How To Make Your Own Fragranced Candles

A few weeks back I suffered from a load of power cuts which left me without lighting or electricity for most of the night. Now this wouldn’t have been so bad, had I had some candles or torches in the house, but I didn’t (sillyI know) so I had to spend most of the night at my mums.

And this got me to thinking about why I didn’t have any…

Normally I’m quite prepared for house mishaps but I remember being in the supermarket, looking at the price of candles and torches and thinking ‘they are expensive, I’ll leave it.’

As you can guess, I regretted it instantly but instead of stocking up on these items, I have decided to do something different: Make my own candles.

Making your own candles is so much cheaper than buying them, plus you can choose your own fragrances and shape them how you want. Plus i’m sure we all know you don’t need a power cut to enjoy some candles!

Now I have to confess I am still a beginner, but I couldn’t resist posting about this as I think some of you will really enjoy having a go.

Here is how to get started:

What you’ll need:

  • Wax (or paraffin wax beads and beeswax or old candles)
  • Moulds (you can get these from a craft shop)
  • Wick
  • Dye discs or liquid candle dye (this is optional)
  • Essential oils (these will add fragrance to your candle)
  • A double boiler
  1. Begin by melting your wax in a double boiler with water in the bottom pan. It is important that you melt your wax in a pot that allows you to gauge the temperature as wax has a flash point (usually 290-380 degrees) where if it goes over a certain temp it will burst into flames.
    Add your wax beads or old candle wax to the top pan and let it melt at 155 degrees. At this point if you want to dye your candle and are using dye discs break these up and let them melt with the wax.
  2. Thread your wick through the mould leaving a good few centimetres sticking out the hole in the bottom. At the top of the mould hold the wick steady by fixing it to the pin that sits across the top of the mould.
  3. To add a scent to your candle add a few drops of your chosen essential oil (the stronger the scent the better) to the melted wax (you should put in 1-1.5oz of essential oil to every lb of wax).
  4. Pour your wax into the mould quickly and in one go to minimise air bubbles. Leave a little of your wax in the melting pan as you will need this top up your candle as it hardens and begins to sink.
  5. To prevent air bubbles over the next few hours break the top of your candle using a fat needle or cocktail stick. This will cause your candle to sink, so you will need to top it up.
  6. After 4-5 hours, you can take the candle out of it mould (check that it’s hard first). Snip the wick so you’ve got 0.5cm left at the top.
  7. Next use a hot pan to even off the bottom of your candle so it is flat. Then leave for a day before lighting it.

Depending on the mould or colours your chose, you can get really creative with this, so if you are fed up of spending a fortune on candles, why not have a go at making your own?

It might take a few hours, but do it in bulk and you’ll soon have loads of naturally scented candles.

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