7. Upcycled Mason Jar Magnetic Hardware Carousel
Introduction
Nuts, bolts, washers, and miscellaneous screws end up scattered across drawers. Clear glass or shatterproof PET jars mounted beneath shelves organize tiny fasteners neatly and accessibly.
What This Idea Means
Securing the lids of uniform wide-mouth jars to the underside of hanging cabinets or wall shelves allows you to simply twist a jar off its lid, select your hardware, and twist it back into place without wasting counter space.
Materials Needed
- 12 to 24 matching wide-mouth 8 oz or 16 oz glass mason jars (or heavy-duty transparent containers)
- Short 1/2-inch pan-head wood screws
- Drill and 1/8-inch metal drill bit
- Adhesive label maker or waterproof chalkboard tape
How to Make It
- Remove the two-piece lids from your jars and drill two small holes through the metal lids, spaced roughly 1 inch apart to prevent spinning.
- Mark the underside of your workbench upper shelf with even spacing between jar positions.
- Drive two short screws through each lid directly into the underside of the shelf, ensuring they are snug and secure.
- Fill each jar with grouped hardware (drywall screws, deck screws, machine washers, wall anchors).
- Screw the transparent jars up into their stationary lids to create an organized, floating hardware row.
Tips and Variations
- For quick removal, glue high-strength neodymium rare-earth disc magnets to the shelf underside and glue steel washers to the jar lids instead of screwing them on.
- Color-code screw heads inside each jar using colored sticky dots for rapid size recognition.