I am in new year cleaning and nesting mode lately. I love reorganizing and simplifying at the beginning of the new year. I have talked previously about the ease and safety of using glass canning jars for all your kitchen storage. They work great for all varieties of leftovers for the fridge, leftovers for the freezer, and for general food and grain storage. I absolutely love glass storage! Canning jars are very frugal to come by, and they are simple and elegant. You can find them in Pint, Quart, half gallon, and gallon sizes (Azure Standard also carries the gallon size). Craigslist, goodwill and garage sales are great places to find used jars for the best prices.
I like to save all glass jars from store-bought purchases so I have multiple sizes and shapes, but the standard wide mouth canning jar is best for ease of removing contents (avoid the narrow mouth jars if possible – just too difficult!). Wide mouth also gives the ability to stack them more easily in the refrigerator. Just this past week I stumbled upon the product I have been looking for awhile…plastic wide mouth jar lids! Yes, this is the solution to the natural rusting process that takes place with the standard metal canning lids and rings, and this simplifies it into one lid rather than two pieces. You should have seen my excitement!
Where to find? You can find these nifty plastic lids at Fred Meyers in the canning section along with all their other canning supplies. The cost? Just over $3 for a box of 8 lids. You can also find them online at Amazon:8 Pk Wide Mouth Plastic Caps. Note: these are not to be used for canning, but only for storage purposes. And don’t worry about the plastic – it’s a #5 plastic and does not come in contact with your food unless you fill your jars completely to the brim.
I highly recommend this product as a means of getting simplified and organized in your kitchen storage this year!
I could have written this post myself, every last word of it!
I recently made the switch to all glass. I had been receiving my raw milk in the 1/2 gallon mason jars and one day it suddenly dawned on me that I could buy more and use them for storage! 
Gradually I had been making the switch, until a rodent invaded my newly finished pantry and destroyed many bagged items I had not stored in glass. That caused me to make the switch completely! Grrrr! So trust me when I say, you won’t regret making the switch! It’s pretty and keeps the pests out! 
You can also use the glass jars from the store for things like holding all your pony-tail bands, cotton balls, office supplies, ect… The ideas are endless and it has made things much more organized in my household. I love it! Kids and I decorate the tops to make brand logos go away and the kids have fun doing it, so it’s a win-win situation.
Our local hardware store carries these plastic lids, so anyone who doesn’t have a Fred Meyer may want to check their hardware store and save on shipping costs. Lindsay, you got me started on glass jars a couple months ago and I love how beautiful the honey, cinnamon sticks, raisins, granola, grains, etc. look when they are displayed in glass! Not my reason for doing it, but certainly a nice perk.
Lindsay
I found this today, about eco friendly furniture.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28510099/
Apparently couches as horrible chemicals in it too. Ugh, imagine what’s in our mattresses we breathe in every night, and our babies mattresses!
ooohhh… great idea. Thanks for sharing and posting links, too.
I just came upon your blog yesterday while searching for freezer meals. A friend and I have been doing bulk cooking every first Monday of the month and it has been so helpful! I have put some of the recipes on my blog. Can’t wait for Jan. 20th and the freezer meal carnival.
I didn’t realize you could get plastic lids for canning jars….I have them on my shopping list.
I love glass storage, too. It also looks prettier than the plastic sacks that many things, like dried beans, come in. Since my cupboard space is so limited, I have a collection of various sized jars displaying food on the counter. And when using a variety of shapes and food colors/textures, it even counts as decor!
I’ve even been debating about putting up a shelf on the wall, just to have more space for glass jar storage.
Thanks so much for this tip. The plastic lids would make the storage so much easier. We are slowly trying to convert all of our storage containers over to glass, and we have been using canning jars as well.
Azure Standard has the plastic lids for $2.85 for an 8-pack. Just thought I’d let you know!
Aren’t these lids just marvelous?! My mom had gotten some a bit ago and when we were staying with my family I saw those! Definitely going to be getting some of my own! Thanks for sharing!
I LOVE my plastic lids!!!! I store so much in them because they are so easy to use, no double lid thing going on. Plus I use them as soon as I pop open one of the jars I’ve actually canned.
Great resources! Thank you for posting!
I have been slowly switching to glass – I use mostly containers from applesauce and other things, but have a small collection of canning jars as well. I love that they can go into the freezer just as safely as the fridge.
Shellie
I love my canning jars & plastic lids – right now I am using them to store so much!
I think I bought 6 boxes of the plastic lids, and am constantly wishing I had more!
Pantry: Wild Rice, Crispy Pecans, Pepitas, yeast, real salt bought in bulk, homemade spice mixes, etc
Refrigerator: Fermented Salsa, Pickles, Kimchi, Sauerkraut, Jams & Jellies (7 varieties – had to sample before giving as gifts), Kombucha, Kefir, Yogurt, Turkey Broth (waiting to be divided & pressure canned), Apple Juice (to be made into Jelly), and so much more.
Woah these look utterly AWESOME!!! Thanks for the tip. I’m on it. =)
Aren’t these great?!
Just as a note to your other readers that may not have a Fred Meyer close by, stores that carry a large amount of canning/preserving aids typically carry these as well. (we live in Lewis County, WA, which is kind of a “hick” community, so all of the kitchen stores carry a bunch of canning supplies, as well as “Sunbirds” which is a rural-life store…. you know, canning supplies, gardening supplies, Carhartt brand clothing, workboots, etc!)
Why did I never think to look for this before?! Thank you for the tip, I’ll have to go find some