We Craft! Studios visited Uni Bubble Tea for our first Thursday Crafternoon to make bug repellent mason jar luminaries. It is bug season here in Ontario and anything that can help keep away the mosquitoes and no-see-ems is a critical backyard fixture.
These luminaries were really fun to make and they smell AMAZING. They've been a great addition to the backyard and they seem to work pretty well, but even if they didn't the smell and look is totally worth it anyway.
This craft involved a bit of running around because the floating candles were not available in town so I had to do a Michael's run out of town. Luckily I had mason jars and essential oils on hand so I just had to do a grocery store trip for lemons and fresh mint to get the rest of my materials. If you don't have essential oils on hand you can find them at your nearest health food store, I recommend Plant Therapy or Aura Cacia oils. Or if you know an essential oils rep Young Living or Doterra oils are also excellent quality.
Other then the craft materials all you need is a knife, cutting board and some water to make your luminary. Pretty Easy!
First I prepped the lemon and mint. I have seen this craft done with rosemary and it looks nice as well but I prefer the scent and look of mint. You could also add limes if you want but I didn't think this was necessary since the mint already gave the mixture a fresh green colour. I took the mason jar (without the lid or rim)nadded a few lemon slice, a layer of fresh mint and then another lemon slice to the top. Be careful not to add to much or your candle will not sit right (learned this the hard way). Then I filled the Jar about 4/5th full with water. For my essential oil mix I decided to use 10 drops of lavender, 10 drops of thieves, 10 drops of citronella and 10 drops of lemon. If you already have a favorite bug repellent mixture, feel free to use it, but I have to say that this mixture smells amazing and is quite effective. Finally I took my floating votive candle and removed the metal bottom (so the essential oils don't corrode it and ruin the look) and dropped it into the mixture. I decided at add the metal rim because I liked how it looked, and voila, a mosquito repellent luminary for the garden.
Mason Jar Bug Repellent Luminaries
Mason Jar (I used 1/4 pint size)
Floating votive candle
Lemons
Fresh Mint
Water (I used filtered water)
Essential oils (Lavendar, Lemon, Citronella, Thieves)
I am really enjoying the mason jar crafts lately, For my next craft I am going to try to make the blinged out solar powered luminaries that I have been seeing on Pinterest. Stay tuned..
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