See that jar up there? Do you have any of those your house?
I don’t mean the stuff inside the jar. I’m talking about the jar itself. You know, the ones that you’ve emptied and washed, secretly hoping the dishwasher would get rid of the label for you, but it didn’t, so you reuse it anyway and will hope the dishwasher will take off the label the label the next time it’s washed?
Yeah, that’s about how it works in my house, lol. I used to have lots. LOTS. But… they’re gone. Vamanos. Vamoose. Nada. Elvis has left the building!
I found a magic potion that removes all that icky label stuff. And guess what! You probably already have some of this potion under your bathroom sink.
It’s called rubbing alcohol.
Who knew, right? You how vinegar has a bazillion uses? I’d venture to say that rubbing alcohol has quite a few too. I’ve only tried two so far, but both worked well so I’m sure there’s more!
Once I took off one label, I had to take off more. When I say “more,” I really mean all of them.
It’s kind of addicting. 
But aren’t they beautiful?! With the labels gone, I can finally see the jams, salsa, spaghetti sauce, strawberry puree, freshly drained coconut water, homemade vinaigrettes and dressings, pizza sauce, soup, vanilla chips, chocolate chips, coconut flakes, sunflower seeds, pepitas and specialty flours that I keep in there. Their storage capabilities are endless! And I haven’t even touched the surface of crafting potential!
Want sparkly clean jars too? Here’s what to do:
- Pour a bit into a wide container (1/8″ – 1/4″ or so) and set your ugly jars with the label facing downward into the rubbing alcohol and let it sit for 5-10 minutes.
- Take it the jar out and the label should wipe right off.
- If it’s a stubborn label (like some of the Smucker’s jams), put it back in the alcohol an let it sit for an hour (or while you’re doing something else) and try to remove it again.
- If it’s an extra stubborn label, (like Trader Joe’s coconut oil… ahem), let it soak and use a stiff brush (I used a grill brush) to help you remove the goo.
- Place jars in the dishwasher and run a cycle (with your other dishes is fine).
Every label is different – some absorb the alcohol and the glue is loosened without actually being in the alcohol. Other labels refuse to let go of the jar unless every single portion of the label has had a chance to bathe in the alcohol.
I guess even jars have their own personality!
You may be wondering if there really is a point to taking the labels off, or why we should be saving the jars in the first place.
To answer the first question, we take the labels off because it just looks so much better. I mean, just look at the difference:
Once the old label is gone, you can put a new, clean label on the jar or just leave it blank.
For the second question, the answers are loaded… to be continued…
Oh, no way! Will definitely be using this!!!!
Such good advice! I’ve seen things all over Pinterest of cute things with jars, so I have a feeling I’ll be scrounging up some of my own jars and using your blog as a reference in the near future.
Can’t wait to see what else is in store!
This is charming! I do think things have their own personality and you’ve found a great way to unleash the potential of empties… Thank you!
AWESOME! I knew denatured alcohol and mineral spirits does but this is really helpful! Not so much chemicals!
Really good to know! I am always needing a clean jar & don’t always have goo gone, this is perfect. Thanks for sharing. Off to check out some of your recipes.
Great post. I found you via the Tuesday Talent Show from Chef in Training
I have linked a pizza I did with leftover roast chicken. Have a good week.
Wow, what a super idea! You have some great stuff on your blog, so glad I hopped over form one of the link ups! I would love for you to share this at Healthy 2day Wednesdays this week up until Saturday evening and also add your other healthy posts each week! Blessings!
Great tip! I’m a glass jar hoarder too. Visiting from Creative Spark linkup
This is so great! I often have bottles that just look so pretty, but I have never known how to remove the labels. I also would love to use them for neighbors gifts! Thanks so much!
Creating “stuff in a jar” gifts would be excellent ideas for new moms or holiday gifts using our old jars!
Thanks for linking this up with Show Your Stuff, I hope you come back and link up again on Friday.
Wow! I had no idea! Thank you for sharing. Visiting from Bear Rabbit. Would love it if you would share this at my Make it pretty Monday party at The Dedicated House. Hope to see you at the bash! Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse
I bet this tip would work great with beer bottle labels too! We homebrew and those pesky labels can be a real pain. Thanks for sharing!
It probably would work. I love a good homebrew!
I love this. I definitely save my jars. Once I have a bunch stockpiled, someone inevitably needs them for something, and I end up starting all over from scratch
My label removing method is usually to fill the jars with boiling water and peel. If there is residue or the label tears, I get after it with Goo Gone. I also use an expired credit card or empty gift card as a scraper. I can’t wait to try the rubbing alcohol!
An unused credit card would have saved some scratches from my fingers from being too zealous with the grill brush! I have lots of baby showers coming up, which means meal delivery. I’m expecting my stash to suffer a big hit, lol.
