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I absolutely love the contrast of rustic with pretty, so these concrete tealight candle holders (or containers of any sort!) are the perfect combination! The sky is the limit here, and I’ve chosen to make these tall tealight candle holders which would look gorgeous clustered around a venue as decorations or even given as gifts.

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Gorgeous as a centerpiece and perfect to make as a group activity (such a fun bridal party crafternoon option!), these concrete decorations are easy peasy to make in hundreds of variations – just make sure you’re ready to make a mess!

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What you need:

  • Concrete (I got mine from Bunnings)
  • A bucket (one that you’re happy getting dirty!)
  • A mixing stick (I used a skewer – not recommended! Where have all our mixing sticks gone?! Something sturdy and clean will do the trick)
  • Water
  • A selection of plastic or paper containers in different sizes (play about, you really can use anything! I used large paper cups and margarine and yogurt tubs)
  • Scissors
  • Tealight candles

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Step 1. Mix your concrete in a bucket. The ratio I used was 4:1, so for every four cups of dry concrete added, I mixed in 1 cup of water.

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Step 2. Pour the mixed concrete into your moulds (I put down some paper because I am a very messy pour-er!) I used paper cups for my tealight holders, and filled them approximately two thirds full*. Make sure you tap them gently on the ground to get out the air bubbles, and if there’s excess water, just pour it off the top.

*If you’re making a planter pot you will need less concrete in your container at this stage (approximately half).

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Step 3. Once you’re happy with how full the container is, wiggle in the tealight candle so that it’s level with the surface of the concrete. The candle might rise up as the concrete dries, so it may be a good idea to weigh the candle down with a pebble or nail polish (just make sure it doesn’t fall in the cement!). I didn’t weigh mine down and I’m still very happy with the result.

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Step 4. Leave to dry overnight. To get the tealight candle out, I removed the wax first with my skewer (handy ol’ skewer!) to give myself some flexibility to pull it out. Be gentle whilst removing the candle (or cup), as the concrete may not have fully set by this stage.

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Step 5. Rip or cut the outer container off, being gentle to wiggle out your new candle holder or pot.

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Step 6. Leave to dry for another 24 hours (the concrete will become much lighter in colour). Pop in some new tealight candles and marvel at your cleverness!

In terms of decoration I love mine plain, however if you wanted to decorate your tealight holders you can easily paint them using masking tape for clean lines and your chosen colour (for example, for matte black use chalk board paint).

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I only used about a quarter of my bag of concrete making these. Once you get the hang of it there’s nothing to stop you keeping on making these holders – and in any variation you like!

Just remember, if you’re wanting to plant a succulent in your pot there is no drainage so you will need to add in some stones before the soil and water sparingly.

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Swirl divider

Ms Chinoiserie Says: So on trend; imagine these massed as a chic table centrepiece – and then as a take home for guest favours!

About Nicola Goring – I’m Nicola, the florist and crafter behind rubyandjoy. I’m a gardening, fabric loving, mint tea drinking, brownie baking, book obsessed maker! I love a good adventure having just moved back from five years in Scotland (with my lovely Scottish husband).