Spices... They add so much flavor, and all it takes is a small amount. What would pizza be without Basil, Oregano and Garlic? What would mashed potatoes be without pepper? What would apple or pumkin pie be without cinnamon? All would still probably be edible, but spices take one on a journey to far off places...or to the window sill in your kitchen. They take you down reminisce lane, revisiting childhood memories and once again seeing Grandma pulling something wonderful out of the oven! (Ok, that is what spices do for me.)
Let me tell you a little story. As you can tell from above, I have an appreciation for spices. I love mixing them and using new ones. I liked them so much I took this spice rack with me to college. Yes, I was the only girl in the dorms who had a spice rack hanging on her wall. During open dorms (when the guys got to come visit our rooms), guys I had never met stopped by and asked if I was the girl with the spice rack. I even got asked if they could borrow some for their Ramen.
This was the rack. Once I left college, I took it down and put it away. I was living with others that had a spice rack, no need for two. I even put it in the yard sale twice, and then pulled it back out. When I got married, I was given a different one, which serves me very well. But, I wanted to change things up.
So I grabbed my trusty Red Apple spray paint and Black spray paint and got to work. First I painted the whole rack red. (Picture is after I did the back, but I still had the front to show you!)
These were the lids to the original jars that came with the rack. Not a bad green, just kinda...tired.
So I spray painted them all a shiny black! That will add some zest!
Then I soaked all the spice jars. Again, the labels were fine, but I wanted a more retro look. The old labels were gold and green.
I had to take a fingernail and a scrubby to them, but I got all the glue and label off.
**I was unable to get pictures of the label process. Sometimes I go too fast for myself. I wanted a decorative label that looked a little retro. I went to craft stores, office supply stores, scrap booking stores, and 100 other stores. (Exaggerating...a bit.) All I wanted was a decorative label people! And I wanted them to match, so the sets of 15 different ones was not going to work for me.
Finally, I found a stamp I could live with. The problem? It had lines in the middle, where you would write something. I didnt want the lines, just the boarder. So, the solution? Instead of ink, I used a marker and drew on the part I wanted the ink to show.
I used a regular 2 in x 4 in shipping label, chose a font I wanted, and printed out a list or spices. Then, I put the stamp over each one. It was a bit tricky getting it to center, and I had to reprint a few to do again. After that, I simply cut out the shape and then peeled it apart to put on the bottles. **
This is waht I ended up with!
The "Herbs & Spices" part was a dilema at first. I was going to paint it on, but it looked a bit sloppy. So, eventually I settled on using a permanent market to "paint" it on there. It actually turned out really well!
What do you think?
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