The creativity gene is strong on my mother’s side of the
family. When it came to sewing, no one was more skilled than my mother. There
was not a broken-down piece of furniture that could defeat her effort to
restore it.
Suffice it to say that she excelled at the BIG projects
that most people will not tackle. LITTLE craft projects were not her thing, but
she did produce a few seasonal crafts. In the 1960s, she was a genius when she thought
to make Easter egg candles using a real egg shell.
 |
| 1960s Papier mache rabbit - ooh that bow Easter Egg candles nested in foil and Easter grass |
One Christmas ice candles were all the rage. Using a quart-size milk carton, she filled it with crushed ice and then poured in some melted red wax.
When it hardened, she poured off the melted ice and peeled away the carton. Voila – beautiful candle ready for display on
a slab of green Styrofoam with a sprig of holly.
 |
| Christmas 1964 My favorite photo of me and my sister |
That was a humdinger of creativity in the 1960s, but hardly
Pinterest-worthy today.
Amy Johnson Crow continues to challenge genealogy
bloggers and non-bloggers alike to think about our ancestors and share a story
or photo about them. The challenge is “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.”
Wendy
© 2019, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.
I remember those ice candles! I think my mom made a few. My mom was crafty (in a good way). I didn't get that gene though :)
ReplyDeletebetty
I remember my mom making ice candles in the early 1970's.
ReplyDeleteLovely memories of your mother. Your opening line certainly captured my attention, as we both had talented mothers. But in my childhood candles were plain white utilitarian ones, kept in the kitchen in the event of power cuts. I cannot remember seeing decorative candles until the mid 1960s.
ReplyDeleteI made those ice candles, and candles in molds like a mushroom. I wonder what ever happened to them...burned out probably! I was always getting into crafts, and having something at the crafts fairs!
ReplyDeleteYour post just reminded me that my uncrafty mother seemed to have a bit of the craft gene with Easter eggs. She'd poke a hole in the bottom and then blow all of the innerds out and we'd have a hollow egg shell to decorate.
ReplyDelete