14 Days of Love- Wood Burned Heart Tree Candle Holders

Hello there! Welcome to part two of today, also know as day thirteen of my 14 Days of Love special. I am going to show you how to make these sweet personalized wood candle holders. I had seen some birch tree trunk candle holders when I was shopping around the holidays and thought they were just adorable. I thought they would be fantastic for Valentine’s Day etched with your sweethearts initials or hearts. I had tried carving them with a dremmel bit, but I found that the wood burning too I have really shows up and pops much better. These whip up really pretty fast. The main thing is finding a nice thick branch or fallen tree trunk that is dry enough to use.

Here’s What You Need:

*Tree Branch or Trunk

*Saw (my husband used his mitre saw in my pictures, this was slightly dangerous as pieces chipped off and flew across the shop. I would suggest a nice handsaw, or if you are really careful I guess you could use a reciprocating saw or chainsaw.)

*Drill and paddlebit or a drill press and forsner bit(The bits need to be slightly bigger than the tea lights)

*Tea Light Candles

*Wood Burning Tool

Instructions:

Once you have found the perfect branch or tree trunk for your candle holders you are ready to cut them. I cut mine at various lengths. Mark with a pencil and then carefully saw them into sections. Try to get the bottoms and tops as straight as possible so they will sit nice and flat. Now either with a drill with a paddlebit, or a drill press with a forsner bit, drill into the center of the top of each tree piece. Drill deep enough to cover your tea light. Mine was a little less than an inch deep. Now you are ready to decorate. Draw your design onto the tree piece where you want to use the burner. Heat up your burner, and when it is nice and hot you are ready to go. Be careful as these get really really hot. I accidentally brushed my thumb up against it too high and got a little burn. If you have a vice you can insert your branch into it to better help you hold your tree piece, but it is not necessary. Carefully trace your design with the tool, burning the design nice and thick as you go. Once you are done burning your design into your tree pieces, insert your tea lights in the holes in the top. Enjoy!

I really love how these turned out! They will be a really adorable centerpiece on my Valentine’s table this year. This is a pretty sweet way to customize a gift for your favorite valentine or your bestie! They would be really cute on a mantle too. I hope I have inspired some of you to give this DIY a try. They are so fun to make! Be sure to tune in tomorrow for my final Valentine’s Day DIY! Until then….

Happy Crafting!

Like my little vintage spool necklaces? Want to win one? I am going to be giving away one of these sweet little accessories this week in honor of Valentine’s Day. All you have to do to enter is follow my blog and then tell me in the comments below. To gain additional entries you can follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter. I will be announcing the winner next Monday the 18th.  Have a wonderful week!