During a aha moment . . . . you know the one you have while perusing through a magazine or shopping at a favorite store where you say, oh, I love it, but I can probably make that, and after much thinking and sleepless nights you actually find a way to put it all together. Yay, man! That's what happened to me when I saw pictures of a coral hurricane on Frontgates' website. So pretty, but too, too expensive for me at $175.
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| The details on the white one are hard to see . . . |
and I'm so tempted to paint mine in a shade of purple after seeing it in red! There are some purple coral, you know!
Oh how I wanted to re-create this faux coral accent piece! I don't sleep well and wake up quite often during the night. Usually I just go back to sleep after awhile, but with this, all I could think about was how I could make it. I had made a starfish bowl here and also a wired candleholder here and remembering how I did those two helped me put the coral candleholder together.
Using 16 gauge white cloth wrapped stem wire as the foundation, I wrapped four stems around a glue bottle to get spiral shapes.
I gently pulled the spiral rings apart and connected the ends forming a circle.
I inserted the glass candleholder I would be using to make sure of the sizing.
I closed the loops with needle nose pliers and made "feet" by squeezing the loops tightly together to hold the glass container. I also inserted another stem wire forming a circle through the loops for added support.
Next, I added different lengths of individual stems in random patterns to mimic the shape of coral and tying the connections with floral wire.
I wrapped the connections with masking tape to avoid wire rust through the clay.
One thing I didn't want to do was make a pulp out of toilet paper and flour. That was too messy when I used it before and would make a tedious project even longer. I saw a YouTube tutorial for a simple, inexpensive homemade flour, glue and water clay that said it dried hard as a rock and lasted for years, so I decided to try that.
I made about five small batches . . .
rolling the clay . . .
and applying it to the stems, one section at a time, with water and a paint brush. The clay was very stretchy and easy to work with. I could rough it up a bit and added pock marks and lumps.
It took me about three days, off and on, to cover the stems inside and out and letting it dry overnight. I could add additional clay by wetting it and smoothing it over the dried clay with a wet brush.
In between, I would try the glass candleholder on to make sure it was still fitting and that the "faux coral" could hold the glass in place.
After I was satisfied with the overall look, I painted mod podge over the entire surface, outside and inside to seal and let dry.
Then I decided to coat all of the faux coral with a sample of pure white chalk paint that I had. You can spray on a primer and paint with another type of paint at this point, if you want.
I absolutely love how the faux glass candleholder turned out.
And it fits in perfectly anywhere on my patio.
Have you had a aha moment lately?
Take a little time to
enjoy
and
Happy Crafting!
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