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DIY Quick & Easy Citrus Candles
Come Spring we find ourselves eating more and more outside, like for the fiesta party we shared last week. And there's nothing I like best than evening meals in the patio, surrounded by flickering candles to set the mood!
Bonus points if your candles look mega original and smell subtly fruity! ;)
Citronella candles are great and all, but I find the smell a little too powerful at times. So I decided to try making a more natural , less pungent version with real fruit!
These citrus candles are super quick and easy to make, and I bet you already have the ingredients at home. It's the perfect way to re-use fruit peel also!
They're perfect for entertaining any time of year, but particularly cool for a Cinco de Mayo fiesta!
DIY Quick & Easy Citrus Candles with Real Fruit
Materials:
* large votive candles
* citrus fruits: limes, lemons and tangerines
* microwavable bowl
* heat-proof oven gloves
* metal spoon
* scissors
* serrated knife
* optional: citrus essential oil of your choice
Directions:
1) Cut the fruit in half and remove the pulp with a grapefruit knife or small kitchen knife. Use a metal spoon to help you remove as much of the fruit white membranes and pith as possible, keeping the husk or peel intact. At this point, I like to turn the peel inside out and cut away the white pith with scissors, being careful not to damage the peel.
If needed, slice a tiny part off the bottom of each citrus peel to keep it level. place the peel/husks onto a plat surface (baking tray covered with parchment paper works best).
2) Take the wicker out of the votive candles and place it inside the fruit peel. Then place the candle wax into a microwaveable bowl.
3) Melt the wax in the microwave at full power, in 1 minute intervals until fully melted. using heat-proof gloves, very carefully take the melted out of the microwave (it's extremely hot!), and add a few drops of your chosen essential oil.
4) Immediately pour the melted wax into the fruit husks/peel. let the wax set and top with more melted wax if needed to level it out. Let it set, then use as a normal candle!
PS: The larger fruit (lemon and tangerine) came out better, because the peel was thicker and got less affected by the hot wax. The limes browned a little at the edges. So, next time I think we'll freeze the empty lime peel first before pouring the wax to give it a better chance of staying green!
If you try it first, let us know how you get on in the comments?! ;)
Oh my gosh what a great idea!! My favorite part is that they are easy to make. I've tried too many DIYs and failed. Loving this idea, girl, thanks.
ReplyDeleteAshleigh @ teamnevergoingback.com
Yeah, super easy! let me know how it goes?! ;)
DeleteI love these citrus votives! What a fun, creative idea!!
ReplyDeleteBird I love this D.i.y !!! I need to try making it. I think it’s so beautiful as a tablescape too.
ReplyDeleteI'm wanting to do this for Christmas gifts this year! Any advice on how to keep the lemon from going bad?
ReplyDeleteOnce you remove the pulp, the skin takes a long time to go bad. Plus, the candle will be out before that happens :)
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