DIY French Vanilla and Coffee Candles

DIY French Vanilla and Coffee Candles

So I was walking through the grocery store to pick up some more cauliflower to make that delicious spicy honey-garlic roasted cauliflower… AGAIN (don’t judge me, it’s insanely good). And as usual, when I go to the grocery store, I had to walk down the coffee aisle to breathe in that wonderful scent of coffee and vanilla. Then I started daydreaming about how awesome coffee and vanilla scented air fresheners would be, but only if they weren’t overpowering or chemical-ly. Then it came to me! I decided to make some candles. I’d never made a candle before, but I’ve burned quite a few so like how hard could it be right? Anyway, I found this super simple DIY and the result is so amazing!
DIY French Vanilla and Coffee CandlesDIY French Vanilla and Coffee CandlesDIY French Vanilla and Coffee CandlesDIY French Vanilla and Coffee CandlesDIY French Vanilla and Coffee Candles

DIY Candles Scented With Coffee and Vanilla Beans

What You Need:

  • Small bowls or glasses. Raid your kitchen to find a pretty bowls or cups.
  • Candle wax. I love chopping up an old unscented candle and reusing the wax. Or you can also buy wax chips at the craft store.
  • Candle wick
  • Coffee beans
  • Vanilla beans, chopped

Directions:

Using a double broiler or a microwave safe bowl, melt the wax. Glue the wick in place at the bottom of the cup or just hold it in place with your hand (at the top, of course). Pour in a small layer of wax and add a layer of coffee beans and vanilla beans. Then fill the rest of the cup with wax. You can stir wax with a chopstick to distribute the bean pieces if needed. Then let the wax harden and trim the wick.

Source: Make Your House Smell Amazing with DIY French Vanilla Candles | Hello Glow

Simple Holiday Decorating Ideas

Christmas Decoration

For the past 15 years, my sisters, their husbands, our children, and our best friends all spend Christmas together. Everyone drives over to my house the night before, put the gifts they’re bringing under the tree, and spend the night talking and laughing until the children wake us up at the crack of dawn. This tradition has resulted in two things: 1.  I’ve gotten quite good at decorating for Christmas with entertaining guests in mind, and 2. My loved ones have gradually fallen out of the habit of decorating their own homes for Christmas at all. So when my best friend asked me to write a post on simple decorating ideas that she could use, I jumped at the opportunity.

Even if you’re not hosting a huge Christmas gathering like I do every year, there are still simple touches that you can add to your home that will put you in the holiday mood leading up to Christmas Day.

Christmas Wreath

1 Wreaths

There are so many options out there for holiday wreaths. A quick run to Home Goods, Target, or even a home improvement store will give you tons of wreaths to choose from. If you’re more of the DIY type, you can check out your local arts and crafts store for ‘naked’ wreaths to dress up on your own. Some arts and crafts stores even offer free tutorials on holiday crafts.

Christmas Centerpiece

2 Christmas Centerpiece

Even if you’re not intending on entertaining guests, a beautifully set table with an awesome centerpiece, will fill you with Christmas cheer. A centerpiece like this one is not only for your dining room/kitchen table. You can place this on a mantel, a side table, at the entryway table, or anywhere around the house to create a festive feel.

For more centerpiece ideas check out this link.

http://cityfarmhouse.com/2012/12/book-page-holiday-banners-monogram.html
Image Credit: CityFarmhouse.com

3 Tabletop Trees and Poinsettia

No need for a ten foot tree if you’re not hosting this year. Local grocery stores have plenty of tabletop trees and potted poinsettia readily available for the holiday season. Some of the trees even come fully trimmed. Be careful with poinsettia and other holiday plants, however, if you have small children and/or pets. Some popular holiday plants can be toxic to your little ones.

Christmas Snow Globe
Image Credit: nathanmac87

4 Candles, Lights, Snow Globes!

Candles on any occasion are a beautiful addition, but candles at Christmas are a must have. The subtle and romantic light of candles bring to mind the nostalgic glow of a fireplace. Snow globes also have a subtle and romantic feel to them. Remember being a kid, shaking those things up, and watching in childlike wonder as the snow swirled around that magical scene? Yeah, so you might want to have a couple of those in your house this year.

These are just a few of the small touches that you can add to your home to bring in a little Christmas spirit. What are some of your favorite decorating ideas? Remember, my best friend is reading this and needs some tried and true ideas!