TWO CANDLES FROM ONE

You know when your candle gets down toward the bottom, and it’s looking less than what you would like to display?

Well…There is a frugal AND fun way to save on candles…

I always save my wax and then when I’m ready, I will melt a couple of candles and make one whole new one…

Put your mostly-used candle jars in a pot of water and turn on medium or medium-low…Do not let it boil…

You may want to use old pots, as wax invariably gets in them...

It may take a couple of hours depending on how much wax you have to melt…



You will probably have to add a new wick to the new candle…Wicks and wick holders can be purchased inexpensively at a craft store such as Michaels…

Once the wax is melted in both jars, pour one into the other…Making a complete candle…

Or…

You may use a clean third jar, adding both jars of melted wax to it…

The fun of combinging candles is not only the good feeling it gives you in saving rather than throwing but also the new scent that you have created!

Most recently, I combined a mango and peach for a lovely aroma. You can also do layers, but wait for each one to set before pouring the next layer.



When I was finished, I ended up with a brand new large-sized candle (not pictured) and had enough wax left over to make a small one to set in the kitchen…

It is a light peach color and smells yummy!

One note to watch for is that they tend to settle and funnel…Sometimes I am able to overcome this by pouring in layers and allowing to fully cool before adding the next layer. I haven’t gotten it fool-proof yet, however, so if anyone has any tips, I would be glad to hear them.

I love Salt City candles…This where the wax and jars were from…

As they can be rather spendy, the money savings is wonderful!

As you can see, this candle still needs a bit of cleaning up and the wick trimmed...



The full-sized candle that I made would sell for about $21.95, and the small one would go for around $12.00…So, that is a savings of $34…

Creativity melded with thrift makes for a few hours of satisfaction and fun!

FREEZER FOOD, SEEDLINGS, AND CIRCUS FUN

I have one new item in my Etsy shop, a Spring desk tote. Watch for more Spring pieces to come!







Recently, we had a huge bag of broccoli that would soon go bad if SOMETHING wasn’t done with it. We get the family-sized bags at Costco, and it’s hard to go through them quickly enough.

So…I poured the bag into my cast iron dutch oven that I recently rescued from a second-hand store…I wouldn’t have wanted anyone else to get it!



I added a little water, covered, and steam cooked in my oven. Then, I put it all in my blender and pureed. Next, I cooled the mixture and then put it into containers to freeze. I’ll use it down the road for creamed soups.





Another thing I freeze up are bananas. I used to freeze them in their skins, but my daughter freezes hers without, and I’ve found that they’re a lot easier to work with. I just peal them, cut them in half, and put them in Ziploc bags. Then, voila, I’ve got frozen bananas for my green smoothies!





On the warmer side of things…my little seedlings are doing wonderfully.

There’s something about watching new life emerge that is so gratifying and makes one thankful for what God gave us.







On the fun side of things…the circus came to town!

And…we just thought that we’d better go!

So…all the big kids and the little men went to the Shrine Auditorium for a night of entertainment.

On the way there, we listened to French music…





And made funny faces…





Bring on the clowns!





And the horses…



And the balancing acts…



A fun night for all…







There’s nothing like family!

RECENT CREATIONS

I've been having fun creating...a source of joy to me. My afghan, apron, candles, soaps, and crystal hearts are some of the things that I have been working on.

My newest creations are some hand-made cards that I did this weekend.

They're in my Etsy shop!

MISSON AFGHAN

Elliott wanted an afghan to take on his mission. After several trial-and-error patterns, I decided upon a simple single-crochet pattern in the blue and orange colors that he wanted. It’s still baby sized but will grow! I was able to work on it the last couple of evenings, as I watched a favorite classic of mine, Pride and Prejudice.

CRYSTAL HEARTS

A cute idea that I saw on a website was crystallized hearts. I’m experimenting with these for my Etsy shop.

Using pipe cleaners, or what they now call Chenille strips, you bend them into heart shapes and suspend in a jar of water and Borax for anywhere from a couple of hours to overnight. Once thoroughly dried, they are then sprayed with a clear lacquer finish. These can then be used as ornaments, made into magnets, or strung together.

Never mind the orange yarn (these were just used to hang my hearts), but here is an example of some before they were made into anything. I’ll post some better pictures later on.