The week Scott and I got married (nearly four years ago now!), my dad cut a giant hole in my kitchen wall and inserted floor-to-ceiling spice rack into a few inches of unused space. This had long been the wedding present plan, though looking back on it covering the apartment with drywall dust a few days before the big day wasn’t one of my better laid plans.
Still, I’ll never regret the mess, because I LOVE this spice shelf. Not only did it give me a bounty of additional storage space, the shelves are perfectly spaced to hold the canning jars that house my herbs and spices. Truly, it was one of the best presents I’ve ever received.
For the longest time, I thought I was the only one using slightly past their prime mason jars for this purpose, but in recent years, I’ve discovered that I’m very far from alone. And this spring, Ball finally recognized the fact that many of us use their jars in this way and released a product designed expressly for spice storage.
Meet the Dry Herbs Jars
I appreciate the slight rim on the edge of the lid, which means they stack with a sense of security. And finally (though this has nothing directly to do with their utility as a spice jar), I love the look of the smooth-sided four ounce jar. Would that they’d kick those quilted quarter-pints to the curb and sell these by the dozen!
Disclosure: Ball has provided these Dry Herb Jars at no cost to me. However, I am unswayed by this gift and my opinions remain my own.
Most of them are in those metal Soho containers that are magnetic, and they’re stuck to my fridge. The ones I don’t have containers for sit in little baggies on the counter…
I’m not very good at dried herbs. Last year we harvested and dried everything out in the garage. Then I just used zip lock baggies in the freezer …
I just put in my herb garden so until now I have just been buying herbs from the store and keeping them in the jars they came in.
I use canning jars to store my spices and herbs. I just recently started drying my own.
I have an entire cupboard for spices/seasonings. The top is for Asian, the middle had a 3-tier shelf where I store everything alphabetically, the bottom has 2 lazy-susans–one for salts/peppers/rubs and the other for spices that I use the most, and between the lazy-susans I have larger jars of taco seasoning, pizza seasoning, etc. My husband also made me a pull down/out rack for under the cabinet that houses my baking/canning spices.
When I buy them in bulk, I store them in jelly jars.
I am another jar saver just for spices and herbs. I do grow a lot of my herbs and then dehydrate them just before winter. Also have a small herb pots for window sills but have all these jars filled with wonderful smelling herbs and mixtures for different dishes. Now that spice rack is a beauty. I would love to have something like that. to put all the jars and grwoing herbs on.
I store our spices in pint jars. Your shelf is wonderful! I have to come up with a better place to store ours tho…I look like a chicken with it’s head cut off trying to find spices here and there…lol.
I use all different sizes of mason jars to store my herbs and spices. When I get a new order of bulk spices I put some into a 4 oz jars for the kitchen. The rest goes into appropriate size larger jars, which are stored in my basement pantry( pint, pint and half, quart etc.). I use the mason jar attachment to my foodsavor and seal the larger jar. When I need to refill the 4oz jar I pop open the larger jar, fill smaller jar and reseal larger jar. Keeps all the herbs and spices much fresher for a longer time.
I too, wish Ball would make smooth sided 4 oz jars.
I use quilted old canning jars as well for spice storage
I mainly use old jelly jars that came out of my great frandmother’s house. Also original containers and refill them.
I use Tu[perware containers for a lot of my spices. For basil and oregano from my garden, I use pint size Ball jars. You can never have too much basil on hand!
I keep my spices in an antique spice cabinet. The ball herb jars look wonderful!
Some of my smaller quantity herbs I keep in the bags they came in, but sometimes I transfer them to old empty herb containers.
I started buying old canning jars from garage sales over 25 years ago – all sizes too. I use them for storing everything from herbs to rice and have always loved the hunt. I have 2 wide mouth bale top jars which I still can’t find rubber rings for and a really neat small jar that has lever closer on it that I still can’t find out anything else about. they are so versatile, there’s no reason not to use them
I *need* these…. my spices are in the containers they came in. very messy! BUT I plan on drying basil and peppermint from the garden this year and these jars will be perfect!
I use jelly jars for the herbs I dry myself. These would be great!!
Most of my herbs and spices are in the containers they came in on a lazy Susan in a kitchen cabinet. I would love to win these jars and buy some bulk herbs.
I have a mixed up mess of glass bottles for my home grown herbs, along with spices in the store bought plastic ones. I keep them on a lazy Susan in my cupboard , which is convenient, but messy.
Use whatever is available. Baggies, freezing, old spice jars I’ve cleaned out. And please send me an invite on Pintrest.. I love that site.
