{ DIY Rustic Citronella Candles }

Last week I pinned a super cute bunch of mini- candle terracotta pots and I thought something like that would be perfect out on our deck! The picture I had in mind, was different sized pots ranging from large to small, and making them into my own citronella candles. So, that's exactly what I did :)

Here's what you're going to need:

• terracotta pots ranging in size ( mine were 7,5 & 1.5 inch pots)
• patio/outdoor paint
• sanding block
• dollar store candles or a block of wax from the craft store ( I'll explain later in the post!)
• 6 inch wicks
• wooden skewers or popsicle sticks
• boiling pot and wax pot
• citronella and eucalyptus oil
• magazine or newspaper as working space

Initially, I went to Michaels and priced out the candle wax and supplies. For 4 pounds of wax was $19.99, 6 inch wicks were $3.99 and the wax pot was $16.99. Despite the fact I had never made candles before, I wasn't sure I wanted to put out that money incase it didn't work out. So, I headed home that night empty handed, but determined to find an alternative, and I did! I was talking things over with my husband and he suggested just going to the dollar store and buying a bunch of unscented candles to use for my wax, I would be melting them down anyway! I tell ya, that man is brilliant sometimes ;) The next morning I scooped up 8 unscented candles from the dollar store. I went back to Michaels and bought the patio paint and wicks. I purchased my pots from Andersons (3 for $3.07!), which was cheaper than Michaels! I didn't purchase the wax pot in hopes I would find something less expensive or something I already had at home. I opted for an old, small saucepan we hadn't used in ages. 

It was a beautiful day out, so I took the pots onto the deck and began painting them using a small wedge sponge. The patio paint dries really quickly which made it a breeze to get two good coats on all three pots! I let them dry thoroughly in the sun for a bit and then began roughing them up with a low-grain sanding block. I wanted the rustic, worn feel and I think I accomplished it with little effort!

Now onto the candle making... First, fill your boiling pot and bring the water to a slight boil and reduce heat. Add the wax pot and candles. The dollar store candles came wrapped in plastic and with a sticker on the bottom. Simply remove all the wrapping and you can pull the wick out of the bottom and save for a future candle project! While the wax is melting, prep your pots. For the 5 and 1.5 inch pots, I easily hot glued the wicks onto the bottom of the pots covering the drain hole, no problem! The larger 7 inch pot was a little more difficult. I added a small piece of double layered aluminium foil and hot glued into place. Then I glued the wick on the inside of that. I had a little (big) uh-oh moment, so I highly recommend the foil technique on the bottom of all of your pots for coverage! The wax melts rather quickly, less than 10 minutes. Once the majority of your wax has melted, add 10 drops of citronella oil and 5 drops of eucalyptus oil. I rested my pots on magazines incase of any drips or spills. Grab your wooden skewer or popsicle stick and rest your wick on it, and carefully pour your wax in. This can be rather messy without a spouted pot, but I made do! Center your wick and keep it remaining on the skewer until completely dry. Finish for the remaining pots. 

I allowed mine about 5-6 hours of drying time. Trim wicks and enjoy!! We tested them out on the front porch this evening and I love them; and they smell sooo much better than the store bought citronella candles!! This is definitely a project I'll be doing again :)

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