I’ve had many questions about where to find small bottles for your homemade vanilla.
You want to buy the amber bottles as they will protect your vanilla from sunlight. I recommend either the 4 ounce or the 8 ounce bottles.
Get 4-ounce bottles from Olive Nation here. (Use the code home for a 20% off discount!)
Other sized bottles (8 ounce and 2 ounce) which can be found through Amazon with a little searching.
I, also, love these pretty labels! They are customizable, and come in a variety of designs.
Thank you! I just ordered some!
Laura – are you getting the bottles with the $14 plus shipping rate?? I’m confused at your final calculation for the cost of your vanilla when the bottles themselves end up being almost $2 each? Am I doing something wrong? I’m excited to make this as gifts but the cost doesn’t seem to match up right?
Oh boy, it’s been so long since I ordered, I truly don’t remember what I paid for shipping or how that all worked. When I calculated the cost of vanilla in my other post, I wasn’t adding in the cost of the bottle, I forgot. I’ve asked most of the recipients of my vanilla to give the bottle back to me when they’re done!! Hopefully they’ll remember!
Just out of curiosity, did you end up getting most of your bottles back? I have a batch of vanilla going, and am contemplating how I will give it to my recipients. Thanks!
No, I don’t actually think I got any of the bottles back. But I didn’t ask for them back either. Since I gave it as gifts, I hesitated to ask, although with family, I suppose they surely wouldn’t mind!
Oh that’s funny – I see here that I originally replied that I DID ask for the bottles back. I totally forgot that I’d asked, since no one remembered to give them to me! Or, maybe they’re still using their vanilla?? :)
I went through the website posted (sks-bottle.com) and with shipping mine were $1 a bottle! :)
OOPS! Misread my order deal….I went through http://www.specialtybottle.com
Mine weren’t $1 a bottle at Specialty, I got 15 for $29 shipped, but much better
than the 15 for $50 at Mountain Rose…hopefully they are just as nice!
The best price so far was the specialtybottle.com – I ordered 20 bottles at $.68 each and shipping was $9.78, much better than the 19 and $15 from Mountain Rose and the other sites I checked. Thanks for the heads up.
Do you think blue bottles would work as well as the amber?
I guess so, as long as they keep the light out!
Do the bottles need to be glass or plastic?
Thanks so much I started making mine in June and can’t wait to surprise everyone at Christmas with these!!
Glass is really best!
I purchase my vanilla beans from ebay for a much better price. If you use 6 beans in a 9 oz. jar it only takes 2 mos to be ready.
What were your thoughts on the beans, when they arrived? I’ve seen some on ebay, for a little bit cheaper. How did you like the vanilla? Is this really cheaper than just buying pure vanilla?
I love it. I bought two different kinds of vanilla and both sets were
awesome when they arrived. The vanilla is amazing.
I’m trying to round up used bottles from Goodwill, my mother in laws kitchen etc…lol. But I think I’m gonna order some blue glass 4 oz from Specialty Bottles. Would be so pretty for gifts. And we’re gonna use Everclear instead of Vodka. Let it sit for 6 months then strain, dilute 1/2 & 1/2 with distilled water then bottle.
I am currently making vanilla for my daughters wedding reception gifts for her guests. So excited to see the finished product. This is real vanilla and makes such a difference in your baking! No comparison to what you get at the store. For 300 2oz bottles it will end up being just over one dollar each….WOW!!! That includes the vanilla beans from ebay, bottles from specialty bottles and the vodka.
Another good place to buy bottles for much cheaper is containerandpackaging.com.
If you put the vanilla beans (about 3 or 4) in the individual bottles (split length-wise) and then fill with vodka (or light rum – which I prefer), you can just top off the vodka or rum as you use the vanilla, and one bottle will last for years. Let the vanilla sit about 6 weeks initially, no need to let it sit when you top it off, unless you add a lot of vodka/rum at once. As long as you keep the beans covered, they will not go bad and your vanilla will continue to be wonderful! I’ve been doing this for about 10 years now. I can usually get about 3 or 4 years out of one bottle (and I use it a LOT). You’ll know when you have to add more beans or start over as the scent and color will lessen. This will significantly cut down on the cost of making your vanilla as you won’t need to repeatedly purchase bottles, and it will allow your gift recipients to continue to use the vanilla for much longer. There is really no need to strain the vanilla when you use it. I shake the bottle each time before measuring out. Every now and then a tiny seed comes out, but these are fine – you won’t see or notice them in your finished project. All of my information on vanilla making comes from Steve at Hartley Herbs – he’s the one that sold me my first bottle of “Perpetual Vanilla” many, many years ago at a craft show in Florida.
