Inspiration sometimes strikes at the most unexpected moments.
| Plain masks in various styles
Specialty feathers, faux butterflies and silk-flower leaves Rhinestones, beads and sequins Hot-glue gun |
While on a trip to the pet store to buy dog food and bird seed, we spied some lovely colored sand in the fish and aquarium department.
We remembered the layered-sand candle holders we had seen in magazines over the years – but had never tried to make – and thought, why not give it a try.
If you need to come up with a quick hostess gift or want to dress up a backyard barbecue table with some custom candles, this week’s column will give you a couple of ideas for your craft clip file.
The layered-sand candle holders shown here are as simple as can be: simply layer different colors of sand into a clear glass votive candle holder and add several tiny tapers.
We found packages of 24 mini taper candles at a party store for less than $5 per package.
You might want to cut the candles to different lengths when using several minis in one holder, but you can also use one larger candle per holder if you wish.
For our second set of candle holders, we blended the sand idea with the art of scherenschnitte (paper cutting) for an even more decorative touch.
Choose a small design to cut, then select the paper you desire. For our samples, we made one plain white cutting and one using metallic origami paper.
With very sharp small scissors (embroidery or uncurved cuticle scissors work best), carefully cut out the design, then apply it to small votive candle holder with decoupage medium.
Add one or two more layers of decoupage medium until the desired effect is achieved and let dry completely.
When the candle holder is dry, fill with either sand or small pebbles (also found at the pet shop with aquarium supplies) and add your choice of candles.
There are lots of books on scherenschnitte, most of which contain an ample supply of designs for copying, but you can also use the old “snowflake” method you used in school – you know, fold paper and make cuts here and there until you have a “snowflake” design.
For our third candle project, we took a pink pillar candle and wrapped it with some handmade paper we ordered online.
We cut a strip of paper with a waved edge, glued it to the candle with quick-dry tacky glue, and finished off with a fanciful dragonfly made from silver paper cords.
Paper cords are available in the scrapbooking section at most craft stores, and come in packages of assorted colors or metallics.
You can also add interest to your paper wrap if you punch holes (using decorative paper punches) or cut designs into the paper (using the scherenschnitte method). In the case of our sample, we decided that the paper was interesting enough, so we just went with the plain wrap and decorative tie.
A number of decorative paper sites are available on the Web. All you need to do is a search using the keywords “decorative papers” or “handmade papers” and you’ll come up with a list to choose from.
And remember…
Although candles are one of the best decorating items ever invented, they can also be dangerous if not supervised. Be sure to keep an eye on them at all times – especially those with decorations – and never leave a burning candle unattended.
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