DIY No. 2 Pencil Mason Jar Pencil Holder

This back to school season is pretty weird. It’s the first one since I’ve known Pete that he isn’t preparing to go back. When we met, he was working as a counselor at a school and we moved to North Carolina because he got a job in the school here. But this year, I’m over here making a DIY Mason Jar Pencil Holder because it’s the perfect back to school craft, and Pete is over at his new carpentry job. In years past, this craft would be something I would give to Pete to put on his desk. But not this year. Maybe I’ll just put it on his desk at home. If you have a kid (or spouse) going back to school, this is a simple and cute craft to send him or her back to school with.

DIY No. 2 Pencil Mason Jar Pencil Holder

What You’ll Need:

• Mason jar
• Yellow acrylic paint
• Pink acrylic paint
• Small paint brush
• Black acrylic paint
• Toothpick
• Craft paper

What You’ll Do: Wash and dry the inside your mason jar. Pour a few drops of yellow paint into the jar. A little goes a long way. Now, you have two options here. One, you could use a foam brush to paint the inside or two, carefully swirl the paint around and let gravity paint the inside. I didn’t want to deal with brush marks, so I used method number two. Trust me when I tell you this requires patience. Your natural inclination will be to pour in half the container of paint and give the mason jar a quick swirl. Don’t do that. You will end up wasting so much paint and it will take forever to dry. So add a few drops, swirl them around until it dries, add a few more drops, on and on. Let that dry upside down until all the excess paint has dripped off (about 12 hours, give or take). Let it dry right side up, overnight, outside. When that’s dry, paint “No. 2” on the outside in black paint. It’s so much easier for me to paint tiny letters and numbers with a toothpick rather than a paintbrush. If you’re worried about it chipping, you can seal it with a layer of Mod Podge, but it doesn’t actually need it. Paint the metal screw band with the pink paint. You may need a couple layers to get it to your desired color. If that’s the case, just make sure to let it dry completely between layers. If you pick a glossy paint, it will shine like the jar does. Twist the band back on and fill your pencil holder with No. 2 pencils.

More Mason Jar Crafts:

If you buy a case of mason jars to make this craft, and you have some left over, you can use them to make some of our other mason jar crafts.

• DIY Mason Jar Ghost
• Frankenstein Mason Jar Craft Tutorial
• DIY Graduation Cap Mason Jar Craft
• DIY St. Patrick’s Day Rainbow Jar Craft

Want more back to school crafts?

DIY Pasta Sauce Apple

DIY Emoji Paper Clips