Birthday decoration: DIY concrete tube candles

These candles have been sitting in my garage half finished since this post months ago.

I was totally and utterly stumped as to how to create the flame portion.
Do I use tissue paper?  No, it would get wet and sloppy in the moist air.
Do I use wood?  No, it would be too heavy and how would I hold it in place?

Leslie came to my rescue and offered styrofoam as an option!  
BRILLIANT!
Just in time as well as today is Hubby's birthday!

I'll start from step 1:

This is the leftover concrete form tube from the post I did on concrete stools.
It was a long piece, so I had enough to make two substantial candles from it.

Step 1 - paint the tube white.
This one needed a couple of coats because the tube was originally yellow and it had a lot of black print on it.

Step 2 - using painter's tape, wrap a strip around the tube in a downward spiral.  The more evenly you can space the tape, the better.  

Step 3 - paint over the painter's tape sections with a bit more white.  This is going to help minimize any of the colour bleeding through.

 Step 4 - With the painter's tape still on, paint over the entire tube with colour/s of your choice.

Step 5 - once dry, remove the tape and fix any areas that need touch-ups.

This is where I was when I became stumped.  These two tubes sat in my garage like this for months.
It's so frustrating to be able to envision a finished product without knowing exactly how to get to that point.

Enter styrofoam and my amazing friend Leslie who had some just sitting in her garage.

Step 6 - press the tubes into the styrofoam and cut along the indent with an exacto knife.

Step 7 - stuff the discs into the tube ends and then paint

Step 8 - cut out flame shapes with leftover styrofoam and then paint yellow.

To create the wick of the candle I broke a paint stir stick in half and painted it yellow as well.  In hindsight, perhaps it should have been black, but oh well.
No need to cut the stick, a sharp, jagged edge is actually ideal for inserting it into the top of the candle.

Step 9 - glue styrofoam flames to stir sticks and then insert into the candle base.

One is 3 feet tall and the other is about 2 feet tall and they are so cute!

If you want a smaller version of the same thing, use poster tubes, or recycle some mail tubes.

  
Finished just in the nick of time!

Happy Birthday Daddy/Hubby!

Sorry I didn't get you anything - I was too busy making your candles!  (just kidding.... sort of).

Jockey P2P Look of the day
Forgive the selfie - I couldn't find any willing photographers today.

Classic bootcut jean in vintage blue $89 (sizes 2- 24)
Denim jacket $109 (sizes XXS - XL)
Cami from Old Navy and scarf from Dress Barn

Have a great one!
  
 









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