Customized Candles

Okay, this is so simple that I'm hoping it's not insulting. 

It's not that I think you couldn't come up with this yourself. (You SO could!) 

It's just that maybe it hasn't crossed your mind yet!

*Customized Candles*

I made these candles for my Mom's Jane Austen Birthday Party but you could make them for anything - decoration, anniversary gift, birthday gift, etc.

Here's what you need:

1. Candles (I bought these glass ones for $1 each at the Dollar Tree. I also bought some short pillar candles there for $1 a piece.)

2. Sheet music or card stock paper (for printing words or images of your choice).

3. Scissors

4. Glue gun (I'm sure there are many techniques that would work - like Modge Podge, but a glue gun made this craft easy and quick, with a nice finished product!)

5. Embellishments (ribbon, faux flowers, etc.)

Here's what you do:

1. Gather your sheet music or print your desired images onto card stock paper. (In my examples, I used printed images of Jane Austen book title pages and book covers. I also used sheet music on some of the candles.) 

2. Wrap your sheet music or card stock paper around the candle.

3. Cut and trim the paper to size, leaving a slight overlap, which is helpful in "forgiving" glue "seepage." If you like a more rustic look, you may choose to tear (instead of cut) the top and bottom of your paper for a more "worn" look.

4. Glue one edge of your paper to the glass candle, wrap the paper around the candle and glue the other edge down. (If you're using a pillar candle with no glass, simply wrap your paper around the candle and place glue on the overlapping edges, not on the candle. ;-)

5. Add embellishments if you wish. You could glue or tie a ribbon border to the top, add a faux flower, stamp a number, etc.

That's it!

Maybe you have a houseful of kids home this summer, not a lot of time to craft, but still need a creative outlet. These candles are for you! 

Wouldn't it be sweet to type out a short anniversary note (I'd use American Typewriter font for a vintage feel!) and make a candle for your significant other?! 

Or for your Thanksgiving table, type out some of the things you and your family are thankful for to make several candles to add to your centerpiece?

Let me know if you give these a try! I'd love to hear what you design!

xo