DIY Christmas Candle Holders: Add Sparkle to Your Holiday Decor

Learn how to make Christmas candle holders to decorate your home during the holidays? Get over 35 beautiful ideas on a budget, easy enough for beginning crafters.

So you’re thinking about how to spruce up your home for the holidays but don’t want to break the bank? Why not try a quick decor project on a budget! This Christmas, create some festive and pretty homemade decorations with these easy-to-make DIY Christmas candle holders.

I love decorating candle holders. Not only are they relatively easy due to their size (making them perfect for beginning crafters), the peaceful glow just goes so well with the vibe of holidays.

They’ll look wonderful on a fireplace mantel, Christmas table display, or anywhere else in your home where you want a little bit of a glow. Put the Christmas music on, light a candle, and get into the spirit.

Before we get into the Christmas candle holder ideas, I wanted to give you a bit of information if you’re a newbie. If you want to scroll down to get the list, you can do that. I hope these tips help shorten the learning curve.

While not all of the candles are glass, a lot of them are, so I’m going to give you tips for working with glass in those projects. Otherwise, refer to the instructions in the original tutorial when you see something like wood or clay.

Christmas candle holders with pine cones on wooden background

Tips for Decorating Candle Holders

Decorating a candle holder is relatively simple, but there are some things you need to know – like where to buy, how to prep, and paint to use. I address those three things below.

Where to Buy

One thing I love about glass candle holders is that they can be found just about anywhere – and the first place to look is your recycling bin!

A lot of people use jars (like pasta sauce, Oui yogurt, or jelly) as their base. You can remove the labels with these tips.

But if you don’t have anything in your recycle bin, you can also get your glass holders at Dollar Tree (or your local dollar store) or the thrift store/Goodwill. You might have to do some regular checking for new stock, but they show up frequently.

Of course a place that is always reliable for candle holders is the craft store. Check your local shop or Michaels, JoAnn, Hobby Lobby, etc.

They’ll have something you can use. Mason jars always make good holders – you’ll see several of those projects in the list.

How to Prep

Before you decorate your Christmas candle holders, prepare your glass. This step is important if you want the paint or Mod Podge to stick.

Thoroughly wash in warm, soapy water to remove dirt, dust, and grease from your fingers. You can also use rubbing alcohol and cotton balls to do the same. Let your glass dry before crafting.

Paints to Use

You’ll want to check out my post about painting on glass to get all the details, but typically I use spray paint, chalk paint, or glass paint (including multi-surface) on any candle holders.

You can use any of the Mod Podge formulas for glass, but I always like Gloss or Matte, personally. I have a guide for Mod Podging on glass too!

Are you ready to get the projects? Just scroll down to see them!

DIY Christmas Candle Holders

One thing that makes the holiday season extra special is decorating the house with festive colors, lights, and decorations! This includes DIY Christmas candle holders!

There's something about walking into a house lit up with candles that just feels magical. I'd love for you to check out these 35+ ideas to bring this feeling into your own home.

If you enjoyed these Christmas candle holders, I’d love if you’d check out these other ideas: