Supplies:
Several empty paper towel rolls
Several empty toilet paper rolls
Hot Glue
Hot Glue Gun
Craft sticks (tongue depressors)
Pruning sheers
Scissors
Exacto knife
Black semi-gloss Spray paint
Battery-operated tea lights
Colored charger (decorative plate)
I don't have specific measurements. I used my materials to dictate what was needed. I suggest you have all your materials on hand because it is helpful to uses pieces from the "finish" step to measure for these first steps.
First choose a full length paper towel roll. Guesstimate the width of the roll (outside edge to outside edge). Cut-to-fit a craft stick. Slice slits in the paper towel roll just far enough down the tube to hide the plastic body of your tea-lights. Slide the craft stick into the slits and secure on the outside with a bit of hot glue. The craft stick will support your tea-lights. Don't place any glue on the inside of the tube or your tea-lights will sit crooked.
Choose another paper towel roll and trim it shorter than the first. Repeat the steps for inserting the craft stick. Then glue the second tube to the first.
Repeating all the steps, shortening your paper tubes each time and working around the piece, create a cluster of candles. My cluster has 14 tubes total.
Next comes the glue layering. You will need an entire bag of glue sticks for this part. Your finger will get sore from pulling the glue gun trigger, and it will take a long time.
Start by layering the glue around the top. Imagine what a candle looks like after it has burned down. Try and recreate the dripping wax. You will need to make several passes with the hot glue, allowing for cooling/drying time in between each pass. If you try to layer it up too fast it will a shapeless blob. If you let it cool and add another "dribble" layer it will look like individual trails of melted wax.
Once every tube has melted trails of wax and looks the way you want it, you'll need to set up for spray painting.
Spray the entire project with black semi-gloss spray paint. Make sure to cover all edges and angles so none of the cardboard shows. I had to make two passes at this to be sure it was covered. Careful not to linger too long over one spot or paint too heavily. Dripping spray paint will not look like dripping wax, you don't want the paint so heavy it too starts to run down the sides.
Allow to dry for the recommended time, both between coats and as a final finish time.
Display your new creation on your colored decorative plate and add in the battery tea-lights.
By using a semi-gloss paint on the project it will reflect the light of the candles and give it a more "waxy" appearance. When I first shared my project picture with friends they asked how I kept the paint-soaked cardboard from igniting...it looks that real.
