This Christmas candle holder made with glass beads is SO PRETTY and really easy to make! Glue flat glass gems to a candle holder using a glue gun to create this DIY Christmas candle holder. You can get all the supplies from the dollar store!

The candle light shining through the green, red, and clear glass beads creates such beautiful reflections on the table! Use this Christmas coloured candle holder as the centerpiece for your holiday dinner table, or place it on the mantel or side table as a festive decoration.

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What type of glass beads did you use on this Christmas candle holder?

The “beads” used on this Christmas candle holder are not typical beads with a hole in a middle. This type of glass bead is sometimes referred to as a “flat glass marble” or “flat glass gem” – the kind you often find in vases or candleholders.

They are made of glass and are sometimes referred to as “vase filler”.

Where can I buy flat glass beads?

We got our green and clear glass beads at the dollar store, and the red beads at Michaels. We recommend checking the dollar store first, since they’re a lot cheaper, but their colour selection might be limited.

Walmart, Target, and other craft stores also sell these beads, usually alongside the candle holders and vases. But you can also search Amazon for “glass beads for vases” or “flat glass marbles” for more colour choices.

How many glass beads did you use on your Christmas candle holder?

Each Christmas candle holder uses approximately 100 glass beads – but this will depend on the size of your glass candle holder (dimensions of ours are below). We used 36 green, 32 red, and 32 clear flat glass gems on each of ours.

What size candle holder should I use?

We used a 4 x 4 inch square glass candle holder from the dollar store. This will hold a large votive or small pillar candle with a 3 inch diameter. You can make this Christmas candle holder using any size of candle holder – you’ll just need to adjust the amount of flat glass marbles you use.

Will real candles melt the hot glue?

As long as you use a small tea light and make sure it hasn’t slipped to one side of the candle holder the hot glue shouldn’t melt.

Don’t use more than one candle in your candle holder. (Unless they’re battery operated). If you try to squeeze in 3 or 4 tea lights the heat from the flames could cause the hot glue to melt and let go of the glass beads – and no one wants that!

What kind of candle looks best inside?

The smaller (shorter) the candle that you use, the more reflections you’ll have on your table. We recommend using a tea light so the candle light can light up all the beads on the candle holder. A small battery operated tea light would also work well.

If your candle is too tall – like the taller candle we show at the end of the tutorial above – the beads won’t glow as brightly as with a shorter tea light.

This Christmas candle holder is so pretty, and it’s so quick to make! It makes a thoughtful homemade gift, and a beautiful addition to your centerpiece or mantle.

Here’s even more DIY candle holder ideas:

Pressed Flower Lanterns

Glass Bead Candle Holders

Mason Jar Leaf Lanterns

Snowy Mason Jars

Our book Low-Mess Crafts for Kids is loaded with 72 fun and simple craft ideas for kids! The projects are fun, easy and most importantly low-mess, so the clean up is simple!