Miniature Mason Jar Citronella Oil Lamps for a Cabin Weekend Getaway
My daughter and I have been planning a mother/daughter weekend trip and this was finally the weekend we were both free to go.
My wonderful old Jeep starting to have problems, so we traded it in for a low- mileage, used Ford Escape, hitched the trailer with our kayaks, and headed for the great outdoors.
We reserved our favorite camping cabin for the weekend. It was R&R we both needed.
The cabin has four twin size cots and a picnic table inside, so it’s big enough for a small group. But we had it all to ourselves.
It has its own porch, but there’s also a beautiful elevated porch behind it, with a beautiful view of the forest and trail leading down to the lake.
The cabin is at the very end of the paved road loop, so it’s pretty quiet, with occasional people walking their dogs or cyclists passing by.
We had nothing to do but binge-watch movies on my projector we brought along, cook over the campfire, and kayak.
My daughter cooked burgers on the grill the first night, and I made chicken with veggies in foil packets the next night.
I made miniature mason jar citronella oil lamps. They burned for several hours and worked so well! There we no bugs at all the whole time we sat outside.
Here’s WHY I made them …
A few years ago, I bought the most adorable set of mini mason jar string lights. But then I took them out of the box and realized …
the lights weren’t included with the jars. Big bummer!
Do you know how hard it is to find a strand of string lights with only 6 lights on it in the stores?
Let me tell you, it’s impossible, unless you want to shop online and pay shipping. I didn’t feel like spending more money on them, so I’ve had them all this time, hoping I’d either find a 6-light strand of string lights or think of something else to do with them.
And then it hit me …
I spotted some tabletop glass tiki torches on Wayfair (affiliate link) that gave me an idea!
What if bottles could be turned into tabletop miniature mason jar citronella oil lamps? And that’s what I set out to do.
How I Made Miniature Mason Jar Citronella Oil Lamps
Supplies used: (includes affiliate links)
Replacement wicks with glass wick holders
There’s a little rubber insert that comes inside the lid to hold the mini light. I discarded that piece since it wouldn’t be needed. Insert the wick into the glass wick holder. Lucky for me, it was just the right size to fit inside the hole in the lid.
I used a funnel to fill up the little jar. Obviously, not much was needed for such a small bottle.
Screw the lid back on the bottle and insert the glass wick holder with the wick inserted in it, and it’s good to go!
Vaya con Dios,
Very clever! (but seriously, why would string lights come without lights?!). And it’s so green there! Even the light looks greenish. I love it and living in Southern California I really miss green.
That’s exactly what I wondered, David! It made no sense. I lived for over 20 years in the Southwest. I loved it there, but missed the Midwest green of my childhood home, and now that we’re back, I appreciate it even more.
What an idyllic spot to spend the weekend! With someone you love! A nice thing to do for a daughter and mom.
The little miniature Mason jars are so cute! And I love the idea of making them into citronella burners. Wonder if you can buy the little jars separately from the light string anywhere? At first, I tho’t you had used the little canning jar salt and pepper shakers I’ve seen various places. Trouble with those would be that you’d have to cut holes in the lids for the wicking.
Hope your weekend together was a most happy one for you and your daughter!
It is a beautiful state park, Naomi. There are two campgrounds, but our little cabin is the only one in the park, so we always reserve it in advance so we’re sure to get it.
Love these little lights,very smart idea. Good you got away with your daughter hope you had a great time.
We did have a great time. Thanks Marlene!
This looks like a lovely getaway, Angie! And the lamps are so pretty. I have an Escape just like yours!
I love your little citronella light idea! I have several of those little Mason jars……I use them on my miniature tree on my kitchen island. The tree is decorated with very mini muffin tins, cookie sheets, whisks, etc, etc, which I have collected over the years. I put the little jars here and there on the tree which has a string of about 50 lights in all. It is very pretty.