Autumn Crafting: Mason Jar Scene Tutorial

My autumn tree obsession continues today with a tutorial for making a cute little autumnal scene in a Mason jar!

This tutorial is sponsored by Bostik - you get two tutorials thanks to them this week, yay! Like the 3D card tutorial I shared on Wednesday, today's post is part of a series of crafty projects I'm sharing using Bostik's range of adhesives (I've also made a giant floral hula hoop wreath and some autumn leaf cards).

Mason jar crafts have become really popular in recent years and I see a lot of Christmassy "winter scene" tutorials on Pinterest, where people stick some felt snow and a couple of Christmas ornaments in a Mason jar and make a sweet little festive scene.

I've never seen any for different seasons of the year, though, so I thought it would be fun to make a little autumn scene in a jar: a tiny house and a tree shedding lots of lovely autumn leaves.

 

If you wanted, you could make a spring version of this project by making the tree a lovely bright green and skipping the fallen leaves... or you could adapt the tree and make a fir tree instead, then add some fake snow (maybe cotton wool or shredded paper?) for a DIY winter scene.

The little house would also make a cute Christmas ornament on its own: just add a thread for hanging the house or make a whole set of little houses (maybe with different colour roofs and a variety of door and window styles?) to sit along a bookshelf.


You will need:

- a Mason, Kilner or other glass jar (I used a 0.5L Kilner preserve jar, approx 12cm high).

- the templates provided at the bottom of this post
- Bostik Glu Dots (or some strong craft glue)
- a Bostik Blu Stick (or other glue suitable for sticking paper and card) - green felt
- white card
- brown, orange and red card (or white card coloured in brown, orange and red)
- a pencil
- a fine black pen
- a ruler
- craft scissors
- sewing scissors

You may also need:

- a compass (for drawing a circle template)
- an air-erasable fabric marker

To make an autumn scene:

1. Cut a green felt circle slightly smaller than the base of your jar. I used the lid of my jar as a template (drawing around it directly onto the felt with an air-erasable marker pen) but you may need to measure your jar and create a paper template to suit your jar's proportions.

Check the felt shape fits neatly at the bottom of the jar, and trim it to fit if necessary. Cut a second matching felt circle and set this aside until later.

2. Secure the felt circle inside the jar. To do this I used Bostik Glu Dots, adding five dots spaced out across the felt circle then pressing it down firmly onto the inside of the jar. Quick and easy, and mess-free!

3. Use the templates provided to cut out two tree trunk shapes and one tree leaves shape from card. Draw around the templates with a sharp pencil, turning over the tree trunk template to draw the second shape.

Erase any remaining pencil lines, then draw on the fold lines as marked on the tree trunk template.

4. Fold along the lines, so each tree trunk piece has a little tab of card at the bottom.

Glue the first tree trunk piece to the leaves, as shown. I used a Bostik Blu Stick for this - the glue starts out blue then dries clear, so you can easily make sure you've covered all the tree's branches before sticking it in place.

5. Once the first side of the tree has dried completely, turn it over and add the second tree trunk so it lines up with the first.

Once the glue has dried, you'll have a little card tree which should stand up on the two tabs at the bottom.

6. Print the house template onto a piece of white card, or use the measurements as a guide to draw the template neatly on white card using a ruler and a pencil. Carefully cut out the house shape.

If you're drawing out the template but have resized it to better fit your jar, use a ruler to carefully measure the lines before reproducing them on the white card.

7. Fold along all the internal lines. For neat folds, carefully score along the lines using a ruler and the blade of a pair of scissors (or a biro that's run out of ink) then fold so all the printed or pencil lines are on the inside.

8. Draw a door and windows onto one side of the house using a black pen. For extra neatness, you may want to draw the details with a pencil first then erase the pencil lines once the ink has fully dried. You could also add some colour by colouring in the door with a coloured pencil or felt tip pen.

9. Use the roof template to cut out a roof from red card. Fold it in half so any pencil marks are on the inside.

10. Assemble the house, carefully applying glue to the little card tabs and holding the shape together while the glue dries enough to hold.

I used the Bostik Blu Stick for this, gluing the tabs at the side of the walls then the tabs for the pointed roof.

11. Once the house has fully dried, use more glue to add the red roof. Again, hold the card in place while the glue takes effect then leave it to dry fully.

12. Carefully place the tree and house in the jar, plan the best position for each of them then remove them both from the jar again.

Add some adhesive underneath the base of the tree then place it back in the jar, pressing it into its final position (I used one Bostik Glu Dot under each of the tabs at the base of the tree).

Then take the second green felt circle you cut out earlier, and cut a line so it will fit around the tree. If your little house wasn't sitting flat in the base of the jar (because the base itself isn't flat) cut one or two felt pieces to help make the house level.

Place these felt pieces and the little house in the jar to check you're happy with 

how everything looks, then take them out again. 

Add some adhesive (I used another couple of the Glu Dots) to the bottom of the "extra" felt piece(s) and carefully press it/them in position.

Then place the second felt circle in the bottom of the jar, around the base of the tree, adjusting it until you're happy with it. (Don't use adhesive for this!)

13. Add the little house. You can use adhesive to secure the house in position, but I decided to leave mine unattached to make it easier to perfectly position it within the jar.

14. Finally, cut out lots of small leaf shapes from orange card (to match your tree) and sprinkle them into the jar as if they've fallen from the tree. This will add to the autumnal feel of the scene and help cover up the line you've cut in the felt circle.

Now just put the lid back on the jar, place it carefully on a shelf or your mantelpiece and enjoy!

DISCLOSURE: this post is sponsored by Bostik, who also provided the Glu Dots and Blu Stick I used to make the autumn scene.

Follow the links to open the template sheets in a new window, make sure you're viewing them full size then print them at 100%.

House Templates.

Tree & Roof Templates.