Bumble Bee Painted Mason Jar Lid Spring Ornament

What do you do with all of those mason jar lids after you pop open a new jar of canned food? You craft with them! That’s right, quit tossing them into the trash! They can be turned into festive Christmas ornaments, refrigerator magnets, garden markers, windchimes, and all sorts of other things! Over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing some of our favorite mason jar lid craft projects with you. You can find our adorable lady bug design HERE.

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When popping open a new jar of canned food you’ll want to be careful to not bend up that flat mason jar seal (lid). Once it’s off the jar you’ll want to hand wash and dry it. If it’s slightly bent you can sit it underneath a heavy object to help straighten it. However, 95% of the time mine come off my jars flat as a piece of paper!

This project can be done by older children, adults and senior adults and only requires a few craft supplies. We kept the bumble bee design simple, but you could certainly paint a more elaborate design onto the lid. This one was painted by an 11 1/2 year old who did a great job with it.

Bumble Bee Painted Mason Jar Lid Spring Ornament

Used Mason Jar Lids (seals)
Acrylic Craft Paint in Yellow and Black
Paint Brush, Water Dish, Paper Towels
Acrylic Craft Paint Pens in Silver, Black and White
Hole Punch
Clear Fishing Line (or use colorful ribbon)
Scissors
Clear Acrylic Spray Sealer, Glossy or Matte Finish
Sheet of Aluminum Foil

Lay down the sheet of aluminum foil onto your work surface. It only needs to be big enough for you to lay your mason jar lid down onto it. It will provide a non-stick surface for messy painters (especially kids). An old plastic place mat or plastic drop cloth will work easily as well.

Use a hole punch to make a hold at the top of the lid as shown in the photograph above if you plan on using it as an ornament.

Cover the lid with 2-3 coats of yellow acrylic paint and let dry until it’s no longer tacky. Using black acrylic paint make a half circle on one side of the lid to serve as the bee’s head. You may need to use 2 coats of paint to get the proper coverage that you need. Let dry.

You can use acrylic black paint or a black paint pen to make the stripes. Use a white paint pain to dot on the two eyes and the little mouth. Use a metallic silver paint pen to add the antennae as shown in the photograph. If you don’t have silver you can make them in white. Once the white eyes are dry use a black paint pen to dot on the inner eye. Let everything completely dry. Acrylic Paint Pens are easy for children and senior adults to use.

Decision Time: You can leave the back side unpainted or paint it with 2-3 coats of yellow paint. That will depend on how you’re using your painted lids. We like to cover the back side with paint when using them as ornaments. If you’re going to make refrigerator magnets leave it unpainted & just glue your magnet on the back.

Take your painted ornament outside and spray it with 1-2 coats of clear acrylic spray sealer. We like using the glossy finish as it gives the ornaments a nice shine to the finish. Let dry for 2-3 hours. Cut fishing line or a piece a ribbon to thread through the top. That’s it, you’re done!!!

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