Funky Junk Interiors

I really love the look of candles. I love how they flicker and make everything soooo cozy.

However, I rarely burn them these days. I guess the resistance stems back from when my son was young. A flickering flame was just a dangerous thing back then.

And now with jumping cats, I’m still leery. Probably because I don’t trust myself to remember to blow them out if I leave the room or whatnot…

So… I set about creating the look without the worry, using my fav material… reclaimed wood.

And battery operated votives!

Faux candles are perfect for areas where you are OK to forget about them, such as an entry, bedroom or even bathroom.

These rustic wood Christmas candles with a snowflake shelf are so fun and easy to make! And the sky’s the limit… you choose the kind of wood and look you want.

While these are not my own ‘invention’, these are my own twist…  the more rustic, the better!

I used:

(This post contains some affiliate links)

square wood chunks

1.5″ battery operated tealights

hammer drill (that opens up wide for larger bit sizes) – read up on it in this good article HERE

1.5″ forstner bit (best to measure your chosen candles first)

plank of wood for the tray

2 cupboard door handles

evergreen branches – faux or real

twine

white paint – I used Fusion’s Casement
(find a local Fusion merchant HERE)

Snowflake stencil – I used Winter Graphics from HERE

1. Cut chosen square posts to desired lengths.

Remember my reclaimed wood snowmen? This wood is from the same square posts. Any square shape will do, and you can of course pick brand new or reclaimed chippy wood. It’s all about what look you desire.

I’d love to make a set with new painted wood just to see what I would come up with… oooooo…. buffalo check…

2. Drill holes into the tops of the posts to fit the chosen tealights, using a 1.5″ forstner bit.

I had to laugh. I wanted this project however I needed to buy the drill bit to make it work.

A $28.99 (in Canada) bit for free candles… (THIS Amazon link shows 18.41 US)

But… I’m sure I’ll be making these over and over in various ways so it’s just more ammunition for my tool arsenal, right?!

But of COURSE!

So maybe just snoop through your stash to ensure you don’t already have something that may work.

This was my first rodeo at using this bit. And I will say, it likes to grab hold of the wood unexpectedly at times while drilling.

So it payed to go slow until the bit got a good grab of the wood, then I used slight pressure and gently rocked the bit, which helped enlarge the hole a little to ensure the 1.5″ candles would fit.

2. Paint the cut / drilled areas to hide the fresh cuts.

I roughly touched up the cut tops and drilled holes with Fusion’s Casement so they would blend in moreso with the chippy sides.

So before these candles are prettied all up, let’s make an easy tray for them…

3. Cut a plank of wood to desired length, stencil if desired, and attach two cupboard door handles on each end.

I used Fusion’s Casement to stencil on random white snowflakes.

Stencil is “Winter Graphics” from Funky Junk’s Old Sign Stencils HERE

To fancy up the candles, I tied various twine and rope around them, added some evergreen branches, and called it done!

If I had faux snow, I would have added it to the tops of the candles to hide the fact that they are plastic votives.

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Above is a 2 minute video of the process so you can see how the drilling was done.

Music: Adventure by www.bensound.com

Aren’t they adorable?

I think they look cute on that compact tray!

Or is the tray a large coaster for serving hot cocoa or coffee?!

I’ll let you decide…

All I know is, I have some safe, cute rustic candles that have been moving all over my house! And the hardest part is where to leave them be… they seem to really like being everywhere.

Tip #2: Best make more than 3…

Think you’ll try some? How would you make yours?

Click HERE for the summarized version on my patio. Very cute!

Some of my fav past candle projects:

Firewood candle centrepiece

Quirky branch candles

Stacked rusty gear Christmas tree votive

Visit all candle posts HERE