Inspired by this tutorial, I decided to give some of my tealight candle holders a bit of a make-over this weekend.  So after the swimming club training morning, I gathered up my supplies and set to a some craftiness on a Sunday afternoon. It’s super easy to do (and quite therapeutic!), so if you want to give it a crack you’ll need the following items:

To add silver foil a tea light holder you need these things

  • silver foil – I picked up mine from The Book Warehouse for $3.49 for a pack of 25 sheets.  It’s faux silver foil, but still gives the same sort of effect.
  • shaving brush – I use this for pushing the foil in to the dishes.
  • paint brush – this is used at the last to add a protective layer of glue to the finished surface.
  • glue – a pot of Martha Stewart’s decoupage glue that I’d used on a previous project.
  • glass tea light candle dishes – picked these up for $2 each years ago, a bit bored with them so it’s time to pretty them up!

apply decoupage glue to insides of glass bowl

Step One: If you’ve used your tea light holders previously give them a clean up to get rid of any wax residue.  Then apply a thin layer of glue to the inside of the holder.  Wait for the glue to become tacky (if the glue is too wet still, your foil will slip around and tear even more easily).

putting-silver-foil-in-bowl

Step Two: Using light fingers pick up a piece of the foil – this stuff tears easily.  Ideally a pair of cotton gloves would help stop the foil sticking to your fingers, but I just make sure that my hands are as clean and dry as possible.  Then place your foil.  You’re not going to get it to lay flat and perfect, so seriously don’t waste time trying.  Just get it as close as you can to the bottom.

pushing-silver-foil-down-with-brush

Step Three: Now use your shaving brush (or even better cotton-gloved hands!) to push the silver foil in to the bottom of the bowl.  In the picture on the left you can see how I could only get the foil to rest on the lip of the bowl.  On the right, you can see where the foil has started tearing when I’ve pushed down.  I used the leftover foil from the sides to fill in the gaps and kept tapping it down. This is what it should look like when you are done:

foil-in-the-tea-light-candl

Step Four: Wait for the tea light holders to dry completely before you add a final coat of glue to seal and protect the foil.

admire-the-light

Step Five: Step back and admire your handiwork. Fill with a tea light candle and light!

see, i told you it would be easy

If you have a go at this {diy}, link back here to your post and share your finished product with me – I’d love to see it!

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