
So I was cleaning out a cabinet and I’ve got tons of candles to get rid of.
But I hate to waste stuff, and thought to make something fun -so here goes.
Play sand cake recipe:
1 cake pan
double boiler to melt icing
play sand (at any garden or hardware store)
white candles for icing
candles for cake


1. melt white candles for icing in a double boiler, not on direct heat
2. fill cake pan with play sand, pushing some up to line the edge as for a pie crust
3. push candles into sand all the way to the bottom of the pan, packing sand around them to hold them in place
4. pour melted wax onto cake top (I poured it through a strainer to capture bits of debris)
5. straighten out candles if needed as icing cools.
The tricky part was keeping a couple of the candles straight. What I ended up doing was making a masking tape loop and harness taping that to the side of the pan, for the couple of candles that just wouldn’t stand up on their own.
6. cool overnight
7. unmold
8. wash sand off pan and candles, then reassemble without sand

Now I thought perhaps the final piece would have a solid coating of sand on the bottom making an interesting base, but my sand was damp, so very little of it stuck to the wax icing.
et voila

This was a trial run with left over candles, however I love the primitive look of the cake in the pan for a centerpiece on the table.