The good old Mason jar.
Glass jars are by far the most popular containers for home canning.
It was, and often still is, a homemakers major kitchen chore for preserving
the bounty of the garden, the veggie patch, the fruit bearing trees.
The longest used form of closure on them was a zinc screw-on cap.
I had a sizable collection for a few years, enjoyed them displayed in my
kitchen. One day, seeing something I wanted more I did a swap at
SuzAnna's Antiques and said goodbye to them. Things like that happen when
you get involved with antiques and vintage. . . . . . it's a form of treasure hunting.
Photo edited to a sketch - colored with watercolor pencils.
Antique canning jars such as my Ball brand above, are collector's items.
The value of a jar is related to its age, rarity, color and condition.
Colored jars were considered better for canning as the color blocked some
light from reaching the food, helping to retain flavor and nutritional value longer.
Most antique jars that are not colorless are aqua or "Ball blue", a blue-green
shade named for the Ball Corporation, a prevalent jar manufacturer.
Michael's Scribble Picnic theme for today is JARS -
do stop by HERE and check on the group's offerings, I just know it will
be interesting.
.png)
So there's a reason behind those lovely blue jars. I only have one.
ReplyDeleteYour rendition of the Ball jars is lovely. Another poplar canning jar back in the day was Kerr. My husband knew her. I just finished making 12 jars of plum jam...but didn't use Ball or Kerr....HaHa.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful work! Now I want an antique canning Jar
ReplyDeleteI love old jars as well.
ReplyDeleteLove those old jars. I do believe I have one or two tucked somewhere. Must run and find them.
ReplyDeleteI like the blue hue, the color brings out the jars well.
ReplyDeletehave a lovely day.
So love your sketch. I canned for thirty years and now, only pickles. I don't know how they stood it before air conditioning.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Mary! I love blue jars! Mason jars are well known for 'canning' purposes and they make great flower vases too.
ReplyDeleteHa, that is SO very interesting about Jars! Who knew? Well, you did, clearly (no pun intended)! I love your rendition above as well as the fascinating write up, Mary, and also how you mentioned turning all those jars in for something else at your fave antique shop. So true about treasure hunting and you only have so much room for stuff in your cottage anyway. Well done to you all round. Thank you for this lovely addition to the theme. I am sooo interested to see what you do and write about for FOX next week, if you get to that.
ReplyDeleteMy great aunt gifted me a box of old Ball jars, but none of them are blue. I would have loved if they were blue like yours. So pretty!
ReplyDeleteMary,
ReplyDeleteVery interesting. I have a sizeable collection of glass jars but I use them all the time. I put chopped veggies, and fruit in them. To make the fruit last I give it a bath of water and vinegar, then a little rinse, pat dry and pop in the jars. Works perfectly. Berries last for over a week.
Lovely colours.
Blessings
Janis
very nice :)
ReplyDeletenever used them for canning, just drinking out of lol
I couldn't tell you how many dozens of canning jars we have, used over the past 34 years for preserving carrots, tomatoes, pickles, sauerkraut, green beans,... My husband has always enjoyed a huge garden, so I quickly learned how to can! (There are some things better frozen, like corn, broccoli, spinach; but most of it is canned.) Many of the jars were used by our moms for many years before we acquired them, including of course, Ball and Kerr brands.
ReplyDelete