This is day 8 in a 12 day series of handmade Christmas tutorials. For an overview of the all 12 days, click here. For all the great projects from 2012, click here.
Don’t you just love candles! I love them so much I light them year round. My husband comes home from work in the middle of the summer when it is 95 degrees outside, and goes around the house blowing out all my candles…and I follow right behind him relighting them all.. I always buy candles that have a fragrance to match the season. Year round, I just cannot get enough of them. Well you can imagine my delight when I learned to paint and monogram candles. These lovelies make beautiful gifts: birthdays, baby showers, Christmas, weddings, etc.. Here is what you are going to need:
A candle (my current favorite is this brand from Bed, Bath and Beyond). Candle manufactures come and go, as soon as I fall in love with one they will stop making it. Try out a few and see what works best for you. There are lots of great, affordable candles out there.
Next, paint on a very thin coat of the Glass and Tile Medium over the monogram on the candle as shown below. This coat will dry slightly “milky” so be sure to use a thin coat. Allow about 15 or 20 minutes to dry.
Using your thin paint brush, paint over your carved letter with black paint. Keep your hand as steady as you can, and paint the letter to look as much like the letter you printed off the computer as possible.
Once you are satisfied, allow the paint to dry for at least 30 minutes before wrapping the candle. These candles look lovely wrapped in clear plastic cellophane wrap, tied up with festive ribbon. I keep lots of ribbon on hand, by simply changing the ribbon it becomes a great, unique gift for lots of different occasions.
Click here to hear all about the square dance I went to this weekend!
Ooooh, aahhhhhh, thanks for a GREAT idea!
Suzanne
What a fabulous idea. Now if my hand is just that steady I might get some done. Thanks for the tutorial. Hugs, Marty
Fantastic!!!
I like this idea and my mind started thinking about things you coudl do. I had one question…why do you use the tile & glass medium for the candle? Is it to make the candle surface ready to paint on and adhere? Just curious. Thanks for the simple and good tutorial.
Very elegant. These would make great hostess gifts!
And in the same vein of the beginning of your post…no, I can't believe it is November, I'm not even sure where September went…nor can I believe I am 55, an empty-nester, a granny….
Thank you for sharing this – it's so pretty and such a great gift idea!
loving this chic and affordable gift idea!
L.O.V.E. IT!!!
Love this idea – thanks so much for the tutorial!
That is GREAT!! These things cost a small fortune in the little boutiques in my town! And as the wife of a graphic designer, I am picky about the fonts! 😉 Love it! Thanks!
Fantastic idea – so simple, but with the wrapping, a lovely gift!
Cate
http://www.momentsofwhimsy.wordpress.com
i won one of these off her blog and it was so nice! it is a great idea.
I love this idea!! I love candles too and definatly want to make some to give away and decorate my home with. Thanks!
What a cute idea! I am definitely going to give this (and the coasters) a try!
just found your blog…love this idea! Can't wait to read more…the "homeschooling" issue is something that keeps popping up for me…so I can't wait to read all about your journey!
OH this is great!! Thank you!! xoxo
I am going to try this!
Great idea. I can't wait to give it a try!
God's blessings, Sarah 😀
Lovely!! This is a great gift idea. 🙂
Just found your blog. Very creative and lots of great ideas! What a great family you have.
I LOVE this one!!!
Fabulous! I am going to be making some serious crafty gifts this year! These are great!
ah! you are a genius!
Oh my, candles AND monograms. I. am. in. love. Thanks for sharing the technique!
Love it! I think I can actually do this one!
Ohh! I am so glad I came here from Itssoverycheri! I love the painted candle idea! Thanks for sharing!
Oooh that candle is beautiful! I spelled out FALL in candles using the same technique but I hadn't thought of adding a monogram and giving it as a gift! Thanks for the great idea!
Thank you more ideas of new and exciting
I myself had learned and I wish you luck and success
I’m a candleholic so this really speaks to me! Thank you so much for sharing…now to see how steady my hand is. 🙂
Beautiful! I love your process and adding the lettering to the candle is detail that pulls it all together.
This is such an awesome gift! Such a big impact for not much time or money! Definitely going to try this. 🙂 TFS!
This is such an awesome gift! Such a big impact for not much time or money! Definitely going to try this. 🙂 TFS!
What font is that “A”?
I couldn’t find Glass and Tile. I tried Walmart, Michael’s and Hobby Lobby. So I bought something called “Sealer.” It didn’t work and the paint didn’t adhere to the candle well and it doesn’t look good at all. I used acrylic paint but it’s glossy. So what went wrong? The sealer or the paint? And where can I find the Glass and Tile?
Misti, the font looks a lot like Edwardian Script but it seems to be a little fancier.
you can order the glass and tile medium at amazon at this link…
http://www.amazon.com/Folk-Art-869-2-Ounce-Medium/dp/B001945IH6
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I think this wonderful!! I always love to make simple, and handmade gifts too.
I love this tutorial! I was wondering can you use any stencil on the candles, my sister loves fairies and I would love to do a silhouette of one for her. I was wondering if there would be any issues if it was larger than a letter on the candle and would the effect be the same. Thanks so much for this craft. I will use it forever.
Jennette
These would make great handmade gifts. The candles are lovely. Thanks for the tutorial.
I came across this on Pinterest and am going to try using it to make a unity candle for my upcoming wedding. Thanks for the tutorial!
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