This DIY candle holder is very easy for even preschool kids to make in any shape you want, using any assortment of colorful dry beans and lentils you probably have sitting in your pantry! Festive colors can make these thanksgiving candle holders a very special centerpiece.
This post was originally published November 1, 2011. It has been updated with new photos and video November 3, 2019.
I first published this post back in 2011, when my kiddos were only 10, 8 and 6. Goodness, times goes by fast! This was before pinterest and I learned to be crafty from the teachers at school and magazines.
All three of my kiddos made these fun bean handle holders when they were in preschool and kindergarten. So you know this Thanksgiving craft is SUPER kid friendly.
Most Thanksgiving crafts involve leaves, turkeys, pilgrims and pumpkins. And if you have little kids making them, you may or may not be excited to decorate your carefully coordinated Thanksgiving table with their handiness!
This is a fun project I did with my Princess’ kindergarten class many years ago as a Thanksgiving candle holder gift for the children’s parents: DIY candle holder with beans. The kids loved making these candle holders and the only skill involved is stirring!
It’s a totally easy and cheap craft to throw together. And the parents really loved the candle holders their little ones created. I think they are pretty enough to sit on your thanksgiving table, how about you?!
Jump to:
Supplies needed
- Assorted dried beans: You can focus your color scheme using specific beans and lentils or you can just wing it and buy a bag of dried bean soup mix. Again, you want dried beans and lentils, not canned or cooked!
- Candles: You can use tall candlesticks or tea lights, all depending on the form you use.
- Disposable cup: This is the form used for the candle holders and will get destroyed, so use disposables. If you are making candle holders for tall candles, use a cup (plastic or styrofoam). For tea lights, I like using the disposable bowls.
- White glue: You need a glue that dries clear. Cheap white glue works great!
- Bar of soap: To make sure the glue does not stick to your bowl/cup, you will need to rub the inside with soap. ANY soap will work.
Step-by-step directions
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- Prep the mold. We used some random plastic disposable cups. You can also use paper, styrofoam or any other disposable cup. For my votive candle holder, I used a styrofoam bowl for the mold. Rub the inside of your mold with the soap.
- Pour the beans in. Use whatever beans you want. Choose red and white beans with lots of green lentils for more Christmassy colors. Use red kidney, white beans, black beans, green lentils and yellow split peas for fall colors.
- Pour in the glue. Add the glue and stir it into the beans using a popsicle stick or plastic spoon/knife. Make sure the glue is spread evenly and the beans get coated in the glue.
- Add the candle. You can use tall candle sticks, short candles, votive candles… any kind of candle you like. If you have a large bean bowl you can place an assortment of candles in that. Again, have fun and get creative!
For the votive candles, I chose to use the kind that has a metal holder. This way, the beans stick to the metal holder and as the small votive candles burn out, you can replace them easily with another votive candle. Easy peasy.
Project tips and FAQs
How long do these bean handle holders last? Well, all three of my kidlets have made these bean candle holders when they were little, so I have a few sets of these babies!
One set I have yet to use up all the candles, and the bean candle holders still look great after 8 years.
So your Thanksgiving candle holders should last you for as many years as those candles you stick in them are around. A family “heirloom” that will bring lots of memories during this wonderful time of the year.
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DIY Thanksgiving Candle Holder with Beans
Equipment
- 1 popsicle stick or plastic spoon/knife
- 1 sheet of parchment or wax paper
Ingredients
- 20 oz assorted dry beans and lentils
- 1 bottle white craft glue dries clear
- 4 candlesticks
- 4 paper or styrofoam cups
- 1 bar of soap
Instructions
- Rub the inside of paper or foam cups with bar of soap.
- Fill each cup ¾ of the way with an assortment of dry beans and lentils.
- Pour in approximately ¼ cup white glue in each cup.
- Using a popsicle stick or plastic spoon, mix beans and glue together until all of beans are coated in glue. Add more glue as needed. Make sure beans in bottom of cup are coated in glue.
- Smooth beans on top to be flat.
- Stick a candle in the center and gently press down about 1-inch. Do not press down all the way to the bottom.
- Let glue dry 30 minutes, then peel off the paper cup. Glue will still be wet. Fix any holes and add glue to any dry parts.
- Place candle holders on a sheet of parchment or wax paper to completely dry, about 1-2 hours.
Notes
PS If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page? I always appreciate your feedback.
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Written by Laura Bashar
Hi, I’m Laura, a certified professional cook and cookbook author living in San Diego. I have been sharing my family’s favorite recipes inspired from all over the world since 2008. Let’s cook up something fun!
I’m a big kid, so this is perfect for me. 🙂
These are so pretty and look fun! What kind of soap did you use?
The soap is not necessary, but guarantees that the styrofoam doesn’t get stuck to the glue. So any cheap bar of soap is fine for a quick swipe on the inside of the cup. Some plastic cups have a wax coating on the inside. So if you use these cups, the soap is not necessary.
Did you just use Elmer glue? I’m planning to make this with my preschoolers next week 🙂
It is so easy and goof proof. You can use any white glue – Elmer’s is great. You just want the kind of glue that dries CLEAR.
beautiful deco looks wonderful
What a great idea to keep kids busy and make something which looks so good:)
The glue sinks down and gets in the nooks and crannies of the beans. Give it a little shake to help it spread around. It doesn't require much glue at all, probably less than a 1/4 cup. We made about 30 of these with the kids and just eyeballed the measurements.
Do you put alot of glue and then it sinks down? Like 1/4 cup of glue or something? That is a really cool craft!