You've seen the Sun Jar and you love it. The trouble is the price. You can't just fathom paying $45 for each solar light. You'd be paying almost $500 to light up your garden and your rooms. That just doesn't make any sense! Thankfully, here at Unplggd, our readers were quick to point out that you can easily assemble your own Sun Jar for a fraction of the cost.
We love the Sun Jars, but they are a bit too expensive for what they are worth. Urban Outfitters is selling them for $45. We've been told that you can get these from resellers for $20 each, but that is still quite expensive when you want to light up your garden or a few rooms. One of our readers pointed out that he made a lamp like this a few years ago and everyone liked it. After searching around on Instructables, we found this guide to make your Sun Jars a whole lot cheaper than the $45 list price.
You'll need the following to get started:
Components:
1. Ikea Slom glass jar or Mason Jar
2. Solar garden light ($5 each)
3. rechargeable battery (AA size)
4. Blu-tack
5. Tracing paper or glass frosting spray
You'll need a screwdriver, a utility knife, and some glass-frosting paper to make your sun jar complete. You're going to take the solar light apart and put what you find inside the glass jar. You can use some Blu-tack to keep it all together. It's important to use a glass frosting spray so that the light generated by the lamp is diffuse. As an alternative, you can also use tracing paper. That's it! We've calculated that by recycling some of your Mason Jars and buying the solar lamps in packets of 6, it won't cost you more than $6 per lamp. That's a whole lot better than $45. Basically, you're just repackaging the solar lamps into a more usable and friendly form. You can fiddle around with this idea, but this is quite straightforward and simple. It's important to use a transparent lid. If you use a metal lid, that usually comes with a Mason Jar, the solar panel won't be able to recharge the battery. [via Mister R, photos by cre8tor]
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Wow, great tip! I liked the idea of these jars but the price was just too much. I'm glad to know I can make them myself for a fraction of the price.
Yes! I knew someone would figure out how to build one of these for a fraction of the cost.
notmartha posted how to do this a while back. Her version's a little more effort but I loved how the frosted glass looks.
These tips on how to make Sun Jars have been around for a while. I posted the easiest way to do them, without playing with electrical wires. However, if you are so inclined, you can fiddle with them to make an even better Sun Jar. The important thing is that they are quite a lot cheaper than the original, and they can even make the perfect night light.
nice! i might actually try to make one.
Those little Ikea Droppar jars (http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40112543) would be perfect for this I think... A bit more pricey at $10 each, but they come pre-frosted and with a clear lid, plus they come in several sizes. Gonna get me some next time I'm in Seattle...
I want to make these but my boyfriend hates the feeling of frosted glass, would it be possible to frost the inside of the glass instead? Or would that be some sort of crazy flammable fire hazard?
i frosted the inside of the jars and it worked fine. however, i did have trouble attaching the lights to the tops of the jars. neither blu tack nor hot glue didn't seem to have enough oomph.
I want to Diy a night light for my kiddos room, would that work inside?
I didn't quite get the instruction :(
You lost me. Step 2 is to purchase a solar garden light that already works, just the way it is. What is the point of the glass jar, frosting, etc? Is it just supposed to look more attractive? I'm not being snarky, I just don't get it.
The solar light has a big pick to ram into the ground, and is, as pictured, not exactly pretty. The frosted glass jar is compact, portable, must more attractive and can be set anywhere it gets some sun.
Thanks Therese, I really wasn't sure if it was just aesthetic or something else. I hadn't considered the portability.
@Snoopystar
Seriously?! Just how often will he ACTUALLY be touching them? Do it the way you want to do it!