How Fleetwood mum and daughter's joyful jars are catching on

Karen Nicholson, 57, is the creator of Jars of Joy, a social media-led phenomenon which has attracted huge interest and even appears in a new, bestselling book.

The basic idea is that if people can get a glass jar, decorate it and fill it with items that make them happy and bring back fond memories, it can literally transform their mood and give them a sense of wellbeing and joy.

Since this simple idea took hold in the midst of lockdown last year, Jars of Joy has really taken off, with the Facebook group alone now having more than a thousand members, and Karen says her mission is to help create a million joyful jars across the world.

Even the BBC has come calling to speak to them.

The Facebook site often carries live streams in which Karen is joined by her mum, 88 year old Margaret Curphey, who delights followers by breaking into song.

It has also led to the pair being invited by housing group Regenda into the Lighthouse View apartments building in Fleetwood to lead jar-making sessions for residents, with Margaret delighting them with her singing.

There was also a lantern-making workshop for youngsters.

Karen, of Ullswater Avenue, Fleetwood, is a married grandmother and a retired nurse who spent 36 years working in the NHS and says the benefits of mental wellbeing and joy are more vital than ever.

She said: "These periods of lockdown over the last two years have been really hard on people and caused a lot of isolation.

"The idea is that when you take out your jars of joy, you're anchoring yourself to a happy place and times that brought you genuine joy.

"It's amazing that the mind automatically reacts to these things so that you experience some of the same feeling you had at the time you got them."

Karen says that around half of the followers on Facebook alone have made their own jars, although she says Jars of Joy is not about running a craft session.

Mostly it is about bringing people together and promoting simple joyous feelings.

She has herb own jar, designed to resemble a honey part and filled with joyous odds and ends - photos of her grandchildren, a ticket from a Take That concert she particularly enjoyed, and other cherished keepsakes.

The inspiration came last year when Karen was at a low ebb because she couldn't see her son 30 year old son Daniel and her two granddaughters, Luciel, aged seven, and five year old Lola, who live in southern China.

She said:"I was feeling really low but when I went into the garage I came across a couple of sweet jars from my son's wedding and I felt an amazing sense of joy, as I remembered the day and how everyone felt.

"I thought it was amazing that something as basic as a jar could make such a difference to my mood - and then it set me thinking."

Karen is now looking to create a business from Jars of Joy and has joined forces with 21 other women to contribute to an inspirational book, Step Aside and Rise, which outlines how they made their ideas a reality.

She added: "Things have come a long way since I went into the garage last year!"

The Facebook site can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/278367259900353