Seeing Stars: How to Make DIY Concrete Star Shaped Votives for July 4th

I was getting an itch to do another concrete project, so I made a little something for July 4th…star shaped candle votives and paperweights.

You can use these all summer long, or give them as a hostess gift if you’re headed out to any Fourth of July BBQs this weekend.

Materials:

star shaped kraft boxes (mine are from Amazon) // rapid setting concrete mix // tea light candles // cooking spray // bucket (that is okay to get messed up) // water // trowel or large spoon for mixing (that is okay to get messed up)

How To:

1. Remove the lids from each star box and spray the inside of the both parts (lid and bottom) with cooking spray. This may sound a little strange, but I’ve found that it makes the concrete 100 times easier to remove from the box when it’s hardened. So don’t skip this step.

2. Add four parts concrete mix to one part water into a bucket and stir. The amount of concrete mix you’ll need will vary based on how many star containers you plan to fill.

3. Quickly pour the concrete into each box and lid. Do not fill the concrete to the top.

4. Give the concrete a minute or two to setup slightly. Then, place a votive candle in the center and push down into the concrete. You may need to give the star box a couple of taps on a flat surface after you place the votive, to smooth out the surface again. Repeat this process for all of the star shapes that you want to make into votives. Leave a few untouched if you want any paperweights that don’t have a tea light in them.

5. Wait for the concrete to harden. If youre using a rapid setting concrete, like I did, it should be completely dry in 3-5 hours (depending on the temperature, etc). Then, rip the container away to reveal the finished star shaped votives and paperweights.

(optional) If you want to get extra fancy, you can paint the sides and top of the concrete or even use a gold foil for extra sparkle. I used a liquid gold leaf on a few of the pieces and it worked like a charm.

Here’s how the finished project turned out…

Concept, photography, and styling by Brittni Mehlhoff

P.S. If the food in these pics is making you hungry, I’ll be sharing that summer salad recipe tomorrow…It’s really good!

What are your Fourth of July plans? Anything exciting going on?

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