It’s been extremely cold lately with Frostbite Advisories issued every day for nearly two weeks. I thought I’d share a fun activity that you could do yourself or with your family that requires cold weather – Ice Lights for the outdoors.
You would think that ice and fire don’t go together but as many opposites, these two components work pretty good together in the right conditions. During many cold winters, I’ve made Ice Lights which are basically frozen ice candle holders for outdoors. Here’s how:
1. I use a 5 gallon bucket for a big ice light but you can use any type of plastic bucket or even a tin can. Make sure it has straight sides for the ice to slide out when frozen. Place the bucket outside in the shade on a flat surface – you will not move it until this project is complete.
2. First, I put a layer of water several inches deep in the bottom and let it freeze overnight. This layer is where the candle will eventually sit when the project is complete.
3. Wash out empty tin cans – tall pasta cans work well. Fill the can with rocks to weigh it down. After the first layer has frozen, place the empty tin can in the middle of the bucket on top of the frozen layer.
4. Carefully and slowly add enough water to fill the bucket up to 1/2 inch from the rim of the tin can. Make sure that NO water enters the tin can. Do NOT move. You may need to place a flat rock on top of the tin can to keep it in place.
5. Let the water freeze for at least 24-48 hours. Cover if snow is expected.
6. Bring the frozen bucket into the house. Let it sit in the kitchen or laundry sink for a few hours to let it warm up.
7. Take the rocks out of the inside tin can, if you are able. Add hot water to the inside of the tin can. Wiggle and turn it until the ice around it melts enough to release it. Take it out.
8. Put a towel in the sink and turn the frozen bucket of water upside down. When it warms up enough, it will release itself from the bucket. You can speed up the process a bit by streaming hot water over the bucket – not on the ice inside.
9. Once the ice has been released from the bucket, take your Ice Light outside and put it where you want to create mood lighting. As always, keep clear of combustibles. Add a candle and light it when it’s dark outside. Voila! You will have a beautiful glowing light.
Once we made these Ice Lights and placed them along the driveway for our skating party. They lit the way for our guests beautifully against the snow.
Grammomsblog 
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