Making a Tree Candlestick Holder

Craft: Tree Candlestick Holder

poehere
Bronze Post Medal for All Time! 105 Posts

January 14, 2020

Tree Candlestick Holder - finished recycled bottle tree candle holder Candlesticks are a great way to decorate your home. I have made these candlestick holders as table decorations for parties, given them to friends, and used them around the house to display candles. Here in Tahiti, it is a tradition to visit the gravesite of the loved ones who have passed. We light candles for them to light their way. These candlestick holders are beautiful and they look great when we light the candles. They are fun to make and cost very little.

Total Time: 6 Hours

Yield: 1 Candlestick Holder

Supplies:

2 empty beer bottles
3 empty 1.5 liter Coke bottles
scissors
knife
white acrylic paint
red, green, blue, orange, or yellow acrylic paint
sponge
wood glue
hair dryer
glitter gel

Steps:

Clean the Coke bottles and the beer bottles. Use the white acrylic paint to paint the first layer of paint on the beer bottle. Allow the paint to dry.

Tree Candlestick Holder - beer bottles painted white

Apply the second layer of paint to the bottle. You can use any color paint you wish for the project. I am using red paint on mine because it was for a friend who asked me to make some for her. Allow the paint to dry.

Tree Candlestick Holder - apply color, red used on this one

While the paint is drying take your cleaned Coke bottle and cut off the middle section where the label is. You can use a knife to start this and the scissors to finish cutting around the label of the bottle. We will just use the upper and lower section of the bottle to cut the leaves for the tree.

Tree Candlestick Holder - cutting the Coke bottle next to label with a knife to start

Tree Candlestick Holder - continuing with scissors

Tree Candlestick Holder - repeat to remove the lower part of the bottle below the label

Tree Candlestick Holder - center of the bottle removed

On the top section of the bottle cut up the bottle towards the neck of the bottle. You will see that the bottle has lines on the bottle. Use these lines to cut by.

Tree Candlestick Holder - cut the top of the bottle towards the neck

Now cut around the neck of the bottle to remove all the pieces you have cut.

Tree Candlestick Holder - cut around the neck to remove the pieces

Tree Candlestick Holder - stack of bottle pieces

Do the same for the bottom half of the bottle.

Tree Candlestick Holder - remove the knobby bottom

Tree Candlestick Holder - bottom in two pieces

Tree Candlestick Holder - pieces cut from the bottom of the bottle

Now cut the leaves of your tree. You can make them any shape you wish. I am using an oval shape that is pointed on both ends. For the larger pieces from the bottom half of the bottle, cut them in half and then cut your pieces for the tree you are making.

Tree Candlestick Holder - cutting plastic pieces into leaf shapes

Tree Candlestick Holder - the larger pieces can be cut in half and then shaped

Paint the front and backside of each piece and allow it to dry. I laid mine on wax paper because they dry easier and it makes it easier to remove them when they are dry. I would suggest using some gloves because your hands get a lot of paint on them when you are doing this.

Tree Candlestick Holder - painting the leaf shapes

Tree Candlestick Holder - leaves drying on waxed paper

At one end of the leaf bend it up just a bit and add wood glue to the leaf. You will also need to apply a little wood glue to the bottle. Place the leaf on the bottle and use your hairdryer to start to set the glue. You will start at the bottom of the bottle and work your way up to the neck of the bottle. You can place several leaves on the bottle at a time before using the hairdryer to set the leaves in place.

Tree Candlestick Holder - jar lid with wood glue inside

Tree Candlestick Holder - fold up one tip of each leaf and apply glue

Tree Candlestick Holder - sticking leaf to the bottle working from the bottom

Tree Candlestick Holder - several rows glued in place, beer bottle resting on the bottoms of two liter bottles

When done, you can add glitter gel to the leaves of the bottle. This makes the bottle shine when the candle is lit. Once the glitter gel has dried your candlestick is ready to use.