Wondering how to remove labels from bottles or jars that you rescue from the recycling bin or thrift store?
It’s easy and you don’t need an expense label removing solution, either.
A simple ingredient from your kitchen will do the job!
Most of us eat three times a day. And a lot of that food comes in jars – sturdy, well-shaped jars that would be just perfect for home organization and crafts … if only you could get those labels off!
Now I’ll admit that we don’t actually buy a lot of food in jars. The one I’m cleaning in this tutorial, for example – if I want to eat dulce de leche, I’m going to make it myself at home, probably with goat milk so that my youngest son can have some.
But the jar had a lovely wide opening and the lid had no rust or problems, so I grabbed it. That jar and I have plans. (It is grateful for being rescued from the landfill, in case you’re wondering)
You’re going to laugh when you realize how easy it is to get labels and stickers off those jars.
Here’s what you’ll need
- a bottle or jar with a label <- our guest of honour
- a deep washtub or basin that will hold the jar
- warm water to cover the jar
- a box of baking soda (Arm & Hammer all the way … okay, when it’s on sale, then I buy a case!)
- a stick for stirring
- a clean towel
Pour the warm water into the deep basin. It will need to be deep enough to hold your jar.
Yes, it’s a Starbucks mug, another very inexpensive thrift store find. I’m not a Starbucks drinker, though. I’d say I’m a Tim Hortons coffee drinker, but mostly I’m a make-it-at-home-and-save-money coffee drinker.
Dump some baking soda into your washing basin. You’ll want it to feel soapy and concentrated, so depending on the size of your basin, you might want 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup baking soda.
I’m not really brand loyal, but Arm & Hammer is a good brand. When it’s on sale at a price that meets or beats the generic, I usually buy a case. It keeps a long time.
Baking soda is very inexpensive, and it’s necessary for this to work. So be generous.
Mix it, mix it, mix it. I asked Aonghus for something to stir with and he handed me a popsicle stick. I have no idea where it came from.
How many times have I looked at something in my house and said “Where did this come from? I don’t recognize this.” It didn’t happen before I had children.
Into the baking soda bath it goes! If you have a big jar and a small basin, you’re probably now thinking you should have planned better. I did say it should be deep.
Next time I’ll listen to myself.
If the jar isn’t submerged, add more warm water.
If the jar can’t submerge because your basin is too small, join the club. This is totally a “do what I say, not what I do” moment. I do that a lot – show people how to do things after messing up! It’s easier if your jar will submerge, but it’s okay if it doesn’t.
That water jug isn’t speckled with rot – that’s right in the plastic’s colour. Another mystery of my life, why anyone would think that “looks like it’s covered in mold” is an appropriate colour for a water jug.
It amuses me, though, and reminds me that plastic lasts forever. That’s the catch-22 about plastic, isn’t it? The good news is that it lasts forever! The bad news is that it lasts forever, never breaking down completely, never actually going away.
If you have plastic or can reclaim it from the thrift store, take care of it and keep it from getting moldy and slimey and disgusting. Plastic in the landfill doesn’t ever go away. Even after you “get rid of it”, it’s still here.
If your jar isn’t completely submerged, rotate it a few times. You’ll want that baking soda to soak into the labels evenly.
All in all, you’ll want that jar to soak in the water for about three hours. The water will get cool. That’s okay.
Now start peeling the labels off. The baking soda should have broken the bond of the glue, so it should be very easy to rub it off.
If it’s being really stubborn, dump your water and refill the basin with warm water and baking soda. Let it soak some more.
Is it all off? Wash your jar and lid however you normally do. Rinse it well to get all of the baking soda off, and then dry it.
Have you ever noticed that people say “dry well with a clean towel”. I’m not going to tell you that because I’m assuming you know that you should be using a clean towel to dry your jar.
You do not need to store lollipops in your jar. I’ve found that upcycled jars are great for storing almost everything, from pantry items to buttons to … well, anything.
EJ keeps a lot of them in the shed, too. I panic every time I see him putting nails and screws in a glass jar but so far none have broken. I won’t let him use my Mason jars for that – only rescued jars.
Next time you’re wandering through the thrift store and you see a jar that would be just perfect for your needs if only it wasn’t covered in stickers and labels, you’ll now know what to do.
You can also put some tags on the lid, or use a Sharpie to write on the jar itself, especially if you are planning to use these bottles or jars to store kitchen powders like cornstarch, flour or sugar. Maybe you’re like me and have several different kinds of salt? You don’t want to mix up fine salt with curing salt – not the same thing at all.
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