Interesting topic Wanda and thanks for the instructions on how to carve out a pillar. I've usually just let them burn enough to make a well to hold a real tealight then messed around with a knife but your way sounds much neater. :-) I burn real tealights, votives, tapers, then pillars in that order of frequency but tealights the most. I have a bazillion tealight holders (ys finds) and feel they are safer than tapers with the cats. I like the beeswax or soya the best altho have a lifetime supply of paraffin ones but mostly use them outdoors in the summer. Ikea has the best quality paraffin tealights for the lowest price IMO and sell in bags of 100 for about $3 on sale ($4-something regular) and I've also bot them at YS's for even less. I do have some battery ones I got a few years ago for the RV (for safety) but wasn't impressed with the appearance of the flame altho I've been told they have improved so should give them a try again. I like the idea of remote control pillars as I have the same accessibility problem on my mantel. I'd like to use them as there are convection currents because of the stove and my beeswax tapers dripped on the silk poinsettias at Christmas.

I second IKEA if you have one near you. My 1st stop for black frames is always the clearance or damaged section at TJ Maxx, Home Goods etc. Then their regular section and I look for any that might be knicked and ask for an 'As Is' price. Then I go over the ding w/ a black sharpie. My 2nd stop (1st if it's for a white or brown frame) is always IKEA. Sometimes I have to have a mat custom cut but even then it's worth it if I'm not looking fo a fancy mat.

I cough and choke when I'm around scented candles. I often wonder what people are breathing in when they burn them so much. Obviously it can't be good for you. I enjoy candles (and fire for that matter a campfire is a wonderful thing) but they need to be plain old cheap paraffin candles. No stench, no smoke, just clean burning candles. Candle aisles and cleaner aisles are two in a store I have to move through rapidly. What some call "rainforest", "citrus" and the like would be more appropriately called "cheapbeerfart" and "armpit". And I tell you for true there ain't no way in heaven, hell or Houston that I'd eat an apple pie that smelled like an apple pie scented candle!

I am a collector of random things but I do seem to have a lot of pottery and baskets. Here is a collection of stuff on top of a little box on my desk. In looking at the photo, I realized I have three cats - but it wasn't intentional.