Candles are more popular than ever these days, which sadly means they are getting more and more expensive. If you love having candles in and around your home but are struggling to part with the cash, have you ever considered making your own? There are lots of candle making kits on the market now to make life easier or you could try and source all of the materials yourself from different suppliers.
To make your candle stand out from the rest why not give it a retro twist by sourcing yourself an old-fashion glass, teacup or bit of pottery to contain your candle? Even recycling an old tin would look really cool as a candle and if you have one spare after opening a food tin anyway – it’s practically free. If you aren’t getting yourself a candle making kit then following the She Knows recipe you will need:
Wax flakes
Pre-waxed candlewick
Nontoxic crayon or candle colour block
Essential oils
Glass container
Saucepan or pot
Skewers or chopsticks
Tape
Stove
Scissors
Once you’ve picked some sort of retro container give it a good clean and position your candlewick centrally. To hold the wick straight, She Knows recommends you tie it to a chopstick and lay that across the top so you still have room to pour the wax in either side. If you don’t have a chopstick, then a pencil will work just as well or a lollypop stick.
Next, you need to measure out the amount of wax flakes you are going to need; it’s around two times the amount of wax flakes to the container (a bit like making porridge.) Melt the wax down like you would chocolate. Place hot water, in a pan, over the stove at a medium heat. If you want to dye yours then this is where the crayons come in and you can also add any essential oils you’ve chosen towards the end if you want a fragrant candle. Once you’re happy with the smell and colour of your wax, pour it into your container and allow them to set at room temperature for around three to four hours.
When you’ve got the hang of candle making, experiment with different colours, fragrances and containers until you find a signature favourite. A lot of essential oils have different benefits too – you can make candles that energise and candles that relax your mind. If you’re struggling to find containers for all of your creations, get yourself to car boots sales and jumble sales; people are always throwing away old tea sets and jam jars which are perfect for this! Don’t keep all your gorgeous new candles to yourself either, they make excellent gifts – you could even go as far as designing your own label.
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