Trick Your Pumpkin with Michaels

Being a Michael's Maker has been AWESOME.  Honestly, these monthly challenges get me to craft and create things I never would have considered before.

This month they asked us to participate in their Trick Your Pumpkin sweepstakes.  

Crafters just submit their pumpkin creations via Instagram any time between October 4th through October 31 for a chance to win a $250 Michaels gift card and Plaid products each Friday throughout the month of October.  We think you should  enter the sweepstakes by uploading your own projects to Instagram using the hashtags #TrickYourPumpkin and #sweepstakes and tag @MichaelsStores.  Make sure you use the craft pumpkins from Michaels!

Here is our entry for this super fun contest!  ( let me add that these pumpkins are SO COOL )

Supplies:

Krylon Make It Stone Spray Paint

Craft Knife

Craft Pumpkins

Paint Pens

Battery powered pumpkin candle (purchased at Michaels, not on website)

Flower pot

Pencil

Use the flower pot to determine the size of the hole on the top.  Make sure to cut as straight down as possible so you can get the pot inside.  In the other pumpkin, the hole on top can be a random size, whatever will fit the battery candle.  Cut whatever designs into your pumpkin you choose.  (go figure, I chose triangles.)

Now it's time for the spray paint!  This Make It Stone stuff is AWESOME.  The time it takes to dry in between coats is NOT awesome.  It's non-negotiable, though.  I tried, trust me, you have to let it dry.

Next, do THIS while you wait for it to dry!

After the paint is dry and you have sufficiently tortured your pet to death with love, it's time to doodle on your pumpkin.  I quickly decided mine were going to be fancy with gold and silver adornments.  

Now, put your plant in it, the candle or whatever you decided to do and create your fabulous table scape!  Ta-Da!  I also think that these would make pretty wonderful hostess gifts for Thanksgiving.  

Don't forget to tag your project on Instagram using #TrickYourPumpkin #sweepstakes and tagging @MichaelsStores!!

DIY Beeswax Candle & Wood Burned Bowl

Hey all!  This is a project I shared over at Whipperberry in July.  This is by far one of my most favorite projects I've done!

Now, let's make a scented beeswax candle.For the container, I'm using a wooden salad bowl that I bought at an estate sale for 25 cents.  

What you will need:

A wooden bowl

Wood burner

Block of beeswax (got mine at Hobby Lobby)

Wooden wick (Hobby Lobby)

Pasta Pot

Pyrex 4 cup measuring cup (or something similar)

 

Start by customizing your bowl by burning a design into it.  If you don't have a wood burner, you could always paint a design.

 

Next is the hardest part.  You need to guesstimate how much wax you will need to fill your bowl.  You want this to be in smaller chunks so it will melt properly. I just stabbed the block with a knife and plied chunks off of it.  

You need to use a double boiler to get the wax to melt without burning.  I kept my stove set on medium.  I found that if I turned it up higher than that the boiling water would jump into the wax (which, like I discovered, causes issues in the drying process).  

Use a cooking thermometer to monitor the heat of the wax.  It should get up to about 160-165 degrees and never go over 185 degrees.  

 

Once the wax was completely melted, I used some perfume oil I had from The Body Shop to scent the wax.  Essential oils can be used as well.  (If you want a candle that will relax you, use Eucalyptus Essential Oil and burn it while you are taking a bath.. so relaxing!)

 

Now, pour the wax in your container!  You can place the wick in first or after it is poured. It doesn't really matter.  I had some wax leftover, so I used a vintage baking tin for the rest.

The drying part can be quite tricky.  If it dries too fast, you will have cracking (like you can see in the photos of mine below).  Upon doing some research, it is best to place the containers on a cookie cooling stand so that the wax can dry from the bottom up.  This will also help prevent cracking.

Once my wax was completely cooled and hardened, I saw some separation from the side of the bowl and discovered all the water that had jumped into the melting wax had caused the wax to pull away from the container.  The water all dumped out, but it's definitely good to try and avoid this.

Fortunately, after burning for a little while, the crack will fill itself in, so no worries!

 I'm definitely over-the-moon pleased with how this turned out!  This was my first run at making candles and I think I'm hooked.  Would this not be an awesome house-warming gift, too?  

Check out our Link Party Page to see where we link up each week!