DIY wax filled Diyas

The bling of lights, the smell of paints, the aroma of sweets with a dash of chill in the weather and you know that Deepawali is round the corner. The Deepawali preparations start way ahead of the festival and I suppose the legendary Deepawali ‘house cleaning’ process is world famous. Most  people find it very tiring but I’m a great optimist and I find it quite adventurous to discover some useful stuff buried in the corner of a cupboard or in a chest of drawers and it makes me happy.

Decoration is the other name of Deepawali and we are all busy decorating our abode this season. The markets are swarming with lamps and lights and you get a variety of them but  I personally  feel  that nothing can beat the traditional clay diyas... They have a beauty which cannot be substituted by anything. Moreover Diyas also have a meaning in Hinduism. It is said that the oil symbolizes the malice in human beings, the wick symbolizes the ‘atma’ or soul. So when we light a diya we offer our soul to god and burn our malice and dirt and as Diwali signifies the triumph of good over evil we burn clay lamps.

Over the years the clay diyas have been remodeled and revamped and we find an array of beautiful diyas in the market, so you can buy assorted diyas to adorn your house. But if you want to give a personal touch to your diyas you can make it at home too and believe me its too much fun.Not only your diyas will look different from your neighbours but your wallet will also be happy. So wait no further and get ready to embellish your house with these DIY diyas.

 PROCEDURE

Step1 -If you want you can also use your previous years diyas instead of new ones .Wash them with a little soap water and dry them.If they are new soak them in water for a few hours and then dry them.Paint them with the colours you desire.I usually paint my diyas with a primer and then colour them.This way we get a better finish.

STEP2 -For the candles you can use the unused candles (I’m sure you discover a lot of them in your Diwali cleaning process ;)) or buy wax from the market.I have used some unused candles.

STEP3-Boil some water in a wide mouthed container.Put the wax pieces in a smaller container and put it on the warm water container.Put the flame on medium and let the wax melt.
   

STEP4 -In the meanwhile make the wick of the diyas.For the wick you can use the wick which came out of the unused diyas or you can also make it with thick thread (which is used to make garlands).Dip the thread in the melted wax to make it hard. Take some sticks to tie the wick and put it in the middle of the diya.

After the wax has melted pour it in the diyas and let it cool.Once it cools down it will become hard.

The next step is to give a makeover to your diyas and the there are umpteen number of ways to do so..You can paint, make designs and patterns with colours, use beads and other decorative things which are easily available in the house .If you don’t have them  you can buy from the market  at very reasonable price.

Your hand made diyas are ready to brighten the night!!   
  

Do let me know if you try it.

Happy Deepawali!!!

Madhumita