DIY Minecraft Torch (Tutorial)

How to make wooden Minecraft torches from a 2×2 board. The torches make awesome party favors for a Minecraft themed birthday party.

My favorite 7 year old recently had a Minecraft themed birthday party.    For party favors, I made Minecraft torches from a 2×2 board.   Painting each pixel of the torch was an incredibly time consuming process.  This is definitely not a project you want to procrastinate on.   I would budget two hours per a torch.   The torches are 1.5″ wide and 7.5″ tall.  The scale for the pixels is 0.75 inches.  In this post, I’ll share steps for making a few torches of your own!

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Tools and Supplies

The following is a list of the tools and supplies I gathered to create the torches:

• 2×2 board
• Japanese Handsaw and Guide
• Rockwell JawHorse (for holding the 2×2 while cutting)
• A sander or a sanding block
• A ruler
• Acrylic Craft Paints (I used Delta Ceramcoat paints)
  • Raw Sienna (02411)
  • Yellow (02504)
  • Tangerine (02043)
  • Pale Yellow (02005)
  • White (02505)
  • Brown Iron Oxide (02023)
  • Khaki (02718)
  • Dark Brown (02053)
  • Burnt Umber (02025)
  • Charcoal (02436)
• A good quality paint brush (A good brush helps keep the paint within the lines.  I used one of my Da Vinci Red Sable brushes.)
• Mod Podge (for sealing the paint)
• Led Party Lights (optional)
• 1/2 drill bit (for creating a hole in the board to hold the led party lights)

I wanted consistent color among all of the torches, so I purchased specific colors instead of mixing colors.  The colors I chose are not an exact match to the real torch, but close enough.

Making the Torch

Step 1:  Cut the 2×2 Board.

A 2×2 board is not 2 inches by 2 inches.  The real dimension of 2×2 board is 1.5 inches by 1.5 inches.  This is why the pixel scale is 0.75 inches.   The torches in Minecraft are 2 pixels wide and 10 pixels tall.  So our torches are 1.5 inches wide and 7.5 inches tall.

Cut your 2×2 board to a length of 7.5 inches and give the board a good sanding.

Step 2:  Draw a grid on the 2×2.

With your ruler, draw a grid on every side of the 2×2 board.  Each cell represents a pixel and should be 0.75 inches by 0.75 inches.   I found it easiest to first draw the grid lines on top and bottom sides of the 2×2 board.

Step 3:  Paint the pixels.

The bulk of the time on the project will be spent painting.   If you are painting multiple torches, I recommend working like an assembly line and paint one color at a time.   I recommend using a good quality brush.  A good brush will make it easier to stay within the grid lines as you paint.  Taping off the cells will give you nice and clean edges, but I found it very time consuming.

Here is the color scheme I used on my torches (column 1, column 2):

1. Yellow, Tangerine
2. Pale Yellow, White
3. Brown Iron Oxide, Dark Brown
4. Raw Sienna, Charcoal
5. Raw Sienna, Dark Brown
6. Khaki, Burnt Umber
7. Raw Sienna, Charcoal
8. Brown Iron Oxide, Charcoal
9. Raw Sienna, Charcoal
10. Brown Iron Oxide, Charcoal

I painted rows 1 and 2 on the top of the torches, and I used Brown Iron Oxide to cover the bottom of the torches.

Step 4:  Seal the torch.

Once the paint dried, apply a layer of Matte Mod Podge to seal the torches.

Step 5:  Add a light. (Optional)

I thought turning the torches into a real source of light would be a neat upgrade.   To do this, I purchased a bag of LED party lights.  Each light is a little shy of being 0.5″ wide and 1.5″ tall.  With a 0.5″ wide drill bit, drill an inch deep hole into the top of the torch.

Drop the little party light in the hole and you’re good to go.

The Finished Torch

I am pretty happy with how the torches came out.  It is a great way to use leftover 2×2 boards in the garage and a neat treat for fans of the game.