I was perusing Halloween items on the interweb and saw some blood-dripping candles available for purchase – 2 for $10 to make things more interesting.  Uhm, what?  Hold the phone.  Why would you buy spooky blood-dripping candles when you can just make them in a matter of minutes…and for cheap?!  Those candles above I found at a thrift store – a pack of one dozen 12″ taper candles for $1.  Although I lucked out with that find, I checked the bargain store and good news people, there’s plenty of candles there too!  The green glass bottle above is just an empty wine bottle.  Taper holders are available at most home goods stores, however, the above were also a thrift score.  So, instead of buying these haunting (and often overpriced) candles, save some money and just make them!

I’ve included a very basic DIY tutorial below.  Now go have some frugal fun!

Materials needed:

• Wine bottle (polish it off, remove the label, give it a wash!) or Candle holders
• White + Red (or maroon) taper candles
• Scissors
• Lighter or matches

Before you start, it’s best to cover and protect the surface you’re working on.  Practice safe crafting, people.

1. First, take your white candle and fit the bottom of the taper into your bottle. Use the edge of your scissors to shave the candle so that it fits securely in the bottle.  If using a candle holder, add a little water inside the holder before inserting the candle.  Although it may sound ridiculous, this will allow you to easily remove the wick once it’s finished burning.

2. Light the candle.  Allow it to burn and build up some awesome looking wax drippage before going to the next step.

3. Using the flame of the lit candle, hold your red candle over the heat.  In a matter of seconds, blood-colored wax will begin to drip on your white candle. Continue to hover over your white candle with the red candle until you have the desired amount of “blood” on your candle.  Ooooh, super spooky!

Now don’t worry, the blood-colored wax will eventually burn down with your candle, so you won’t have to commit to these spooky candles all year round.  And also, don’t ever leave candles burning without supervision!