CHRISTMAS FAIRY HOUSE! THE CHRISTMAS CANDLE! (Patreon)

UPDATE 2025-12-18: Following requests, I've added a fake flame for those who want to use a different light source than the tealights. (See last pictures) So, if you'd like to use fairy lights, light pucks, individual LEDs, or any other light source, it's now possible by attaching this fake flame at the top of the fairy house. The flame is glued on from the inside of the fairy house. For those with large hands like mine, or short fingers, a handy little trick is to use a pen and place the flame on the tip of the pen to position it inside.

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Hello friends!

Finally, I've finished this fairy house that gave me so many headaches! lol. But after all that effort, I have to say that I really love it!

My main goal was to make it with a tealight sticking out above to represent the flame of the candle and another inside to illuminate the windows and door.

Moreover, I really wanted the top to give a realistic candle effect, with the "halo" at the base of the flame, a classic and comforting element of a real candle.

So I played with the thickness of the top to achieve this effect, sometimes using a model that was too thin and other times too thick... The curve of the top was also adjusted several times to accentuate this effect, without, however, obscuring the wick and the candle flame.

But since I had two tealights inside, I needed some kind of support to hold everything in place without interfering with the windows and door that protrude inwards. A large cylinder wasn't an option. So, I created a specific support for this project that doesn't cause any shadows or distortion when lit by the two candles.

Then, I did everything I could to make this a support-free project. Unfortunately, the fact that this project involves two tealights forced me to use printing supports inside the candle body. This is the only part that requires supports. All the other parts print without supports.

That being said, there are some important things to know!

IMPORTANT POINTS:

1- I used these tealights specifically because of the wicks on them.

https://a.co/d/jl4dmEL

But if you want something less expensive, there are plenty of cheaper models like these:

https://a.co/d/fLuJ2iq

Finally, conventional wickless tealights also work very well with the design. No worries.

Since tealights vary in size (height) depending on the brand and supplier, I designed the stand to be lengthened or shortened in the slicer by scaling along a single axis. (The Y-axis if you use my orientation in the project file)

2- Some parts require fuzzy skin. This is clearly indicated in the filenames, and in the Bambu Lab project, the fuzzy skin is already configured per "object" on the applicable parts.

3- Some parts require color changes by layer. You can do all of this in any slicer and on any type of 3D printer. As I often mention, regarding the Bambu Lab project file, my color changes are already set by layers and not painted. Therefore, you must slice the plate first to see the applicable color changes in the preview window.

4- Some pieces call for beige. That was my initial choice, but in the end, I changed the beige to a darker brown. The contrast with the gold was better, in my opinion. But feel free to use a dark beige if you wish, as that was my first choice.

5- As mentioned in the instructions, the mailbox is a bit fragile. For this reason, I recommend attaching it to the base with a piece of double-sided tape or "Fun Tak," that blue sticky adhesive used for attaching posters to walls. This way, if it breaks in the near or distant future, it will be easy to replace.

Finally, the project is compatible with any size of printer, so you can print it without any problem on a mini format printer, just like the other fairy houses.

And there you have it! Like all my fairy houses, the project remains relatively simple. So, no need to say more!

I won't take up any more of your time, my dear friends, and I wish you all the best during this wonderful festive season!

See you soon! And keep printing!!!

Pascal