Boracay: light up my life!

Boracay: a place of fun and sun-loving people, powdery-white sand, sarongs, native-inspired beadworks, bracelets and necklaces, henna tattoos, and local creativity! From the furniture made of indigenous materials, driftwood and bamboo, to the simple yet festive jam bottle lamps.

We did not see these lamps the past couple of times we have been to Boracay, but then again we were either busy shopping for trinkets or basking in the sun or swimming to notice these simple details. We were having dinner at the Hobbits when we noticed our table lamp while waiting for our order. We asked how it was made and we were delightfully surprised by its simplicity.

The above photo is from the Hobbit's House. The smaller photo is from another venue where we listened to acoustic music by the beach and under the stars.



Interested to make your own Boracay-inspired lamp for your party? Here are the things that you will need: a jam bottle or any wide-mouthed receptacle, some sand or pebbles, a thin pice of wooden stick (they use matches in Boracay), some cotton, used cooking oil, an white bond paper (optional).

Procedure: Put sand or pebbles into the jar, then pour used cooking oil, making sure that it wouldn't submerge the stick. Cover the wooden stick or match with cotton and plunge this into the sandy/pebbly bottom, exposing about a third of the stick above the oil. Allow cotton to absorb oil, then light up the stick. For effect, cover the side of the bottle with white bond paper.

Voila! A Boracay-inspired lamp AND a cool way to recycle used cooking oil. But don't leave these lamps unattended, y'hear?