DIY

How to Re-Wick Candles

How to Re-Wick Candles

Hello World,

I love buying candles, but I dislike how there is always unused wax in the bottom of the containers. In the past, I have melted the wax and used it in a wax warmer, but lately I have instead been re-wicking my candles, so I can light them again. Check out the simple tutorial below:

How to Re-Wick Candles

1. Gather your supplies: a burned down candle, wicks, wick bases, pliers, strong glue (I used e6000), a glass container, and a pot partially filled with water, and an oven mitt.

2. Place your burned down candle in the partially filled pot of water. Allow water to boil and wax to completely melt.

3. Crimp your wick base to your wick threading with pliers. (Use the appropriate thickness of wick, if you use on e that is too thick, you risk the chance of your glass container cracking while the candle is burning).

4. Glue this wick to the base of your glass container. Allow to set.

5. Carefully pour your melted wax into your glass container. Wipe out your old container with a paper towel if you want to repurpose it.

6. Steady your wick if it has shifted crooked. You can tape the tip to a pencil if you are worried it will shift as the wax cools.

7. Optional: I bought soy wax flakes, and partially melted some of them and scooped them on top of my cooled, re-wicked candle, to create a candle that resembled an irish cream drink.

I also recently went thrifting, and picked up a few glass containers for $0.10 each and made some of my own candles with them. Making candles is so much cheaper than paying $20 each for them in the mall!

candles

Happy Crafting!

DIY Cut-Off Tank

muscleteeintro2

Hello World,

I recently went to Kohl’s and saw some cut-off tanks with weaved armholes for $20+. Instead of buying one, I decided to reconstruct a tee I never wear anymore. This project is a quick way to give an old shirt new life, and it doesn’t require any sewing! Check out the simple tutorial:

DIY Cut-Off Tank

1. Gather your supplies: a t-shirt, scissors, and t-shirt yarn or scrap jersey cut into two long, stretched strips.

2. Cut the sleeves off of your shirt. For an exaggerated armhole, cut more of the shirt away.

3. Cut small, equally-spaced slices along the raw edge of each armhole, at least 0.25″ away from the edge.

4. Starting at the bottom of your arm hole, feed your t-shirt yarn each slice until you reach your starting point. Tie a knot with the other tail end, tails aiming towards the inside of your shirt.

5. Repeat with the other armhole and tada!

Pair it with your favorite bandeau, wear it as a work-out tank, or whatever floats your boat! Want to spruce it up even more? Customize it with a freezer-paper stencil or paint it with water-downed bleach.

Happy crafting!

DIY Bow Tank

bowbackintro

Hello World,

I used to have quite a collection of t-shirts. Last summer, I used 42 of them to make a college t-shirt quilt, but I still have a stack of them left in my “make something with this pile.” Since summer is my hands-down favorite season, and the weather has finally started getting nice where I live, I reconstructed a tee into a bow-back tank.

If you have an old t-shirt to spare, check out today’s tutorial:

tbackshirt

1. Gather your supplies: a t-shirt, scissors, a sewing machine, needle and thread, and fabric dye if your tee was a little too plain to begin with. I bought a few bottles of dye from Darby Smart. You will only need one bottle for this project.

2. Remove the sleeves from your t-shirt. I trimmed a little more than just the sleeves, to create a tank-top shape.

3. Flip over your shirt and cut out the back sections (similar to the photo). Leave the center strip attached unless you want to make a halter top.

4. With one of your back section cut-out pieces, cut out a rectangle.

5. Fold this rectangle in half, and sew along 3.5 sides, leaving a gap so you can turn it right side out. Flip it right side out, and sew the gap closed.

6. Cut a skinny strip of fabric from your scraps. Tie this around the center of the rectangle piece you just sewed. Knot it again, and trim the ends of the ties.

7. Hem the edges of your tank, or leave them raw. My t-shirt was too baggy on the under-arm area, so I took the sides in. I sewed my new side seams with my sewing machine. Hand sew the bow in place on the back of your tank.

8. I found the dye was more vibrant when the shirt was damp vs dry. I got my shirt wet, rung out the excess water, and laid it down on cardboard. I sprayed the front of my shirt with the dye, flipped it over, and then sprayed the back.

9. Hang your shirt outside over something you don’t mind getting dye dripped on (like grass), and allow it to dry. Once it is dry, throw it in the dryer for a few minutes to set the dye and fluff your bow back up.

Happy Crafting!