CEMENT CANDLE HOLDER

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After making so many electronics and cardboard projects, last week I started to play with cement .I had so much fun by experimenting with cement and loved the result so much.In this instructables I will share the procedure to make a beautiful and charming candle holder for your home decoration.

You can use some plastic containers to make the mold/mould.I used a coke bottle and cracked salt container seats inside my garbage bin.

Step 1: MATERIAL AND TOOLS

MATERIALS :

1.Cement

2. Water

3. Plastic coke bottle

4. Small Container / Salt Container

5.Container to prepare concrete (3nos for Water,Cement and Concrete)

6. Petroleum Jelly or oil

7. Spoon

8. Rubber Gloves

9. Small stones

10.Sand Paper and Tissue Paper

TOOLS :

1. Scissors

2. Box Cutter/Paper Cutter/Hobby Knife

Step 2: PREPARE THE MOLD

First Cut a small portion in the bottom portion of the plastic coke bottle by box cutter

Then Insert the Scissor at the above cut portion and continue until the entire bottle is complete.complete. Don't worry if the cutting is not uniform ,it will not harm anything.

Step 3: MIX WATER AND CEMENT

Now a days Concrete mix is readily available in the market but I tried at my home to have a fun.

Take 6 to 8 teaspoons of cement powder in a container. Add water gradually and stir it continuously until a thick paste is formed.During preparation there may be chances of adding more water which make the mixture very thin.In that case add some dry cement to make it thick.If you make the mixture very thin then it takes more time to dry but very thick mixture also not good as it is not perfectly settle inside the mold.

Safety : Wear hand gloves during the work.

Step 4: APPLY PETROLEUM JELLY

Use some pebbles or small rocks to weigh your inside plastic mold down, because it tends to rise up out of the cement.I have used colored stones but it is not mandatory you can use normal stones or coins instead of it.The stones inside the container also helps to seat firmly at center.

Apply petroleum jelly or oil on the outer surface of the container.It does help ease your container away from the cement when you pop it out of the mold.

Step 5: FILL THE MOLD WITH CONCRETE

Clean and dry your plastic mold and apply a thin coat of petroleum jelly or oil inside of your plastic mold.

Pour the cement lequid into the mold. Vibrate the mold slowly. Vibrating removes the bubbles from the mixture and makes the candle holder stronger and less likely to break.

Don't fill the mold entirely, leave at least 1 cm from the top otherwise the cement mixture will overflow when you place the inner container.

Place the inner container at the center .

Leave it for 24 to 36 hours to dry.

Note : Your plastic storage containers are completely reusable after this project.Once the cement dries,

it becomes difficult to get off the sides of the container, so clean the container with water right away.

Step 6: ADD MORE STRENGTH

After 24 to 36 hours of curing, place it inside the water for 4 to 5 hrs.It will give more strength to the candle holder.

Step 7: REMOVE THE MOULD

After treating the concrete with water, now it is time to remove the mold.

Remove the inner container carefully.The petroleum jelly or oil is used for easy removal of the container from the cement.

Tear off the plastic by using the box cutter or hobby knife.

Step 8: SMOOTH OUT BY SAND PAPER

After removal of the plastic and the inner container there are some uneven place exist on the surface.

Take the fine sand paper and gently rub away on the surface and sides.

Clean the cement dust by using tissue paper.

Step 9: READY TO USE

Now the candle holder is ready for use.

Place the candle inside the candle holder.

Light the candles and enjoy

Thanks for reading my instructables.

Comments

[LanQ]

this is what we are making for concrete

[LanQ]

Great to hear that .
I am whitney from one concrete customized household products factory
nice to talk more .

[Patricia Shepherd]

Thanks for posting. Easy to follow instructions and pictures help.

[kevanchristian]

awsome and creative!

[opengreenenergy]

thank you :)

[ms match]

even tho you are only using a very small amount of cement mix I had to do all the mixing outside as the powdery fumes made my nose itch and eyes water

[Penolopy Bulnick]

This is really cute! I don't know much about concrete, can you put water in the candle holder or will it seep into the concrete?

[ms match]

he is not using concrete mix, just cement mix

[opengreenenergy]

Thank you :)

Yes it will seep after a long time.You can apply a coat of plastic paint to prevent any seepage.Good idea If we add water then the light also glitter.

[jmwells]

The concrete WILL absorb water. Alight spray of lacquer, or poly will seal it. They also make a concrete sealer, but for this small application it wouldn't be cost effective. Adding a bit of fiberglass insulation to the concert will make it much stronger.

[ms match]

he is not using concrete, just cement

[samalert]

I am really not sure about fibreglass in here (India) its not a very easy find.

[jmwells]

Inside the walls of old houses, appliances, under floor mats of old cars. You wouldn't need much.

[opengreenenergy]

Thanks for your suggestion.

[Battlespeed]

Nicely done! I take it that you're using cement and not concrete, although people get them mixed up. (Cement is one component of concrete - basically the binder for the aggregate such as sand.) If you're using cement, you might want to change "concrete" to "cement" in your tutorial as it does confuse people who know the difference as to which one you are using.

Also, incidentally, there are pigments that can be added during mixing to achieve a variety of different colors.

[opengreenenergy]

thanks for point out the difference..

[kludge77]

Very clever!

[opengreenenergy]

:) :)

[Danger is my middle name]

Very cute! I love how the shape of the holder looks with the pretty flower candle!

[opengreenenergy]

Thanks :)