Make an Antiqued Pedestal Candle Lamp

What do you get when you combine an ugly candle pedestal, a recycled spaghetti sauce jar and a vintage beaded necklace? An antiqued pedestal candle lamp, but of course.

This beautiful candle lamp started with a yard sale candle pedestal painted a horrific dark green color with gold highlights. It was so hideous that even the owner looked at me with one raised eyebrow when I paid a quarter for it. I dug through my stash of "this and that, wannabe" craft supplies looking for items to marry it with. After a few "maybes" and one "absolutely not", I came up with the perfect combination.

I built upon the pedestal with a recycled spaghetti sauce jar. A glass votive candle holder fit inside the jar rim for the lamp's top. Some paint on the pedestal, glass etching on the jar and a vintage beaded necklace for an extra bit of bling, turned this pile of not-so-nice junk into an elegant decorative accessory for my home.

Large wood or plaster candle pedestal
White paint (I used white latex house paint)
Paintbrush
Antiquing glaze or brown acrylic paint
Paper towels
Spaghetti sauce jar
Sticky-backed vinyl or contact paper
Fleur-de-lis design or design of your choice
Etching cream
Sponge brush
Vintage beaded necklace
Household cement (E-6000)
Scissors
Glass votive holder
Tea light candle

Step 1
Paint the entire pedestal with white paint. Allow the paint to dry. Add additional coats for complete coverage.

Step 2
Working in sections, apply antiquing glaze over the white paint. Allow it to set a few minutes. Wipe off the glaze using a paper towel. The glaze will settle in the creases of the pedestal's design, enhancing the antiquing process. An alternative to antiquing glaze is brown acrylic paint mixed with water. Mix to an inky consistency.

Step 3
Remove the label from a spaghetti sauce jar and clean thoroughly. I suppose you could use a mayonnaise jar or other recycled quart size jar, I just preferred the straight silhouette of the spaghetti sauce jar.

Step 4
Make a copy of your fleur-de-lis or chosen design and adjust it to 4 inches. I cut mine out on a Cricut die cutter so I didn't need to make a copy, but if you do not have a Cricut, there is an alternative. Apply stick glue to the back of your paper design. Place the design on the front of sticky-backed vinyl or contact paper. Cut out the inside of your design using a craft knife. Discard the inside of the design, saving any pieces from the center that will not be etched.

Step 5
Peel off the paper backing and center the design on the front of the jar. My glass jar had two seams that I positioned on the sides. Apply etching cream to the design's void using a sponge brush. Pile it on pretty thick. Allow the cream to set for 10 minutes. Scrape the etching cream off the design and put it back in the jar. This stuff is gold, so as long as it is still wet, it is still usable. Wash off the residue of the cream under running water. Peel off the vinyl and continue to clean the jar. That's it. The etching is done.

Step 6
Choose a vintage beaded necklace of your choice. Mine had an assortment of tiny to medium size beads. They were cream, tan and gold. Apply household cement (I used E-6000) to the threads around the rim. Wrap the necklace around the rim a few times until it completely covers the thread. Cut the necklace where desired. Warning: If your beads are not knotted between each bead, make sure the last few beads are firmly placed in the adhesive before cutting the necklace. It is a real bummer to lose your beads all over the floor.

Step 7
Apply household cement to the top of your candle pedestal. Center the jar on top. Place a glass votive holder in the rim of the jar and insert a tea light candle to complete the candle lamp. You can place decorative items inside the jar if you choose.