Thrifty Candle Holder Makeover With A 50 Cent Wreath

This thrift store candle holder and a 50-cent wreath turned into the easiest seasonal decor project.

I bought the candle holder and wreath at the same little thrift/vintage shop, but I didn’t think about putting them together until I was driving home. Don’t you love it when inspiration strikes?

Today is Trashy Treasure Tuesday, so after my project tutorial, be sure to take the tour. 

The hanging candle holder was $5, but I knew it would be a good base for a project. I purchased it at a store in Hopkinsville, KY, near my favorite junk shop.

 

 

 

Once I got the candle holder home, I noticed the wood had a split. I tried white glue and a clamp first, but that didn’t hold. The “wood” turned out to be that fake stuff with a strange texture inside, so I switched to fast-drying Gorilla Glue, and that did the trick.

While the glue was drying, I went on a hunt for candles. The Eucalyptus wreaths and lemon stems came from the same shop as the candle holder.

These little eucalyptus wreaths were only 50 cents each. I bought six because, well, why not? I can see so many uses for them. I’m not sure if they started life as one long garland that someone cut apart, but I liked them right away.

I slipped one of the wreaths inside the candle holder at the base.

It fit perfectly. The leaves just needed to be turned to the top side and fluffed.

That was it. One little 50-cent wreath made the whole candle holder look completely different.

The only thing left to do was to add an LED candle and find a place to display my new decor. I really wanted to hang it, so I added a cup hook to one end of our mantel shelf on the underside.

I have to say, I love it like this, but wait until you see what happened next.

Ta-dah! Instant Fall decor. I’ll share how I managed to fit the pumpkin stack inside the candle holder frame a little later.

I also tried a green candle, but I didn’t like it nearly as much as the LED candle. For one thing, it was too short. For another, who in the world would burn a real candle inside this wooden holder? Maybe it would be fine, but I’m not taking any chances. I’m a worrywart when it comes to burning real candles. LED all the way for me.

The pumpkin stack had come apart last year while I was decorating, and I never glued it back together. That actually turned out great for this project. 

I could slide the large pumpkin (turned sideways) into the candle holder first, then turn the top pumpkins sideways, maneuver them into place, and stick the stem back into the base pumpkin.

I really like the pumpkin display, especially since Fall is almost here. 

It can be displayed in so many ways. The Tom Turkey and Mrs. Turkey are salt and pepper shakers that belonged to my Mother-In-Law. She loved collecting S&P shakers.

That’s what I like best about this piece. I can use greenery and a candle now, pumpkins for fall, ornaments at Christmas, or whatever little seasonal bits I have on hand.

So now I want to know what you would put inside this thrifted candle holder. Would you go with the LED candle, the pumpkins, greenery, ornaments, or something totally different? I’m always open to ideas, so leave me a comment before you head out on the tour.

 

As always, thanks for being here, Kathy