TREBLE.
Then work a further 3 trebles into the previous rows centre space.
To complete the round, work 4 trebles into each of the previous rounds centre space in the treble pattern. Close the round with a slip stitch into the top chain of the dummy treble at the beginning of the round.
Every now and then, fit the cover on to the jar to see how many rounds you need to complete. As you will see, as mine is a small jar, I’m already nearly at the top so I just need to work a closing round.
WITH MOST JARS, THEY NATURALLY GET SLIGHTLY THINNER AT THE TOP
So, I need to make a closing round that is slightly smaller than the ones I have been doing. For my closing round I work a simple round of trebles. To ensure that this round is tighter, I work fewer trebles than in the previous round.
Work a 2 or 3 chain (whichever you prefer) to make your dummy treble. Then, work a treble into each of the pattern spaces. Do not work a treble in the larger spaces between the 4 treble patterns. That way you will work 8 less trebles on this round and create a nice tight round that will hug the neck of your jar.
THIS ROUND MAY BE A BIT OF TRIAL AND ERROR
If you find the neck is too tight perhaps work a treble stitch in a couple of the large spaces evenly in the round. Close the round with a slip stitch in the top chain of the dummy treble worked at the beginning.
Put the cover on your jar to check that you are happy with the fit.
Now all you need to do is sew the ends in using a large eyed darning needle.
I like to weave my ends back and forwards and back again to ensure that it won’t unravel. All you need to do now is fill it with your treasures!
YOU CAN ADD A BIT OF GLAMOUR WITH A RIBBON.
For the pot below I used chunky cotton yarn and worked in continuos rounds of double crochet. It is better to use a stitch marker when making this design so you know where the start of the rounds are.
Once it was almost the height I wanted, I worked a row of trebles and then slip stitched a top row. I was then able to easily thread a pretty ribbon through the trebles and it now sits on my dressing table with my make-up buds.
Why not have a go at glamming up your jars and we would love to see what you make.
Happy crafting.
The Crafty Co
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