It's a Wonder*Filled Christmas! {Day EIGHT}

It's the EIGHT day of It's a Wonder*Filled Christmas, 

and no I do not have eight-maids-a-milking for you.  

Today I am coming at you with a very kid-friendly,

sweet, simple craft from my dear friend Holly

who blogs over at Heart Break Kids.  

Don't you just love that name?  There is a story behind it,

and you'll have to visit Holly to find out what it is, 

{I promise it's a good one!}

of course after reading about her great project.

Having her here today is special because Holly and I 

are friends in real life.  She has two adorable kiddos, we are lucky

enough to get together at this awesome renowned flea market, and 

she is just simply awesome, oh yes and talented, you'll see!

*~*~*~*~

This is my first time guest posting anywhere, and I honored that Michelle asked me to share a project with you!  If you have stopped by my blog, you know that I am a bit…wordy.  Oh!  Who am I kidding?!?!  I can totally ramble even when I am typing!  I will try to make this post as brief as possible, but if you know me, brief is not my best quality!

All kidding aside, I wanted to share with you this really simple and cute candle that you can make yourself or with your kiddos.

You might already have all of the supplies on hand.  You will need some beans, plastic cups, cooking spray, Elmer's glue, candles, and anything you'd like to use to embellish!  I picked up my beans at Aldi for $2.19.  I already had most of the supplies, but I stopped by the Dollar Tree to see what they had, and I found six "emergency" candles for $1!  What a deal! 

The first thing you need to do is spray your plastic cups.  This will keep the beans from sticking to the cup.  I like to spray the cup, and then wipe it with a paper towel to remove some of the excess oil. 

Next, take a dry cup, and full it almost full with beans.  Be sure not to overfill it, because you need to leave room for the candle.  Dump the dry beans into a bowl.

This next step is a favorite of the short people at my house.  Seriously, they LOVE glue!  Take your glue and squeeze a healthy blob right onto the beans.  Go crazy! 

The kids like to mix the beans with their fingers.  I prefer to stir them with a fork.  There is no right or wrong way to do this.  Once the beans are well coated with glue, scoop them into an oiled cup.  Take your candle and push it down into the cup of beans, being sure to really pack the beans in tight. 

I am going to pause for a moment and share a little tip with you.  When I first started making these candles about three or four years ago, I really wanted to make candles that where all different heights.  I found a great box of candles at Target, assorted heights, but they were way more expensive than the box of candles that were all the same height!  I stood there for awhile trying to decide if it was worth the extra money for the box of varied candles, when I realized, "It's just a candle.  It's not steel!  Just buy the same size candles and cut them to size!"  (I have never claimed to be the smartest girl in blogland!) Anyhow, I just snap off a section of the very-easy-to-break wax and I instantly have candles that are of various heights!

The candles will take a few hours to dry, or possibly overnight if you let your short people use a lot of glue--as I generally do!  You will know when they are dry, because they will easily slide right out of the cup, candle and all.  If you try to pick up your candle, and it starts to slide out, just let it dry a bit longer!  Once it is dry, you can leave it as is or embellish it! 

These candles add such a festive touch!

There are so many ways you could decorate these.  I have made them at Thanksgiving several times, and I used them as table decorations and hostess gifts.

I think we are going to make more of these and give them to our teachers this year.  We might even make some really small ones and include them with the Christmas cookies that we bake for our neighbors!  What do you think you would do with them?  Any great ideas for embellishments?  I'd love to hear from you!

Thanks for having me today, Michelle!  I sure enjoyed it, and I pray all of you get a chance to enjoy the Son today!

*~*~*~*

Here are a few more projects of Holly's I know you'll adore

as much as I do!  

{Craftaholics Anonymous Handmade Gift Exchange Wreath}

She MADE this faux fireplace, amazing right?!

{DIY Faux Fireplace}

Since I don't get to show off many dresses here

in my house of boys, I had to share this, is it not the cutest thing ever?!

Yes her daughter is too...love her!

{Red, White, and Blue Bustle Dress, #1 CSI Project}

Have fun exploring Holly's blog and I'll see you back

here tomorrow friends!  

Remember if you're looking for any projects in 

the It's a Wonder*Filled Christmas Series, they

are all listed at the top right...see 'em?!

Wishing you a festive, beautiful day!  

{michelle}