candle making

rachbc

i made teacup candles for the first time this christmas - I got wicks of ebay and melted the wax in a glass bowl over boiling water - am also going to use old jars (a la yankee candles) and glasses from the cs

Mazzarati2000

Thanks guys, I too, had been pondering where to get wicks from & how best to go about doing this with minimal mess, for several days!

BitterAndTwisted

Oh I don't bother with buying proper wicks, I just use some cotton string I bought from somewhere like B&Q. I'm often found melting down old candles (a pal manages a pub and they use lots of them, so she saves them for me), so I just melt them in an old baked-beans tin in a pan of simmering water and often use a highball tumblers for moulds, so there's no need for anything tricky and expensive like a thermometer. The one indulgence is essential oils to scent them with and I often make them as presents for friends when I don't have cash to buy any.

Angel_Jenny

Making candles does sound fun and interesting too but ...... do I need another hobby!!

There are so many different things I want to learn and do so if I did them all it would be very expensive not to mention how much storage space it would need!

Candle making, soap making, sewing, knitting, crocheting, quilting, calligraphy ...... the list of what I would like to do goes on!

BitterAndTwisted

I keep my candle-making gear in a small cardboard box, so it doesn't take up much room at all. Plus, to make a couple of candles only takes me about 15 minutes max, so you should have plenty of time for all of your other interests

LameWolf

I've been doing this for ages - wicks from Hobbycraft, moulds likewise, or use anything that won't melt/crack - I think quite a few of my moulds came from charity shops iirc, double boiler = an old saucepan to contain the water with an old 800g dog food tin in it to actually hold the wax. I've never used a thermometer, just watch the wax like a hawk.

I use a lot of candles at home, and keep the stubs/dripped wax in bags, one for each colour, then when I feel up to doing a few candles, I do just one colour, so that I'm not working on it for long at a time.

Speedys

Snowy_Owl wrote: »

Tried a search for this, but seems to be just ideas of giving candles as presents!

Basically, we've been using up some of my candles. There is always some of the wax left over and am wondering if anyone has saved used this wax to make their own candles.If so, how have you gone about this? Where do you get the wicks? Temps for melting? Moulds for shaping etc.

Thank you!
Snowy

Couple of articles here - http://www.ninebean.com/category/hobbies-games/candle-making/ that might help.

Angel_Jenny

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

I keep my candle-making gear in a small cardboard box, so it doesn't take up much room at all. Plus, to make a couple of candles only takes me about 15 minutes max, so you should have plenty of time for all of your other interests

Ooooh! I thought you needed a giant pan and all sorts of things! It always sounds quite complicated with all that temperature taking and stuff.

Might have to put candle making back on my to learn list!

BitterAndTwisted

No, not a great pan just whatever sized saucepan you can fit a tin of beans in with a couple of inches of water in it. String for wicks, anything not melty for a mould, keep the water on simmer, wax-crayons if you want to colour them and maybe a chopstick or two to tie the wicks onto and Bob's your uncle. A child could do it and it's very satisfying, especially if said candles smell nice. Neroli is sublime

LolaLemon

Angel_Jenny wrote: »

Making candles does sound fun and interesting too but ...... do I need another hobby!!

There are so many different things I want to learn and do so if I did them all it would be very expensive not to mention how much storage space it would need!

Candle making, soap making, sewing, knitting, crocheting, quilting, calligraphy ...... the list of what I would like to do goes on!

Im adding candle making to my ever growing list of hobbies! i dont really use candles so wont be able to use this method, buti am going to buy in the beeswax sheets where u cut them to size and roll them in shape with wick inside. they burn into nothing and kids can make them. they look sooo expensive when stacked in 3's and wrapped with a nice ribbon

i learned last summer how to crochet, brill for all he babies that where born last year, i can do basic knitting - good for scarves for crimbo... i got a wee part time job in an expensive dress boutique and the owner made dresses and customised the ones from designers to fit the customers perfectly, so have picked up loads from watching her, i can now take a zip out of a basque type top and put a corset back in to make it fit better... was going to get into quilting but i had no babysitters for when the class was on.
if u can, id get into the sewing and crochet, as they are skills that can come in handy at any time - and dont take up a lot of space - a tin for the sewing needles, a pair of sissors, and maybe a thimble (have never ever used one my self, but my nana did a lot) small selection of threads, start of with just black and white, or the colour of the project, lidl is good for sewing supplys every so often).
the crochet id recommend a size 5 or 5.5 hook (do for blankets, scarves and toys where size really doesnt matter), and 1 ball of wool in your prefered colour/brand/wool mix and keep in a small bag or box.