I had previously engraved the lids of these jars in the GF, but my lighting meant there was little contrast, so I made these instead. (The angled trays are also cut on the GF, and many of the labels are crooked because the lids turn easily when the jars are opened…)
Etching always looks nice – better with a sandblaster than the cream in my experience. If you use the cream, sort of smoosh it around a few times as it works, to even it out. If you put it on and leave it untouched I find it can work some spots lighter than others.
You could also use adhesive wood veneer and make a kind of sticker label for the front of the bottle. It could be separate letters, or some kind of box shape with engraving inside.
Or, put a chain around the neck of the bottle and make a little hanging plaque. I’d use a repositionable glue dot or museum wax behind the plaque so it didn’t get in the way during pouring.
As you can see, I use a fair amount of herbs and spices, and all the mis-matched jars bugged me.
On a related note, Whole Foods has some of the cheapest prices, on their house branded - but not for everything, so I always check my regular grocery stores and wally online first.
I have two full kitchen cabinets and an entire wall of a walk-in pantry holding my spices. I have reused old containers and airtight Chinese soup carryout tubs and the lack of uniformity makes it incredibly chaotic. Your solution looks like what I need.
The ones I posted hold one full jar of every regular store-bought stuff I’ve encountered, just - you might have to tap on a hard surface to get them to settle down a little.
I use measuring spoons, even if I am not measuring, to keep the top where the silicone seal mates clean.
I am very happy with them and the nice organization they now provide.
All my “red” spices like various paprikas, curry powders, peppers, etc. are still in their regular containers in the fridge. I’ve contemplated buying another set just to make my fridge more organized. OCD much?
I’m guessing this site is comprised mostly of OCD sufferers or we would be using a hand jigsaw and woodburner instead of a laser for our projects and we’d be swapping Black and Decker tips.
My small slice containers are like that. I keep wanting to get some uniform jars but haven’t decided yet. I did corral the big spice containers and another shelf for some standard three inch tall glass ones but I also have squat bulk containers of things like cloves and allspice that I got from the Dutch Market. I should use 8 oz canning Matt’s but I need to get some integral lids so I don’t have to fumble with a ring and lid.
Anyway not to detail the topic. I’d go for a nice neck chain with a medallion.
I am so different there! I can’t find my generic spices because the bottles look so alike…except for the allspice, it’s short & fat. Having a variety of container shapes would make them easier for me to find. I just use a mental filter of “everything it is not” and pretty soon it pops out of the background. When the item is itself part of the background (all similar bottles), I have to use other methods to find it.
I get a lot of my spices from them. If you are ever in Joplin, stop by Fox Farm Whole Food, they have an excellent selection of bulk spices along with many international items, particularly Asian. I don’t think they a website but they do have a Facebook page.