If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you would have seen this sneak peek. I asked y’all if you had any guesses as to what I was making and your answers were so clever – from toy wheels to giant checkers, I loved hearing all of your great ideas.
I ended up making these DIY scrap plywood tea light candle holders:
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Since I’ve been making a lot of my custom wood name signs, I have a ton of scrap plywood laying around so I thought this was a clever way to use up some of that wasted material.
First, I used a hole saw to cut out the little wood circles. I *think this is a 2-1/2″ size. I clamped a scrap board underneath to minimize tear-out.
Then I squeezed some wood glue on each cookie, then clamped them up and let them set. Don’t worry too much about the glue squeeze-out, we’ll be sanding all that mess off in a minute. I really like this Glu-bot glue bottle – you just have to give the bottle a quick squeeze to get to the glue, instead of shaking it down to the spout.
Once the glue was dry, I sanded all the rough edges on my bench sander.
Next, I clamped the candle holder into my bench vise and used a 1-1/2″ forstner bit to drill the hole for the tea light to sit in.
Finally, I did a quick hand-sanding with 400-grit sandpaper – these flexible sanding sheets are my favorite – then I sprayed a couple coats of clear poly on it and dropped a couple of tea lights in (flameless ones since I have little ones).
Aren’t they cute? So easy and quick to make – these DIY candle holders are a great way to use up your scrap plywood!
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LOVE THESE!! Who needs a lathe?!
Me. I would like to have a lathe. 🙂 Thanks Beth!
Okay, when I saw these on Instagram, I thought you were making play food or hockey pucks, lol! These are WAAAY cool and so clever!!!
These are so pretty!
these are beautiful! and what a great way to use scrap wood (of which I have more than my fair share). Thanks so much for sharing it.
Thanks David! I love your craft show displays – it’s been pinned to my Pinterest board FOREVER. One of these days, I’ll get around to actually building one! Thanks for stopping by!
Today I bought a hole saw bit and attempted to cut holes but the torque just was out of control. No way could I hang onto my drill while it was making the hole. I had the plywood clamped down pretty well, but I quickly gave up. Should I try my drill press? Any advice?
Heidi,
What setting did you have your drill on?
I think it’s awesome that you can make something like this out of scrap plywood! We usually have plenty of wood lying around after projects, and we need something to do with it. I’m not sure if I have the tools necessary, though, so I may just buy something like this online.
Hi Jen,
These look great so I’ve got hold of some scrap plywood to try my own. Problem is the wood circles get stuck in the hole saw, do you have tips to free them easily?
Thanks
Hi Oliver,
I usually use a screwdriver or something to stick into the hole saw to pry the wood discs out. Hope that helps!
Not really a problem. It only damages one side and only one side of the top and bottom discs showm
The best method is to drill from both sides!
-Drill almost through from one side. Drill all the holes one one side of your ply wood scrap.
-Flip the board over and finish drilling the other side using the pilot holes as a guide. The rounds will be easy to remove from the hole cutter and have a cleaner edge.
These are beautiful. We have lots of scrap wood at our “Old Folks Home” where I use a lathe to make bowls. Now I know what to do with all of that beautiful scrap wood.
2″ felt pads that stick on the bottom protect the surface you put the holder on. are readily available. I put a wooden dowel through the center to accurately align the discs for clamping. It made the sanding easier and also made it easier to center the forstner bit when drilling the hole.
Thank you for sharing this amazing blog. For similar kinds of candle holders, please visit Lavish Home Decor, They provide the best quality products at reasonable rates.
Thank you so much, for such an amazing blog. I enjoyed every single part of it.
An ingenious blog celebrating artful sustainability, turning scrap plywood into charming candle holders. A creative journey that illuminates both craftsmanship and eco-consciousness!