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Thursday, June 30, 2011

Inspired by... creativity

One of the interesting things about where I live, in the Hill Country of Texas, is that the soil conditions and climate are very similar to France.  The wonderful thing about this fact is that it's perfect for growing...

... lavender!

Every year in June Blanco hosts its annual Lavender Festival, supported by several area lavender farms - it's a wonderfully unique event!


This year I was absolutely wowed by the creativity of the market vendors.  Lot's of great up cycling here, my friends! and all done so beautifully!  One of my favorites was this jar candle:


With all the glass jars we have clinking around the house, I knew I had to make some of these.  And share my first attempt with y'all!

Here's what I did...


You will  need:
  • up cycled glass jar - cleaned and all adhesive removed
  • modge podge
  • applicator
  • wire
  • beads
  • fabric/lace
Since I was using lace, I wanted it to overlap to produce more depth of color.  So I didn't worry about cutting it to fit the jar perfectly, I just made sure it would cover the height of the jar all the way around.  If your using a print fabric, I suggest cutting it to fit the jar snugly.

First, I covered the jar with modge podge, wrapped the lace around it and then applied layers of modge podge (letting them dry in between) to the lace until it was stiff and "laying" the way I wanted it to.


As it turned out, I didn't like the way it looked at the top (remember, I hadn't cut it exact) so I put a bit of lace around the edge to cover it.


Next, it's time for the wire.  I actually ended up using some old galvanized wire I found on my hubby's work bench, rather than the gold wire in the first picture.  I think the galvanized wire gives it more of a "vintage" look.  I "hooked" the wire and wrapped it, tightly, around the top of the jar 3-4 times.  For the handle, I decided a braided design might look nice, and came up with this:


I attached it to the wire I had wrapped around the jar, added a candle and...

Here's the final result...


I'm pleased with how it turned out and am looking forward to trying other fabrics, wires and bead combinations!  You can never have too many candles... right?

There were lot's of other great ideas at the festival and you can bet they'll be showing up in some of my future projects!  I especially want to try my hand at mosaics and would love it hear about any mosaic projects you've done!  (In fact, I think I'll start a pinterest board right now!)

If you're in the area I highly recommend you visit the Lavender Festival next June!

Blessings,



Linking with:

Tidy Mom   Somewhat Simple   Join  us Saturdays at tatertotsandjello.com for the weekend wrap 
 up           party!  
      Confessions Of A Stay At Home Mommy

7 comments:

  1. This is a great tutorial! I'd love it if you linked up to my party on Monday!

    Anna
    www.askannamoseley.com

    Stopping by from TT&J

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  2. Hi there! I found your blog at TT&J and I really love the lace-wrapped jar. It looks so pretty and I can't wait to try some of my own. Thanks for sharing your idea!

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  3. This is so pretty! I really love the handle that you made. So unique! I came over from TT&J. Thanks for sharing

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  4. I would just love to be at the Lavender festival - bet the scent was wonderfully heady. Happy Independence Day !

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  5. How pretty! I would love it if you would link up to my Tuesday Confessional link party going on now: http://www.craftyconfessions.com/2011/07/tuesday-confessional-link-up-2.html. I hope to see you soon!
    ~Macy from Confessions of a SAHM

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  6. No apologies needed June. I enjoyed your visit and reading your loving comments. I like to reduce spam in my inbox hence my email is not visible. I love hearing from my readers, their thoughts and common interests and inspirations... I try my best to comment back and sometimes it takes me time but it is always wonderful to meet new friends.

    I had problems with ink smears while using mod podge as well.. so you are not alone on this. So nowadays, after I print out the graphic... let the image dry and cure for an hour before I use mod podge.

    Also when you are ready to mod podge, always use thin coats and apply it to the surface before placing the image, then place the image and apply a thin coat of mod podge on the image. While doing this step I usually use light strokes moving the brush only in one direction... try not to go back and forth with your brush strokes, that's what causes the ink to smear especially if the image gets too soggy with heavy coats.

    Its better to apply think coats rather than thick coats to prevent the image from getting too wet and move brush only few times in one direction with a gentle hand.

    I print the image on thick card stock paper... thicker the paper less chance of paper getting soaked with Mod Podge and less chance of ink smearing.

    Hope this helps. Good Luck with your next Modge Podge project. Come by and visit anytime. Would love to hear from you.


    I was not able to find your email id, so I'm replying through here.

    Hugs~Poppy

    http://withadashofcolor.blogspot.com/

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  7. I absolutely love lavender and your pictures remind me of Provence so much. We have a lavender festival in our neighboring town as well but it is only for a day and this year we were unable to attend due to too many graduation parties. I wanted to take pictures for my lavender post but this year we could not make it. I am loving this beautiful mason jar candle holder.. it looks enchanting with that lace detail and pearl braiding... loved this inspiring project. Thanks for directing me here... I enjoyed visiting and wanted to thank you for your sweet comment on my decoupaged pots. I'm happily following you now. Have a wonderful evening!~Poppy

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If you read something here that inspired you, I’d love to hear about it. Please know I appreciate every comment! Thanks so much for stopping by! Blessings, June