Creative Autumnal Incandescence

Autumn is such a cozy time of year. I love to decorate with pumpkins and warm colors. I like to place pumpkins in various rooms around my house. Our mantel is very prominent, so I give it the most attention. I also wanted little touches of warm light around the pumpkins, so I crafted some candle holders covered in tissue paper. I loved the result! The best part is how easy they were to make.

Supplies Needed:

tissue paper in various colors
white glue
small paint brush
wax paper
small glass candle holders
votive candles


The tissue paper I used has fiber running through it, which gave it a handmade look. I found it at World Market.

Lay the wax paper on your work surface and tear the tissue paper into small pieces:

I used these small candle holders that look like flower pots. Walmart has them for 50¢.
Dilute the glue slightly with water and paint onto glass:

Add tissue paper, one piece at a time. Paint over the piece with the glue until it lays flat. I used the straight edge of the paper around the top of the container. I didn't try to do that around the bottom because it really doesn't show.

Work your way around the entire container:

Repeat the process with the other colors:

The rough, fibrous texture of the tissue paper created more of a leaf-like appearance:

A tip I learned a long time ago is to add a little water to the candle holder right before you insert the candle and light it. This will help keep the wax from sticking to the inside so you can reuse it later.

They turned out beautifully.

Just a hint of a cozy glow that doesn't take away from the look of the pumpkins.

Autumn Touches and Tablescapes

There are many fun projects to do around your home which use the beautiful autumn elements that nature provides right in your own back yard. What I enjoyed most about these projects was the actual collection process itself. I felt like a kid tromping all over my yard collecting things. When I was little, I actually used to collect rocks, scrub them with an old toothbrush, and then paint them with clear nail polish. Maybe I should not have shared that. Anyway, for this I used leaves, pine cones, acorns, and a few sweet gum balls. I think the acorns look better with their caps on and many had fallen off. I remedied that with a little glue.

Just the leaves alone can create a nice touch:

If you use them to decorate for company, lay them out fresh that day:

For a centerpiece for my kitchen table, I purchased this cool square vase at Davis Wholesale. I placed another container on the inside to use as a vase, then filled in between with pine cones, acorns, and sweet gum balls.

After playing with it a little, I opted for a vase that was more narrow because it worked better to hold the leaves in place:

Then I filled the vase with small branches of leaves. I added more pine cones to the top after adding the leaves to hold them in place. I used a few cinnamon pine cones because I love the smell. The leaves can easily be replaced every few days as needed.

The tablecloth in my kitchen is actually a twin comforter that I found at Home Goods. I think that quilted fabric looks cozy on a table and I liked the nice warm autumn colors on it. When I replace this tablecloth with a Christmas one in a few weeks, I will use the comforter on my daybed in my study.

For the table on my back porch, I used 3 clay pots. I placed votive candle holders in each and filled them with water:

Then I placed greenery in each of them This is nandina, which I absolutely love. It is great to use for Christmas, also.

I placed a cinnamon pine cone on top of each one. I found the tiny clay pots at Michael's and they were the perfect size for a votive candle:

It is amazing how simple it is to decorate for autumn. Don't you love this time of year?