Like any gal, I’m a fan of candle-lit dinners. Stricking a match on two tapered candles at our dining room table can easily turn a normal meal into a special one, and we are all about making cheap meals at home seem like a date night out in this economy. We always have a little collection of them acting as a centerpiece at our kitchen table, but they were recently upgraded to the two lovely brass ones seen below – They came from my parents’ house after mom read my “Love of brass” post (seen here).
Heralding from one of my family’s top vacation spots, Colonial Williamsburg, these lovely candle holders elevate the entire look of the space. Even though they are a taaaaaaad traditional for our tastes, I think the rest of the vintage-mod room (plate wall, modern table and rug) balance them out.
But we had one small problem…
One of the tapered candle sticks I squeezed into the new brass holder just wouldn’t stand upright. When we were growing up, I remember my mom used to remedy this issue with a wad of plastic wrap twisted around the very base of the candle. It seemed to work for her, but I’ve never been able to get it just so. Instead, I devised my own little trick.
The only supply required for this project is a roll of masking tape – I think I used a fairly thin roll, maybe ½ an inch thick.
To begin, you stick the end of the tape to the bottom of the candle stick and get to wrapping. Once it’s started, you can pretty much stick your hand through the roll and wheel it quickly around and around the candle stick – The tape will unwind from the spool while simultaneously winding right onto the candle.
After you’ve gotten it to the right thickness, break the tape – You might need to play around with it based on how much wiggle room you have within the candle holder. Below you’ll see the bit of extra width added to the candle stick from the tape. I actually ended up putting too much on and the candle wouldn’t go into the new brass holder at all…But I just unwound a few lengths until it fit snugly.
No more lean! I suppose, more than a looks thing, a leaning/loose candle could also pose a fire hazard – So I guess I killed two birds with one stone.
Oh, and in case you were wondering, you won’t have to worry about seeing the tape as long as you use one with a thin width. The candle with the wrapping on it is the one to the right in the photo below – No tape to be seen, even from an aerial view!
I think this calls for a fancy date night candle-lit dinner at home! Anyone have a good recipe to try out? Send us some links!!
Before I leave you…I was able to snap this quick photo of Rocky the dog who was keeping me company during my candle project. Isn’t he a doll??
Hope you have a great Wednesday!!
