candle making

Pooky

There must be someone out there that knows the answer to this one......

I've got several large ornimental candles, one of which is shaped like a vase, the idea being that as it melts it creates a hollow and looks all glowy and lovely ......well it did but then I forgot to tip the wax out one evening and it set hard and buried the wick.....Today I decided that if I cut the whole thing down I could get to the wick and use the rest of the candle....I set too with a saw then an axe to cut the damn thing......result...found the wick and it's burning away merrily......anyway to the question......I've now got half a carrier bag of broken bits of wax, in a cream colour....Can anyone tell me what I do to make this into another useful candle? I know I need to melt the wax, but how? and can I add food colour to it? And what do I use as a wick? I was planning on using an old margarine container as mould....would this work?

Any suggestions????




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Bossyboots

We use an empty sweetcorn tin to stand in a pan to melt the wax.

Cullumpster

Pooky,

Are they smelly candles ?? if they are i just break mine up into little bits and stick them in a oil burner with a tea light underneath.

The smell is much stronger than when you burn the candle normally and when it has cooled down you can just pop the wax out of the burner and put in another smell if you want it.


HTH

arkonite_babe

You can use crayons to colour your wax for candles. You will also need stearin, it's an additive for candle making to help your candles burn smoother.Availabvle from any good craft shop. I used to make candles all the time from leftover bits. If you are patient you can do several colours but you have to wait for each colour to set first.

Melt the waxc in a double boiler, similar to how you melt chocolate, the wax will burn otherwise!! I used to have two old saucepans I kept for this purpose.

Best candle I ever made was one with ice cubes!! I put about 6 or 8 ice cubes inside the candle mould. As the wax cooled and the ice melted it left spaces in the candle, looked really stunning when finished. Don't forget to saeal the hole at the bottom of the mould where your wick comes out, plasticine is good for this, and also secure your wick at the other end of the mould with a pecil, knitting needle or something similar. Hope this helps you out!!

vansboy

Mrs Vansboy is a bit of a candle burning pyromaniac, too & asked the same thing.

Then she bought some wicks in a local craft shop, for pennies & started melting wax n messing up pots n pans & old bean tins, in the saucepan, to keep the mess lesser.

& I thought I was barmy!!

VB

culpepper

Melt the wax in a double pan as mentioned above. Dip the wick in the moulten wax and then hang it from a skewer so it hangs down straight in the candle mould,you can just pour in the wax around it but to keep it central you might need to tie it to the bottom by making a small hole in the bottom of mould and knotting the wick through the hole,then tie it to the skewer.A marg tub might buckle.
You may not need sterine as it is the bits from a bought candle (it probably already has it).When the wax cools,it will shrink so you need to top it up a couple of times.

Pooky

Thanks all for your replies- I've managed to get some wick on ebay (using the voucher for paypal from the voucher board) 5m's for 89p free delivery....saves the £3.60 bus fare into town to buy it!

Once that arrives I shall have a play and see what mess I can make!

mandy_moo_1

I really fancy having a go at making my own scented candles, but just not sure where to start!!

Does anyone else make them, or have any tips i could use?

thanx

vivw_2

Can I ditto that....I really want to have a go. I know I need candle wax and wicks but am unsure of what sizes. I have an old saucepan that I can use. what should I use for moulds?
Also I believe if I want them scented I have to use some special candle scent...is that correct?
Any help gratefully received

hazzie123

There is another thread on here somewhere about scented candles,it was mainly about buying them but at the end it does give some advice on scenting them when making your own.

Maybe someone could merge the two or put up a link?

Bossyboots

We have been making candles for years and years, long before candles became fashionable again.

There is a handy site here http://www.candlemakers.co.uk/ which you might find useful.

We have found that the best thing to melt wax in is a sweetcorn tin standing in hot water. If you pinch one side it makes it easy to pour from the tin to the mould.