Are you looking for interesting and unique? Maybe even with a rustic and eclectic twist? Then I definitely think you’ll love this mason jar pendant light!
These past few weeks at the Cathcart family home have been jammed packed! It started off with a crazy overload of allergy issues (both humans and pets). Then, continued onto DIY projects and lots of wonderful orders from our shop The Summery Umbrella.
Mike and I always attempt to work on one room/project at a time, but that never seems to work out. However, it seems to make for a very interesting and extremely creative way of thinking. Kind of like this Mason Jar Pendant Light. It wasn’t exactly on our priority list, but it soon became numero uno!
We started working on our kitchen/dining/living room, but we ran into a snag when our rugs got back ordered. Then, we had to find the barn wood for our kitchen island and bar. Plus, I couldn’t decide on seating. Should we do chairs, stools, benches, or even a booth? And then, what to do about lighting?
You see, paint is my best friend. I hate throwing away good items just because of a “bad” color. Thankfully I am a bit of paint hoarder (I confess!), and I’ve been able to save many items with a simple paint job.
How to Make DIY Mason Jar Lights
With all that being said, I am happy to FINALLY announce that we have finished one of our many lighting projects! It’s not the best picture, but do you see the mirrored lighting above? Recently Mike and I decided to yank out this vanity, and go figure, this task wasn’t as easy as we had hoped. Needless to say, everything you can see in this picture (except the toilet) is now ripped out.
Thankfully the lighting worked well so a new dining room light was in the making.
And I am going to share with you exactly how we made our new mason jar lights made with wide mouth mason jars so you can make some too.
1. Get to the Bare Bones of the Light Fixture
Once the light bulbs and mirrored tiles were pulled off we were left with the bones of this light fixture. They were actually in pretty good shape. It’s very similar to this inexpensive light fixture.
2. Paint the Fixture
So, all I needed to do was tape off the light sockets, wipe off any debris and dust that I saw and get started on the paint. Naturally, I turned to my all-time favorite spray paint color Rust-Oleum Oil Rubbed Bronze Spray Paint
.
.I seriously heart this color! 
3. Secure the Fixture to the Barn Wood
Then we pulled apart the fixture so it could be secured to our piece of barn wood.
4. Drill Holes Into the Mason Jar Lids
Next, it was time to drill holes into the mason jar lids so they also could be securely fastened to our fixture as well as allow the light sockets to push through.
Oh yea, we can’t forget to add a hole in the wood for the actual electrical to fit through!
5. Begin to Put It All Together
Ok, so now that we know where everything will be placed now it’s time to put it all together!
Mason jar bands placed on first, check! Lids next, and then screw them in.
How to Make Mason Jar Lights Look Even On A Slanted Ceiling
I do believe that the only issue we had with installing our mason jar pendant light was determining how to make it look even on a slanted ceiling. Since we had decided to use a rope to hang up our light and we originally were going use two ropes. However, it looked a little funny having one side longer than the other so we decided to go with just one.
Mike then installed a ceiling hook with a screw to hang the rope from and being the good wife that I am I allowed him to go ahead and play with the electrical part too. I mean, come on, he likes to play with it! Haha.
I apologize for the super dark photo! We started this project kind of late at night, and I didn’t want to miss out showing you a few of these steps. This is what our light started off looking like before we tied it up with rope, and then shortened the electrical cord. 
After he trimmed up all of the loose ends we put a plastic electrical cap onto the old hole where light may have been. We really don’t know!
We ran the electrical cord on the back of the pendant light to avoid being so obvious since we weren’t going to paint it.
Mason Jar Pendant Light
How gorgeous does it already look!?! We started off using just regular bulbs but felt like there was something missing. So, we invested a few dollars into these old-timey Edison bulbs. Aren’t they drool-worthy? LOVE THEM!
You can find these Bulbrite Edison Squirrel Cage-style Bulb
on Amazon for a great price! In fact, it was the lowest we could find among most of the stores we typically frequent.
on Amazon for a great price! In fact, it was the lowest we could find among most of the stores we typically frequent.Even though these bulbs look great without the mason jars we still decided to put them back on. Either way though, they would look amazinggggg!
Wowzas! Love our new mason jar pendant light! Another project to add to my book of favorites :)
Until next time,
Pssttt…. Don’t forget to check out my DIY projects page chocked full of DIY and decorating goodness!
