Farewell Project: Clothespin Candle Holder by Scrappy Canuck

It's hard to believe that it has been a year since I joined my first design team here at CropChocolate!  I have met so many supportive and amazing ladies through the CC community, and it has be an honour to represent such a great company!  Although my time on the team has come to an end, I look forward to continued sharing and laughing with all of you here at CC, and can't wait to be inspired by the new team.

I have to admit that I really struggled to come up with an idea for my farewell project.  Somehow, it felt like it should be some amazing, "over-the-top" showstopper!  Oh, the pressure!  But one of the really neat things I have learned about myself this last year is that I am really not an "over-the-top" crafter!  In fact, it is simple details that I have come to enjoy sharing with all of you, in the hopes that they will be beautiful enough for you to want to try, but simple enough that even a novice crafter would consider giving it a go!  

So today, I thought I would share with you a project that was inspired by a recent pin I can across on Pinterest in which the crafter used a tuna tin and some clothes pins for a planter.  I added some beautiful Echo Park Times and Seasons paper, some MM Paper Reverie bling, a bunch of Distress Ink and Stain, and changed the purpose of my little creation.  By day, it's a great little container for some of my tools, but by night, it's the perfect candle holder!  Functional and sexy - what's not to love!  Here's how you can create one too!

Materials:

- Short container such as a tuna tin - I actually used a tea canister that I cut down to 1" tall.  Just make sure that the container does not flair out.

- Wooden clothes pins - I needed 19 to complete my project, but the number will depend on the circumference of your container. See the tutorial for information on how to determine how many you will need.

- Paper - this is a great project to use scraps as you will only need thin strips.  I used Echo Park Times and Seasons

- Liquid adhesive

- Optional products for embellishment including Distress Stain in Picket Fence, Distress Ink in Walnut Stain, twine or jute, bling such as the MM Paper Reverie gems and brads (Metallique)

Instructions:

Step 1

If needed, cut your container down to approximately 1" high.

Step 2

Place the clothes pins all the way around your container to determine the number you will need.  Take them off the container, and set the container aside.

Step 3

Optional - I applied two coats of Distress Stain in Picket Fence to the front and back of each pin for a whitewashed effect.

Step 4

Cut strips of paper to match the long side of each of your pins (2 per pin as you will see the inside as well).  These measured 5/8" X 2 6/8" for my project, allowing a border around each side so the Picket Fence Stain could be seen. 

Step 5

Making sure that the Distress Stain is dry, use a liquid adhesive to apply the paper strips onto your pins.

Step 6

Cut a 1 1/4" strip of paper that is long enough to cover the circumference of your container.  Use a liquid adhesive to apply to your container.

Step 7 (insert "Clothespin 7")

Use one of your pins to clamp the overlap of your paper closed until it has had time to dry.  

Step 8

Apply the rest of your clothes pins and embellish as desired!

Thank-you to CropChocolate for giving me the opportunity to craft with and for you this last year!  I hope you will continue to stop by http://scrappycanuck.wordpress.comevery now and again to see what I messes I continue to conjure up in my crafty space!  Take care everyone!