TALL CANDLE HOLDER

A traditional holder that can be crafted without the use of a kiln

You will need:

Air-drying clay

Rolling pin

Craft knife

Ruler, paper, pencil and scissors Water

White acrylic paint

Clear matte varnish, optional (we used Mod Podge)

1 Roll out your air-drying clay so it’s around 5mm thick. Next, draw a circle on your paper (9cm diameter – you can use a mug or tin to draw around if you don’t have a compass). Then draw a 12 x 1.5cm and a

30 x 1.5cm strip and cut out. Place your templates on top of your clay and cut around them with your craft knife. Cut two of the 12cm strips. If your clay is quite wet, leave it to dry out for around 30 mins.

2 Next, score the outside edge of your circle of clay with a craft knife and add a fingertip of water. Wrap the longest of your clay strips around the outside edge and press firmly against the sides. Next, score across the join and smooth together with your fingertips.

3 Take one of your smaller strips and in the middle of the clay base create a smaller circle with the strip (make sure this is bigger than the base of your candle as the clay will shrink as it dries). Once you have made a ring with the strip of clay, score the bottom, add a fingertip of water and press the edge of the strip down gently to attach in the middle of the base.

4 Take your final strip of clay and lay it across the base of the circle – from the central ring to the inside edge of the outer strip of clay. Loop the strip over your finger and, using the same method as before, secure it to the outside edge. Allow the clay to dry for around 24-48 hours.

5 Once dry, paint your holder with acrylic paint. Then, when completely dry, cover with a layer of matte varnish for a protective finish.

MAKER’S NOTE: You can paint these candle holders whatever colour you fancy, or try adding extra features such as words or patterns.