6/12/15 UPDATE: I’ve heard through the grapevines that there’ve been a few concerns about exploding mason jars. I just thought I’d stop by and provide a little insight. Please remember, mason jars are designed for boiling water (aka. canning foods) so the heat that they’re supposed to withstand is at the boiling point. With that being said, the heat from the bulbs will be significantly smaller when compared to boiling water. So, I can ensure you that the risk of these jars exploding is incredibly small. If you have any issues whatsoever with your jars then the company who created them has a huge problem. Also, I’ve had this mason jar pendant light for over a year now, and I’ve honestly had no issues with it. Another option is to use LED Edison bulbs which tend to be a lot cooler than regular bulbs. Thanks again for the sweet comments!! :)
LZ Cathcart says
September 30, 2014 at 8:25 amHi Anne! Thank you :)
ANNE says
September 30, 2014 at 7:47 amLOVE this! What a fabulous idea. Thanks for sharing!
Anonymous says
October 3, 2014 at 7:08 amWould love to have seen it lit up at night. Bet it’s gorgeous.
jason says
January 30, 2015 at 12:53 pmdo you have any issues with heat from those lights? I bet the jars get pretty hot. Did you vent the tops at all? Thanks for the great inspiration!
admin says
January 30, 2015 at 10:58 pmHi Jason. Great question! We didn’t vent the tops, and honestly we haven’t had any issues with the jars getting too hot. We use this particular light every day, and it works perfectly :)
Michelle Philipp says
March 1, 2015 at 9:17 amLove this!! We are considering doing the same! This may be a non-issue, but did you have any trouble getting the fixture to remain parallel to the table and not twist around? Thanks for the tutorial!!
admin says
March 1, 2015 at 8:40 pmHi Michelle and thanks for stopping by! I will be completely honest… this is the only thing that I don’t like about this light! I have been able to keep the light parallel to the table for the most part, but every once in awhile it will act a little feisty and will take a little bit of effort to level it out again. However, its never been bad enough for me to want to find a new light. Always a plus :)
Patrick says
March 3, 2015 at 3:17 pmHow were you able to cut the circle holes through the metal covers?
I tried using a wood hole saw…..almost lost a few fingers.
Thanks
Pat
admin says
March 4, 2015 at 7:17 pmHi Pat! Great question. We stacked all the lids together and screwed them to a wooden block….(you can see the screw holes already in the lid, which will be used to screw them to our reclaimed wood and vanity strip later) then used a paddle bit and drill. It is definitely a tricky step, and a drill press could also be used. Thanks for stopping in :)
Ashley says
January 26, 2016 at 1:47 pmwhat size jar did you use? was it wide or regular mouth?
LZ Cathcart says
January 26, 2016 at 7:25 pmHi Ashley! I used wide mouth.
Erin says
July 25, 2017 at 9:02 amHi there! We are getting ready to tackle this project and I’m super excited!! What size Mason jar did you use? I know you said they were wide mouth, but there are so many different sizes(ounces).
Your fixture is beautiful!!
Erin :)
Linda Zahora-Cathcart says
August 2, 2017 at 6:05 amHi Erin!! Thank you so much! We used the wide mouth quart-size mason jars. Have fun, and definitely send me a photo when you’re done. I’d love to see it :)
Gabby says
January 27, 2016 at 11:46 amLove, Love this idea!!
LZ Cathcart says
January 28, 2016 at 8:05 pmThank you, thank you, thank you Gabby! :)
Sarah says
March 14, 2016 at 7:52 pmCan you post a picture of the bit you used for the hole in the mason jars? I searched paddle. It on amazon and there were many different options. I’ve already ruined one lid with he wrong kind of bit.
LZ Cathcart says
March 16, 2016 at 11:57 amHi Sarah! There are countless brands that you can use, but the bit that you will need will ultimately depend on the size of your light socket. However, we used a 1 3/8 inch Ryobi bit. Hopefully this helps, and thank you again for stopping in :)
Marjorie says
April 16, 2017 at 11:45 amI was so happy to find your site, I am using a mason jar over my ceiling fan light (with the edison bulbs which I LOVE) It was an old cover (granny style) which I could not stand, couldn’t find a replacement until I saw 2 square mason jars in Goodwill – and they fit perfectly. I turned my fan on high for 15 minutes to ensure the vibration would not loosen the jars and the glass was not getting too hot, thrilled that it works!!
LZ Cathcart says
April 17, 2017 at 6:41 amHi Marjorie–I do love those edison bulbs as well! So gorgeous, and gives that old-timey and rustic twist that works so well. I’m so happy to hear that this solution works well for a fan too. Definitely an awesome idea :)