Upcycling candle in a jar

DIY happiness and atmospheric decorative candlelight to give as a gift

How often do you need a small gift for a dinner invitation or a thank you for the neighbors? Or a gift made in 5 minutes for someone else we care about? What's better than something handmade that contains care and love? This upcycling idea is perfect as a small homemade gift.

Surely you have cheap candles at home or, like me, you often have leftover candle stubs that are too short for the candlesticks and numerous empty jam jars in the house? Then this idea is just the thing for you: you can reuse both leftover wax and empty screw-top jars and turn them into a pretty gift.

It's very easy to make and requires hardly any materials. I used an empty jar of Glück-Marmelade from Privatmarmeladerie Friedrich Göbber. Of course, you can also use any other empty screw-top jar - I like the additional message of giving "happiness" with the candle, as it is already written on the Glück jam jars.

For this DIY candle in a screw-top jar you need

• Empty jam jars (e.g. from Glück-Marmelade)

• candle wicks

• Old candle remnants for melting

• pot

• clothespins or shashlik skewers for fastening

• parcel string

• Possibly gift tags

As you can see, you probably already have all the utensils at home and, as a practical side effect, you can give something that might otherwise be thrown away (empties and leftover candles) a new lease of life that can bring joy, light (and maybe even happiness).

Step-by-step instructions for the upcycling candle in a jar

• Use a knife to scrape off the writing on the jam jar. I only left the word "Glück" (happiness).

• Melt the leftover wax in a saucepan until the wax is completely liquid. I only used white candle stubs, but colored ones are of course also possible.

• Place the jars on a damp kitchen towel so that they don't crack when they are filled with the hot wax. Position the candle wick in the middle of the jar and attach it to the top, e.g. with a small clothespin on a shashlik skewer (see photo 1).

• Now carefully pour the hot wax into the jars.

• After a while, the wax will cool and solidify. Now you can decorate your DIY candle as you wish. I simply tied a piece of parcel string as a decorative bow around the jar and a matching gift tag made from kraft paper and fabric. You can also use satin bows, ribbon, flowers or anything else you can think of for decoration.

The DIY lantern is ready in no time at all. Perhaps you have an idea of who you would like to give such a lucky candle to... What are you waiting for?

Everyone can use "luck" :-) ... It's not for nothing that we use lucky charms for special occasions, in the car, for exams. We wish each other luck on birthdays, send congratulations and are happy when we have simply been "lucky". Luck seems to be something that comes from outside, that we are blessed with when things go well. But could that only be half the truth? Doesn't luck perhaps also come from within? From our innermost convictions, our trust in the good and in life? This would mean that, in addition to the beneficial, motivating and heartfelt congratulations that we can give to those around us, we can also make a significant contribution to our own happiness. From these considerations, we could derive the motivating insight that happiness is not only dependent on the happiness that is bestowed upon us, but is also shaped by ourselves.

Our DIY candle in a jar is one way to let happiness shine brightly.

If you're looking for more ideas for candlelight in your home, take a look at the following posts on my blog: delicate upcycled lanterns, exquisite lanterns and the revolutionary DIY glass candle holder. These are also simple and decorative upcycling ideas that will bring warm candlelight into your home. You can find all the upcycling ideas here.

I'm delighted if you liked this post. Feel free to share it and leave me a comment or send me your advice on how to improve the result. I look forward to exchanging ideas and seeing photos of your creative lanterns.

A hug and see you soon!