Skull candle holders: a Dollar Tree DIY

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Who doesn’t love a good Dollar Tree craft?

I found these cute mini skull-shaped buckets one day and snagged a few knowing I could create something fun for Halloween with them. It didn’t take long to come up with an idea, though, since the skulls were stacked on top of each other in their mesh bag. Obviously, I had to make some taper candle holders!

These DIY candle holders turned out to be so easy to make and only cost a few dollars! Please keep in mind these are plastic skulls, therefore I would not suggest burning candles inside of the holders — these should just be used for decor.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED

SKULLS | PAINT | HOT GLUE | TAPER CANDLES | PAINTBRUSH

HOW TO

1. Gather all your supplies and plan out how you’d like your candle holders to look, including the height and paint colors.
   
   
2. Remove the handles and any extra pieces of plastic around those holes.
   
   
3. Once you know how many skulls you want to stack together, cut a hole in the bottom of each one except for the base. Make sure the hole is big enough to fit your taper candle through.
   
   Please use caution when cutting! The plastic is fairly thin, so a small utility knife should do the trick.
   
   
4. After the holes are cut, stack the skulls on top of each other and attach with hot glue. For any larger gaps, add a little extra hot glue and smooth out.
   
   
5. Now you can start painting. I went with an all over black look to start, but I think these would look so fun in brighter colors for kids!
   
   
6. To create an aged look, I dabbed on Rub ‘n Buff in Antique Gold gently with a paper towel. Make sure to use the tiniest amount at a time or you will end up with large splotches that you can’t easily wipe off.
   
   For the smaller candle holders, I added a little red paint and a splash of water to a ziplock bag. I then made tiny cut on the corner of the bag and piped the paint around the top of the skull, adding enough for it to drip down the sides.
   
   
7. Now add your candles. Again, since these are plastic skulls, I would not suggest actually burning anything inside of them. If you have brand new candles and want to wear them down a little bit, try burning them in an appropriate holder and then move them over when ready!
   
   All done! Add these spooky Halloween candle holders to your shelves or mantle and enjoy all season long!

PIN IT FOE LATER!