Glow Lamps

Greetings to everyone!  We are thoroughly enjoying several inches of snow here.  Yesterday they rated the weather at a level two snow condition.  Unfortunately, it did not reach level three, otherwise Dad could have stayed home from work today.  But that's alright- we're still hoping for a blizzard!  In the midst of the lovely snow that we did get, the guys plowed the driveway and Ti and I shoveled out the kitchen windows.  (You have to do that when your house is half underground and you want to see :-)  Earlier Bell and Ti built a tunnel and had lots of fun playing in the snow drifts.  All in all, we are loving this weather, and thanking the Lord for its beauty.  The pure, white snow often makes me think of a song that says, "Lord wash me and I shall be whiter than snow."  How truly grateful I am for the Lord's redemption and cleansing of my soul through Jesus Christ.  Oh, that I might love Him more and live more gratefully to Him.

Well, today I have some pictures to share from our venture at making glow lamps.  We first got the idea off of a candle making DVD.  We had a lot of fun making them, so I thought I would share the process and the finished products with you all.

Making the Glow Lamps

The first thing you'll want to do is start melting down your bees wax. 

We buy ours in a nice sized loaf and just cut off what we need.  In the process of lamp making, Tater came to the rescue with a hatchet and convinced me to never try cutting it again with a knife!  (The hatchet was by far the superior tool :-)

We used a large coffee tin to melt the wax, inside a pan of water.  We just left the wax in the can and covered it with the coffee lid when we were done with the lamps.  Thus our bees wax candle container. 

The next thing you will need are some water balloons.

While your wax is melting, fill enough balloons with cold water to make as many lamps as you want.  (Oh yes, have fun tying the knots :-)

Once your wax is melted and your balloons are full, you're ready to start dipping!  You want your first few dips to be very quick, and don't go all the way up.  After the first few, you can dip your balloon about half to three-quarters of the way.  Try to dip it the same depth the whole time, as this will make it easier to shape when you're done.  Dip the balloon several times, but don't make it too thick, as this will not allow the lamps to 'glow' properly.

Just a little side note.  This is what happens when your first few dips are too deep too fast.  The balloon breaks, and you'll have to remelt your wax :-)  We ended up breaking three balloons in ours.  The wax was a little thin by the time we were doing our last lamp, but it still worked ok.  Once your wax re-hardens you can make a whole in it and drain out the water :-)

Once you have dipped your lamp as thick as you want it, then you'll want to make the base flat to that it will stand properly on its own.

After you set your base, you can decorate!  When you place your flowers, leaves, etc. on, you'll want to put a little wax on the back of each and then stick it on your lamp.  This will help it stay in place better.

Once you have your arrangement in place, you dip your lamp in the wax one more time.  (Or twice if you're using something that sticks out away from the lamp.)

Once more, make sure your base is flat and sturdy.

Now you are ready to get rid of the balloon!  Just pop the balloon with a needle over the sink.  You'll have an empty bowl.

The last step is to fix the top edge of your glow lamp.  Most of them we just smoothed out.  Or you can get creative and flute the edge, like Mom did in the picture below!

To use your glow lamps, you just put a battery operated tea light candle inside!

(We tried using regular tea lights, but they melted the lamps :-)  These make wonderful gifts too!

 That's it!  It's really pretty easy!

The Finished Product

Here are the pictures we took of our finished glow lamps.

 

For the coffee lover!

Not exactly the prettiest one, but unique. 

Britt Ann's

We did two of these, and put them in the bathroom windowsill with an oil lamp between.  It is really quite a beautiful sight.

Even Grandma made one!

This is hers, with a pretty ruffled edge.

(All we did to get the ruffle was tear along the top.)

Bree's

This was Bell's first one.  She chose the arrangement herself.

Mom's

(One of my favorites.)

Another of Bree's

Another of Bell's

Another of Mom's

Even Ti got in on the fun!  This is the glow lamp that he made.

Well, I hope you all enjoy these pictures and that some of your are inspired.  We always like getting new ideas of ways to add special touches to the home.

-Britt Ann-