Tea light holders for the home

 
There is nothing quite like the calmness of candlelight, whether you are; relaxing in the bath, chilling on a Saturday evening with a nice glass of wine and some music, sitting outside on a warm summers evening or sitting down to enjoy a romantic dinner. Candlelight completes the ambiance and makes for a cosy and intimate atmosphere. I have always loved the feel of a room with candles especially at Christmas. I love to watch the flame dancing around creating patterns and shapes with the shadows. Over the years I have been given various scented candles, different shapes and colours, candle bases and bowls, floating candles, church candles and tea light holders. I always seem to favour the tea lights for accent lighting. I find them cleaner and they don’t drip wax everywhere. They also don’t tend to give off smoke or a lot of heat so they are perfect for placing in decorative bowls. There are so many different options to display them as well– You only have to walk into any home shop or garden centre and you will be spoilt for choice.

A tealight is somewhat different from a regular candle by the fact that the wax is encased in a very thin metal cup which liquefies completely while lit .The wick in a tea light is connected to a small flat piece of metal under the wax to stop it from floating to the top of the molten wax and burning before the wax. A tealight usually burns for 4 to 5 hours which is quite good for its size, although if you require it to be used for reading 4 or 5 should be grouped together otherwise it’ll be too dim. Tea lights are usually used for accent lighting or to retain the heat in food dishes such as fondues rather than for this purpose.

One of my favourites I have just bought my friend for her birthday – It is spherical with a cut off base so you can place your tea light underneath it. The sphere has cut out shapes such as leaves and fern shapes (my one had stars). It is made from clay so it is fine to live outside until the frost begins – I would then bring it in or cover it with something to protect it from cracking. I bought this one from a local garden centre from a collection of different shapes and sizes. Outside, I would try to go for a tea light with insect repellent – it has a citrus scent and really deters the mossys so you don’t have to share your lovely evening with these annoying guests!

Another option is a hanging tea light holder or tea light pods – I have a few of these and again they are made out of ceramic material formed into an egg shape. The front of the hollow egg has a cut out hole to allow you to place a tea light into it. The eggs are suspended by a strong flex of wire and can be attached onto the ceiling in a corner of your home. The inside of the eggs are coloured and the outside is a smooth white finish. They really give off a fantastic contemporary designer feel. I love them - They make a nice change to a tabletop option so you don’t need to worry about cluttering your household tabletops! If you were to buy a few of these pods in different colours they would look awesome hanging around your house and would be a really great option to create a calm ambiance with lighting without rewiring your house with down lights.

My mum brought me back from Italy a murano glass tea light holder that has the most beautiful rich colours in – It looks like stained glass. I placed a tealight into it and the colours are accentuated and reflect around the room. It really does look beautiful alight and also placed on a shelf during the day. Also have a look at mirrored tea light holders – They achieve a similar feel and look really inspiring.

Be creative and make your own tea light holder too! Even though there are beautiful options to display and enhance your tea light – There is nothing quite like being a little creative and making your own. I made one out of an old Budweiser can and another out of a small cross section of a tree trunk. Bore out some holes in the stump to house 3 or 4 tea lights and it looks beautiful! It is a really nice simple idea that can stay outside. I carefully cut out some small slots out of an old Budweiser can with a scalpel and cut a hole in the bottom to place the tea light – A retro and individual piece of craftsmanship!  Just have a look around and try to reuse things (that are obviously fire proof! ;) ) that would look pretty cool as tea light holders.