I made a candle holder centerpiece out of an applewood log, I thought it would be a fun project for American Thanksgiving.

While I know that we all want to spend this time with family and others who we maybe haven’t seen as much as we would like this summer, please be safe!

Supplies

Tealights
Log
Drill press or hand drill
Forstner Bit 1 9/16th or 40mm
Hand saw or mitre saw
A bandsaw ( optional )
Handplane

Step 1: Sizing and Dimensionsing

I first started off selecting an Applewood branch that I had pruned a few years ago, the bark had been removed over time so the wood was left aged and a bit cracked. Perfect for a centerpiece.

After roughly cutting the log to size I used a 1 2 3 block to mark the bottom after determining what I wanted to be the top.

I did this to both ends of the log, I then used a string connecting both lines to make sure that the bottom would look nice.

In order for me to cut the bottom off of the log, I needed to build a quick jig which served to safely hold the log still while passing it through the band saw.

Step 2: Flattening the Bottom

The next step was to clean up and flatten the bottom, this was done with a hand plane but would easily be done carefully using a jointer.

Once the log sat good and flat I trimmed the ends of the log making sure to remove any of the screw holes used to hold the log in the jig.

Step 3: Dividing the Log

I measured the total length of the log and needing 6 candles divided by 7.

A trick here if you want to divide something by a specific number of holes drilled is to add one extra.

Needing 6 I divided by 7.

Step 4: Drilling Holes and Making Mistakes

Using a Forstner bit 1 9/16ths or 40mm I drilled my holes approximately 5/8ths or 15mm deep.

Pro Tip, Do not try to redrill a hole while the drill is running! I ended up catching an edge and munching the side.

Now that I have converted my 6 candle holder into a 5 candle holder, we are done!

Step 5: Done!

I choose not to do any sanding because my cross-cut blade leaves a very nice finish and I didn’t want to alter the natural wood but you could always apply a natural finish if you think it might enhance the look.