apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Sometimes I choose what I buy at the grocery store based on the quality/potential of its reusable packaging.

Wide-mouth jars are the best - a lot of glass jars on the shelf have narrow-mouths whihc are more difficult to refill with bulk stuff.

I like to save nicely shaped jars like Classico sauces come in, and then I buy white plastic lids (made by the canning people, Bernardin in med. and large sizes) so all the lids match.

I like these storage containers from Ikea - http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90066708 - they are great for rice, sugar, flour, etc... or these http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50081452 - the taller ones are great for cereal. For canning, I prefer the Weck jars!

Personally I only use original Wagenfelds from 1938:

http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?criteria=O%3AAD%3AE%3A6208&page_number=3&template_id=1&sort_order=1

Yeah ... I wish.

I really like the glass 365 day storage containers at IKEA; guess they have discontinued them. Bought a bunch last year; hope I have enough (really steams me that they got rid of them)...

By far, my favorite jar is the 5 liter Fido from Bormioli Rocco. My wife and my have made many many batches of ceviche in this jar.

the Slom jars from Ikea are a new addition to my pantry, however I like to have a variety of jar styles, so I save jars from everything.
I like mustard ones the best. They are good for making dressings in a hurry!

I use large Ball canning jars. Not exciting but very functional.

This isn't a storage jar question, but sort of related. I'm looking for a big, um, "brine box"! A larger plastic thingy that has cup measurements on the side. Alton Brown uses then and they look like they belong in a laboratory, but seem very useful for bringing, dredging, and a host of other kitchen tasks.

@rizzuhjj, if you're talking about what I think you're talking about, try a restaurant supply store. Sort of buckets, but with measurements on the side, in sizes from a pint to several gallons. I think our local restaurant supply place had both round and square ones, and the lids were separate.

Oh, and by the way, does it annoy anyone else that nearly all the glass storage jars out there are round? Square would be a much better use of space, but there are only a few options. The canister set is nice, but I need a whole bunch the same size. I'm collecting some nice ones that local honey comes in, which are sort of like fat mason (or Classico!) jars, but I don't go through that much honey!

Thinking about it, I just realized that almost all the square jars/canisters I've seen are plastic.

RebeccaCT, does your local grocery store sell quart-size Ball canning jars? They are round, but have squared-off sides so they take up less space, and the wide-mouth ones are nice for things that require a spatula to get out. Sara Kate, the Ball jars should be a good substitute for the Martha Stewart ones.

I live in eastern Washington where a lot of people can their own produce, but I have no idea if canning jars are available in the stores in other places. Here you can get them in any grocery store, Wal-Mart, etc.

We recently restocked our pantry and decided on canning jars of a variety of shapes and sizes, unfortunately it's hard to find them outside of canning season. We got lucky as someone had left a stash in a friends basement. Have a look.
I've also found antique stores and estate sales to be a good source of jars, as they just don't seem them as large (or as well) as they used to.

We've started buying these Oxo storage containers for baking supplies:

http://tinyurl.com/4c5jrd
(links to Crate & Barrel)

They're not inexpensive, but they are stackable and air-tight--necessities for avid bakers like us (so many varieties of flour!) here in the desert.

We're buying them just a couple of pieces at a time, and supplementing rice/bean storage with our glass milk jars (as seen on AT!).

RebbecaCT,
I also prefer square jars to maximize all the space. I haven't bought them yet, but here are ones that you can buy individually:

http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?CATID=74062&PRODID=63234

and
http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?CATID=74062&PRODID=66840

i use (and love) ones like this for rice, flour, sugar -- big stuff. i like their squareness and their big mouths.

http://www.ediblenature.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=7281

i have some smaller ones this shape for tea, etc. i think i got some at target and maybe some at c & b, although you can find them at good hardware stores sometimes, too.

i buy most spices in bulk and store them in reused jelly jars and the like. it's not fancy looking (my spices are in a drawer, anyway), but having them in different shaped jars helps me find them quickly, since i know, for instance, that cayenne is in that narrow one with the white cap and fennel seeds are in a fat old olive jar. (i have labels, but still.)

A larger question is where is everyone buying their bulk herbs?

in nyc: sahadi's

in chicago: devon street and/or whole foods