Our many spices are stored in all sorts of containers, jars, bags, the container they came in, etc…. They are crammed in to the space on the top of the bakers rack, stacked and piled on each other, so every time we want something it is a treasure hunt where everything ends up on the table. I am jealous of your rack…..everything is right there in front of you not buried!!!
I just started canning last year.. I wanted to try to start drying herbs from my garden this year. When I saw your post I was so excited. Any tips on the best way to dry them for storage in these jars? Thanks for your post!
I currently use the half pint jars for my herbs and spices. I am very excited to buy these new jars.
I need cute little jars to store them in because right now I have some in one of those prefilled, round racks from the store.
Mine are currently stored in whatever container they came in in a very messy shallow drawer in my kitchen.
I have a cupboard with a pull out drawer that I store my spice bottles in, but above the drawer is a shelf that holds a lazy Susan filled with more bottles/jars and all around the lazy Susan are the larger containers I own. Now I have migrated to the cupboard above which is filled with several shelves of spices. I keep some in the freezer, as well. I also have a plastic tote with a handle in the lid that I keep bags of spices to refill the jars. I have too many!! I also dry my own herbs from my garden and keep them in Mason jars. Dried herbs, peppers, etc. These new Mason spice jars look awesome!
Love these new jars, they are beautiful! Would use them for homegrown and custom mixed herbs and spices.
A lot of my herbs and spices are stored in old baby food jars. I also repurpose commercial spice jars when I find myself obliged to buy off-the-shelf rather than picking up fresher bulk herbs and spices for one reason or another. Once I’ve got the jar, I might as well use it! And, OK, I might have a few plastic bags of bulk spices floating around that I’ve never gotten put into actual jars…
I love these! I also store my spices in jars- but only some of them mason jars. I’ve been known to repurpose regular jam jars, sauce jars, I even have a pair of TINY jars that had been filled with sample size of maple syrup. So for me, its really whatever I have, so long as I can put a screw top on it.
Those are so sweet! And so much nicer than baggies which get tucked in corners and forgotten.
I keep them in old jars…pretty similar to the picture
My spices are stored in a hodge podge assortment of glass jars and old spice containers. Definitely not beautiful to look at.
Love the look of these. I just remodeled my kitchen and have two big drawers with inserts for my spices. Being able to open a drawer and instantly see what I’m looking for is wonderful.
I have a revolving spice rack, and a drawer, and a tray that I can pull down from a top shelf… I think I need to downsize!
We have a very small kitchen, and very limited storage space. I store my herbs on a shelf in shallow bins I can pull out and put on the counter for a moment while I’m cooking.
These look great. I can’t wait to try them.
I store my herbs the exact way you do! On a shelf in the breakfast nook. Mine looks extremely more messy though… 🙂 P.S. I pinned something from your spice board.
I would love to try these with the mint that I grow… They seem to be a great idea for shaking out the leaves for tea!
My house has a cool counter end with a door that opens revealing a big spice rack. It fits most of my spices. The overflow goes in bins above the stove. My bulk spices stay in their bags- which is why I would love these jars. May need to buy a few myself.
I’m all “reduce reuse recycle” about my spices: I tend to reuse decent spice containers with the label removed, or marked over in sharpie, for new spices. There are also plastic baggies, of course. It’s a wreck. I keep looking at it and thinking “Well, it’s clear that I cook.”
I store them on these plastic “steps” so I can see the ones in the back aseasily as the ones infront. They’re in the containers they came in mostly, a few are invarious jars.
I save old spice containers and reuse, and I use old jars of all kinds to store my spices and seasonings. I have a floor to ceiling wire shelf rack in my pantry that is full to the brim with spices. I stocked it up on a recent trip to the spice market in Dubai! Such fun! I really love the shaker tops on these Ball jars, and would love to win. Thank You!!
I have used the 4oz jam canning jars since they came out for herb. The shaker would be great. Just LOVE canning jars. They are beautiful!! Thanks Ball…..
I re-use any small glass jars with lids I can get my hands on!
I corral all of my small spice jars in one plastic storage box. These are a great idea, not too big, not too small.
Genius! I save all the old jars and if I’m lucky enough to happen on a zinc lid or two, I use those for the dry herbs with the old blue jars. So pretty.
My herbs are either in baggies 🙁 or hanging upside down ‘drying’
I use canning jars for my herbs and spices except I just use a regular canning lid…….I think these Ball spice jars are pretty nifty.
This is the incentive I need to preserve my own home grown spices.
store them in the bottles they come in and in my cabinet by the stove.