Love this.
Outline the letters on a white or ivory candle and paint the brown around your outlines.
Or, if you put the candles inside class container, just paint the glass or use brown construction paper to wrap around the glass.
This would be a cute idea if you are serving buffet style where everyone grabs a plate and silverware at the front of the line.
Instead of having to grab out of each bin of forks, knives, and spoons; ya just grab a packet.