How To Remove Labels From Glass Jars And Bottles

Glass jars and bottles are my favorite thing to recycle and reuse at home. They’re so versatile and so useful in helping you get organized. If they only came with easy-to-remove labels, that’d be great. Only…the labels seem to get stickier and stickier every time. However! I recently found a great solution and today I will show you how to remove labels from glass jars and bottles, even if they’re super sticky.

It’s easy to do and you get a bunch of crystal clear jars or bottles that you can use in so many ways – for decoration, storage and so much more!

Why Reuse Old Glass Jars And Bottles

I have a confession to make. I collect glass jars and bottles. If it’s glass, I’ll just wash it, dry it and put it in a box full of jars. In fact, over the years I collected so many glass jars and bottles that I’m getting a bit overwhelmed. There’s more than one box full of glass jars in my house how. Okay, more than 3. Marie Kondo will shake her head and feel bad for me. But I can’t. They spark joy.

I reuse them. Mostly to store food or to drink water. When a recipe says: store in an airtight container, to me that means: “Aha, a jar with a lid”.

Here are some reasons to reuse glass jars and bottles:

• You save money. Why spend any money on food containers (and other containers)?
• They’re great quality. Glass is always such a better quality container than plastic. It feels and looks better too!

• You can get organized using jars. You can use them in the bathroom, in the kitchen or even for office supplies.
• You save the environment. I know, if I hear that one more time I will go insane as well, but I truly hope it’s helpful.

Note: Please remember to always wash, dry and keep the lids as well.

Don’t Be Lazy About It

Okay, now for the other confession. Mostly when I get a new glass bottle or jar, I am too lazy to remove the labels. I tried scrubbing it off with a knife, like an animal. I tried soaking, but nothing worked and I don’t have the time or the patience.

Recently I had to face the results of my laziness (or rather lack of time and energy) when I decided to reorganize my pantry (which is long overdue). Turns out, I didn’t have even one jar without label. Okay, some had no labels, just sticky glue on them (I guess I did the work halfway on those).

So, I did what I had to do a long time ago. I soaked those jars and bottles and removed the labels. When I tell you I couldn’t be more proud and it didn’t take me more than an hour, I’m not lying even a bit.

Now let’s see what I went through during that hour to remove the labels from my glass jars and bottles.

How To Remove Labels From Glass Jars Or Bottles

Step 1: Fill a very large bowl or pot with hot water and soak the jars and bottles for about 20-30 minutes.

After that time the water will have cooled off, but if it hasn’t – add some cold water, so that you can take out the glass jars.

Some of the labels will be easy to remove completely after this step, others might be a bit stickier and trickier.

Step 2: If the labels don’t come off at the first step, use thick rubber gloves to rub the labels away.

This got most of the jars clean from the sticky glue for me.

Step 3: Now if that doesn’t work and you end up with a sticky mess that sticks to your hands or gloves, use nail polish remover to take the glue off. I put some (a lot) of nail polish remover onto makeup remover pads and then rub until there’s no glue left on the glass.

After some rubbing this step got rid of the sticky glue completely.

Step 4. Wash the jars and bottles thoroughly. I put mine in the dishwasher with the rest of our dishes and they came out sparkling clean!

I am so, so happy with the result and now super motivated to get more organized at home (let’s see how long it lasts).

How To Use Your Clean Glass Jars And Bottles

There are many, many uses for clean bottles and jars made out of glass.

Here are some ways you can use the glass jars and bottles:

• Organize your pantry. You can use different sizes for spices, staples, baking. You can even print out and stick your own labels to them.

• To store food in the fridge. The other super common way I use my collection of jars is to store leftovers or whatever staples I’m making ahead for the week…Cooked rice, overnight oats, chia pudding, quinoa, even chicken. You can store anything in a jar.
• For canning food. Why buy new jars for canning, when you can use what you already have?
• As decoration. With a little bit of effort and creativity, you can decorate any glass jar or bottle and use them to make your home feel more, well, home-y. For example, you can use the bottles as vase or even as a lamp and the jars for candle holders. Here are some more fun ideas to use glass jars and bottles.
• To get organized in other areas in your home (like bathroom or office).

I hope this little tutorial helps you to get the labels of your glass bottles and jars and inspires you to reuse them more often!