This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

This week's Utah Crowd-Funding Project hopes the odds are in its favor.

Provo graphic designer and visual artist Alex Vaughn is showing how big a fan of "The Hunger Games" books and movies she is — by creating the "Girl On Fire" candle, in the shape of a hand giving the three-fingered Katniss salute. (Or, for people not into dystopian YA stories, it's also the Boy Scout salute.)

The candles come in several colors, each one tied to a character from the saga. And they really work, and, Vaughn says, "they look pretty cool, burning away like a beautiful and edible Popsicle on a sunny day."

Vaughn aims to have the candles on the market in time for Christmas gift-giving — which is why she's started a Kickstarter campaign to raise $6,000 to start bulk manufacturing.

So far, Vaughn has raised $390 toward her goal. The deadline is Monday, but she's hoping a surge in interest with Friday's opening of "Mockingjay, Part 1" will help her over the top.

Benefits for backers range from a Coin grey or Snow white candle (for $17) to a candle of any color and a battery-powered rotating base to display it (for $50).

If you have a crowd-funding project you'd like mentioned on The Cricket blog, email it to: spmeans@sltrib.com. Be sure to put "crowd funding" in the subject line.