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,
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