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Butterfly Candle Holders
by Rachel Paxton
Butterfly candle holders are easy to make and a
great gift idea. The materials are very inexpensive, and you can use your
imagination for a variety of designs. To get started, you will need:
Materials:
You can buy whatever glass candle holders you
like (or use some you already have laying around). I bought mine at
Walmart for about $0.59. You could also find them at thrift stores or yard
sales.
I chose butterflies for my design, but you could
choose whatever design you'd like--maybe keeping in mind the tastes of the
person you're making them for. You can cut out pictures from anywhere,
including calendars, greeting cards, magazines. Thin paper decoupages
best.
After you have some pictures in mind, use cuticle
scissors (the kind you cut your fingernails with) to cut out the pictures. These
scissors work best on small pictures and cut rounder corners than regular
scissors. If you're not going to use the pictures right away, store them
in ziploc bags.
You can buy decoupage at any craft store.
It is normally found with the glue. It allows you to permanently affix a
picture to another object, giving the object an overall glossy effect. Make sure
the glass you're working with is clean. Tear a piece of tissue paper into
small (approx. 1 inch) pieces. Using the paint brush, brush some decoupage
on to the back of one of the pieces of tissue paper. Position the tissue
paper on the glass and then brush some more decoupage on top of it.
Continue gluing on pieces of tissue paper, overlapping at the edges, until the
entire candle holder is covered (including the bottom--set the candle holder on
its top to dry). Brush one last coat of decoupage over the entire candle
holder. Use damp paper towel to wipe off any excess decoupage.
After the decoupage has dried for about an hour
(or more), position the butterflies (or other pictures) on top of the tissue
paper. First brush some decoupage on the backs of the pictures and place
them on the glass. Brush another coat of decoupage over the entire glass
and set the candle holder on its top to dry again. After the decoupage has
dried, add 2 or 3 more coats of decoupage after each coat has dried.
That's it! These candle holders are only
limited by your imagination. Use different colors of tissue paper and a
variety of pictures for different themes. You could make these with
holiday themes, like for Christmas or Easter. They also make great
birthday presents, hostess gifts, or party favors. They are very easy to
make and you can make several of them at one time.
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