I so have to try this! Thank you thank you!!!
Wow, what a great idea! Thank you for sharing!
Awesome tip!!! Thank you for sharing with us at Healthy 2Day Wednesdays! Hope to see you again next week.
I generally recycle my jars, but lately I’ve been thinking that they might make fun containers for gifts and so I’ve collected quite a few. And yes…most of them still have the labels attached after their bath in the dishwasher. Thanks for the tip! I’ll be pinning it for future reference.
Hope your day is Extraordinary!
I think they would make “extraordinary” containers for gifts!
I KNOW – those Trader Joe’s coconut oil jars are the WORST! But they are great jars. Thanks for the tip.
Glad I’m not the only one who has trouble with those!
Thank you for this. I love recycling glass jars, but I really dislike removing the labels. Some just don’t want to come off. I’ve never tried rubbing alcohol though.
I would love it if you would share this at the Smart Solutions linky party.
Have a great day!
I didn’t know alcohol would work!! I usually soak my jars in hot soapy water, and the labels usually fall right off. If there is any remaining residue, a little dab of peanut butter will help take it off. The oil in the p.butter sort of renders the glue… GLUELESS – ha! My favorite jars to save are from Smuckers — because of those cute lids!!! Thanks for the tip.
I can remember if I commented or not :p but thanks for the tip. I like to recycle/purpose. Found you at Look What I made party.
Fantastic! I have a huge stash of jars with partially removed labels. I know goo-gone works well too, but I seem to always forget to buy it. I already have rubbing alcohol, and it’s much cheaper. Thank you for this tip!
So nice having the solution on hand without having to run to the store!
Awesome!!! I use baby-oil for anything sticky
Thanks so much for sharing this at The DIY Dreamer.. From Dream To Reality!
I had no idea that rubbing alcohol would remove the glue from jars. And I love seeing that you have tons of reused jars too!!! My hubby makes fun of me for saving so many different ones:-)
This is a great tip! I’ve heard of using peanut butter and even mayo, and tried it on one jar (and it worked!), but couldn’t get myself to waste perfectly good food just to remove labels off jars. Alcohol, on the other hand, I could get behind! Thanks for sharing – I found you over at Anti-Procrastination Tuesdays.
I’d also like to invite you to come over to my blog hop – Tiny Tip Tuesdays – and share this wonderful tip with us! This week’s linky just went live
Thanks!
Thanks Sarah! Just linked up!
[...] Easy Remove Labels from Jars from Don’t Waste the Crumbs [...]
This is fantastic! And I am totally guilty of hoping that the dishwasher would do it. I would love to feature this on Reduce, Reuse, Upcycle. Feel free to stop by and grab a featured button. Thanks!
Will do Rachel Sue – thanks!
Great tutorial! Thanks for sharing at Creative Thursday each week. I appreciate YOU! Can’t wait to see what you link up next
Michelle
Hi Tiffany-
Thanks for the great tip! I love reusing old glass jars, and was guilty of rewashing them countless times in the dishwasher…
I featured a teaser to you tip at Creative Juice tonight. I’ll also be pinning, facebooking, and tweeting this post as well. Thanks for sharing last week.
Take care,
Nicolette
Thanks Nicolette!
Hey Tiffany,
This post is being featured this week at Tiny Tip Tuesday!
Have an awesome rest of the week
Thanks Sarah!
[...] DIY: Remove Labels From Jars by Don’t Waste the [...]
How did I not know this?!? I wish I had come across this article a long time ago! I have spent way to much time and effort trying to get labels off of jars I use for things like making body scrubs.
I’m sorry Sarah! At least you know now, and I think that’s so cool that you make your own body scrubs!
Thanks for this tip! I’ve been looking for an alternative to GooGone because it makes me cough (that can’t be good…) I’ll have to try it the next jar I get!
[...] on removing nasty labels from glass jars {me thinks this would work on picture frames too} from Don’t Waste the Crumbs Baking with Blondie‘s Southwestern Salad with Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette From Real Food [...]
Wow! This works so well! Thank you for sharing – I tested it out last weekend, and it worked so well I had to post about it: Removing Jar Labels
Wow, so glad I found this post! We are using all sorts of jars for the centrepieces for our upcoming wedding (http://www.oneloveoneday.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/diy-centrepieces.html) in our home town and only arrive home a week before the wedding. I have been really stressing about how long it’s going to take to get all of the labels off the jars our friends and family have been saving for us. This is going to make it a piece of cake! Thanks for sharing
Jodine,
Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! I imagine your kitchen counters being lined with all sorts of tupperware bins, the jars happily soaking away while you make other last minute wedding preparations. A few scrubs later (our firm grill brush was awesome for this) and a run through the dishwasher should finish the super easy job! You’re very welcome, and congratulations again! ~Tiffany