DIY Sand Covered Votive Candle Holders

2 min read September 13, 2026 Michelle Edgemont
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I love a simple DIY that looks professional, fits right into your theme, and creates another level of texture to a tablescape. These DIY sand covered votive holders do exactly that. They are a clever way to incorporate sand into a beach-inspired table without using actual piles of messy sand. Being incredibly difficult to clean up, your venue probably doesn’t allow loose sand to be used as decor. With these DIY candles, you can have that realistic touch of the beach in your centerpieces without the tedious clean up.

Project Time
30 to 40 min
Difficulty
Beginner
Step
1

Tape off the parts of the candle that you don’t want to be covered in sand. I decided to only have the bottom sections of the candle holders covered so I taped off the top. Experiment with different angles when wrapping the tape around the glass.

DIY Sand Covered Votive Candle Holders step 1
Step
2

Pour the sand out on a plain piece of paper. Spray the adhesive in a thin coat on the exposed glass area. It helps to spray it inside of a cardboard box or on top of a drop cloth. Roll the glass into the sand.

DIY Sand Covered Votive Candle Holders step 2
Step
3

Peel off the tape.

DIY Sand Covered Votive Candle Holders step 3
Step
4

Let dry overnight.

DIY Sand Covered Votive Candle Holders step 4
Step
5

Style the candles with a tea light votive in the top. I took the wax tea light out of the metal holder because I liked this look better. The wax will melt into the top section of the candle holder throughout the night. After your wedding, pop them all in the freezer for an hour and the wax will pop right out.

To learn how to create your own tropical table centerpiece hop on over to my Tropical Beach tablescape post. Oh, and a little DIY for stamped placecards and a yummy coconut pineapple margarita for you to use at your wedding too.

DIY Sand Covered Votive Candle Holders step 5

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