Autumn Projects from the Archives

Melissa recently asked if I had any ideas for Autumn Crafts.
Here are a few I pulled out of the archives from years past. Hopefully I will have a few more over the next couple of months to share as well…

Mini-Pumpkin Place card Holders
These are super simple and easy to assemble. Buy a bag of min pumpkins. With a kitchen knife make a slice about 1/2 inch deep behind the stem for your place card to sit in.
Using your favorite scrapbook papers, stickers or your printer, create place cards for each dinner guest. Make sure you mount them on card stock so they will remain upright.
You can also use stickers”Monogram” each pumpkin as well.

Recycled Tin Can Lantern

Take old coffee or soup cans, strip them of their labels and wash them clean.
Next spray paint orange, brown or black.
Poke holes randomly around can, making sure to put 2 holes on either side at the top where you can tie a ribbon or piece of leather for a handle.
Next hot glue buttons and/or little jewels all around your can. You can even create a Jack-o-Lantern Face, or spell out words with stickers, like “Boo” and “Spooky.” Let your creative juices – or those of your kids go wild!
Inside your lantern place a candle in a jar and watch your lantern glow. You can even use Tap Lights instead (usually found at Dollar stores) if you are worried about safety.
Hang off a door, place on a front stoop, or line a walkway with these easy lanterns. Anyway you use them, they will add a special glow to your Autumn.

Apple Stick Votive Holders
these make great centerpieces and I make them every year!
You will need:
Apples Bamboo Skewers Kitchen Knife Scissors Votive Candles (not tea lights)
Step 1 Gather Your Supplies
Purchase your favorite colored apples – red, green, it doesn’t matter…Gather other supplies as well.
Step 2 Making Your Base
Select the largest apples to be the base of your candlesticks. Slice the base portion of the apple off so that the apple is now flat on bottom.
Step 3 Starting Your Skewer
Place the bamboo skewer in the base apple flat dull end down.
Step 4 Stacking You Apples
Begin stacking your apples on top of each other threading them onto the skewer. (See picture on left) Make sure they are positioned so that they will not fall over. You may have to play with them, turning them this way and that to get them just right. Make sure to leave about 1/4 inch at top of skewer to hold the votive.
Step 5 Getting The Tip Right
Once you have stacked your apples to your desired height make sure that only about 1/4 inch of the skewer tip is left showing. If there is more than 1/4 inch left, push the skewer back through the apples (letting the excess come though the base apple) till only 1/4 inch is showing at the top. Trim or break the remaining skewer length off at the bottom.
Step 6 Placing Your Candle
Peal off tag from bottom of candle.Take wick out of votive from the bottom.Place votive on skewer tip using the wick hole.(Skewer tip not go through the entire votive, just enough to hold it on. Trim wick in half and place one half back in the wick hole from the top. This will allow you to light your candle!
Enjoy!