DIY Jar Soap Dispensers

SUPER CUTE GIFT ALERT!

These were a hit at the baby shower last spring and this last Christmas and quite inexpensive to make. And who doesn't need soap? It's a nice way to personalize a little, one of the most impersonal gifts I think a person can give, lol!

You can make this as hard or difficult for yourself as you'd like, and as a life rule, I decided on the difficult route. Even the difficult route is pretty simple so don't panic.

Here's what you'll need:

glass canning jars (pint sized is great)
galvanized lids - pre-drilled (This is just my preference. See link for available options)
high-temp hot glue gun
high temp glue
sand paper
soap pump
*optional glass beads
*optional twine or ribbon

I have used the lids that come with the jars, but I don't think they are as nice as the galvanized lids available out there. There are many places to order lids for your jars, in wide mouth OR regular just make sure you buy the right size to fit your jars.

You can get a pack of 12 wide mouth lids from Factory Direct Craft.com for less than six bucks! But you will need to do some work to the lids. You can buy their pumps too and not have to worry about them fitting into the pre-drilled lids, but I figured, why waste money on something I will end up buying anyways, right?

Besides, I prefer the foaming soap dispensers and they didn't appear to have those available through the same store. The only problem with the foaming soap pumps is that they are pretty wide. The smart way to make the holes bigger in these galvanized tin lids would be to use a drill it attachment and quickly drill the right sized hole. That is not how I roll though...

In all my low tech awesomeness, I just used a set of pliers and sorta peeled back the edges of the hole until I had increased the width enough to insert the pump... no measuring. Just insert pliers, bend the edge back and test.I apologize for not having a pict of this part of the process but it seems I was so unhappy with all of the pictures I took of that part, that I deleted them and have none left. Oops!

Once the hole is large enough, just slip the pump through. Make sure the hole is not so big that there is a big gap you have to fill later with hot glue. I sanded the section of the plastic pump that shows through the hole so the hot glue will have something to grab instead of just slick plastic. Trust me, I did not spend much time or effort making this part of the pump look fabulous, and neither should you.

Before I glued anything down, I screwed the lid on the jar. This is sort of an important step if you car about the logo showing on the front of your soap dispenser. Then I put the pump facing the direction I thought was most pleasing and made a mark on the underside of the lid. This might require a little bit of hand coordination so as not to accidentally move or misalign, but if you care enough about this part then you will get it right.

All finished with that, I hot glued everything in place. I suggest that you use high temperature hot glue because it has a stronger bond. Hot glue will also cover the sharp edges that you will make when you resize the hole, adding a little bit of protection for your fingers when you get ready to refill.

If you used the pint size jar, you will need 16 ounces of soap, and that means TWO Bath&Body soaps, OR you can add some glass beads to help fill the dispenser. I got the glass beads from our local DollarTree store.

Then to pretty them up, I added some twine and some holiday bangles I had! Voilà! A pretty little gift you can personalize via scent and decorations. You can buy these ready made for upwards of $35-$60 dollars online, but why when you can make them?!

Leave me a comment or send me a message and let me know what you think! Maybe I missed a step or didn't describe something well enough? I am happy to help!

Thanks!