Wow, Jennifer, that is so cool. What size bottle for 3-4 beans?
I like littler ones for my crowded spice cabinet. 4oz? 8oz?
Dee.
My bottles are small. Probably about 5 oz (since I’m still using Steve’s jars and when I checked the website, that’s the size he uses). I find this a great size for storing in my cabinet and measuring out vanilla, but you could use a smaller size if you’d like. The best indicator of whether you have enough beans in your vanilla is the color and smell. It should smell like vanialla, not alcohol and the color should be a rich brown. If it’s not, add another bean.
Another great option for purchasing bottles: http://www.abundanthealth4u.com/
When comparing, the site I just listed was a few cents more on bottles but less on shipping. I’m thinking the more I order the better it’ll come out to be in the end.
SKS, http://www.sks-bottle.com, has super deals on bulk quantaties but I don’t need so many bottles at this point.
http://www.specialtybottle.com was my second runner up in pricing for what I’m needing.
Thank you very much for your info on vanilla extract making and where to get the supplies. I appreciated the discount code for the beans as well. I just ordered the amber bottles from MRH too. I’ve shared your link on my fb page. https://www.facebook.com/carol.gowin#!/pages/Health-by-Coconut/118415791512376
Thanks again…
Thank you for all the information. I just ordered my beans from Olive Nation and the coupon code still works. I love the idea of giving it has a party favor for Wedding. My son is getting married next year and I think this would be a great idea.
Just found this as a resource to find bottles NEAR YOU, which is important with something so pricey to ship: http://www.thomasnet.com/
I’m having trouble having this site help me find bottles, can you elaborate?
I make homemade vanilla around this time, every year. I bake a lot and I like to get it ready before the baking season. I also like to bottle it and give as gifts for Christmas. Every year, we buy our Vanilla Beans from http://www.beanilla.com – When I buy in bulk, vanilla beans from Beanilla come to about $.50/piece. The best part is they have a large selection of really neat glass bottles to choose from. It is so convenient to buy my beans and bottles from the same company too!
Laura,
I’m comparing bottles now–Have you contemplated or had the dropper lids on the bottles? I’m thinking depending on how much a dropper holds, it’d be great if you could save dirtying a teaspoon if a dropper or 2 is equal to a tsp. Thoughts?
Not a bad idea!
These bottles are crazy expensive with shipping! $1.75 with shipping is as cheap as I can get for around 12 bottles (4 oz.). I can find pure vanilla occasionally on sale for $4.99 for a 2 oz. bottle, so I’m not sure it’s a lot cheaper to make it myself…but I already committed so if anyone hears of a deal on bottles or a local store to find them at, much appreciation!
My daughter made Vanilla for me and it was delicious! I would like to try and make some for family and friends this year. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
How do you strain the vanilla and fill the bottles? Maybe I just don’t have the right equipment, but I can’t see using a big cooking funnel that won’t fit in the mouth of the little bottle!
Here are some instructions on how to finish the vanilla and put it into bottles: https://www.heavenlyhomemakers.com/how-to-finish-your-homemade-vanilla-extract
I found some bottles here, don’t know if it works.
https://xinmeipack.com/product/jyxm21-l/
I just bought (24) 4oz bottles for vanilla. Caps are sold separately and it took me a while (far too long) to decide which to get. I ended up with:
1BR040111 4oz Amber Boston Round 22/400 PK24: $10.69
2PC0221PY 22/400 Black Ph Polycone Cap PK5000: $4.80
I like these caps because they prevent leaks. They sell less expense caps.
I also bought (12) 8oz clear bottles for Krupnikas and perseverated on these caps as well:
1NOR2502GHG 250ml Flint Nordic 28/400 pk12: $17.04 (on sale)
3CPLG0281PW 28/400 Gold Metal Plastisol Lined PK4600: $2.04
I don’t need Plasticol but I think (hope) the gold will look best. They sell a similar bottle with various corks, but it was $5 more for corkable bottles and the Maple Corks were ~$7 (for $12).
Shipping was steeper than I usually tolerate, but the total for the vanilla bottles, $13 for 24(!) plus the sale on the other bottles, well, it was worth it. Total: $44.30.
http://www.burchbottle.com
I bought vanilla beans from slofoodgroup.com.
I love this recipe/description as a complement to Heavenly Homemakers: https://www.daringgourmet.com/make-best-homemade-vanilla-extract/#:~:text=What%20Kind%20of%20Alcohol%20is,it%20has%20a%20neutral%20flavor.
Lastly, this article convinced me to try brandy instead of alcohol. I may also try a small batch of (clear) rum! https://lonegoosebakery.com/best-alcohol-for-vanilla-extract/