spice jars: before

Let the bottles sit in hot water. Remove the label with your fingertips or a scrubber. If you find the label glue is still sticking around, rub a bit of olive oil into the glue, and then scratch off.

jars, labels removed

Tape the jars. I left a blank line on the jar so you can keep track of how full your jar is, and you could even add measurement lines (tablespoons, ounces, etc).

taped jars

Give the jars 2-3 coats of chalkboard paint with a foam brush. The foam brush will leave less brush marks. Each coat should dry 40 minutes – 1 hour before you add the next.

Once the last coat is dry, and you can see no large spots by looking inside the jar and holding it up to a light source, prime the chalkboard paint by rubbing the chalkboard surface with the side of a piece of chalk. I use a gray chalk to prime, as it matches the chalkboard color better.

blackboard paint salt and pepper shakers

Since these were not originally spice jars, I painted the lids white, and drilled holes into the top. This will work well for any empty spice jars you might have, and the chalkboard paint label will let you re-label your jars with ease. Now I’m tempted to paint labels on all my countertop jars.

spice jars: after