Large Candle Wick Sustainers 20mm pk 50 - Wick Tabs

Candlemaking Tips

Candlemaking is fairly easy and you can  use equipment that you already have around the house, although the right tools make the job a little easier.

Important Please Read the Safety Rules First

From a safety point of view think of candle wax like cooking oil, because like cooking oil, wax is flammable at high temperatures and must never be left unattended.

Candles must be placed on a flat surface and not be left unattended whilst burning

 
Candle wax melts at around 56°- 58°C (which is well below the boiling point of water 100° C (212F)) and at temperatures below 100° C wax is fairly safe and will not ignite. Wax has a flash point of typically above 130° C (300° F)  but for safety reasons it is recommended not to heat wax above 90°C. Wax must never be heated to the point where it starts to vaporise, smoke or sputter as it is liable to ignite. It is recommended for safety reasons that wax is melted using the double boiler method and never, ever heated by direct heat, this is because heating by direct heat raises the temperature of the wax higher than boiling water. A Thermometer is recommended for measuring the temperature of the wax. It is also recommended that gloves and an apron are worn at all times. 

The Candle Mould
Commercially made moulds are available in a variety of shapes and sizes but you could use many household things from a milk carton to a flower pot as long as it is heat resistant. You can also make candles in sand moulds which is very effective.  The sand method and flower pots are perfect for putting several wicks in one candle for a stunning effect. Candle moulds are made in many materials: Rubber, Glass, Plastic and Metal. The Rubber moulds are ok for irregular shapes but they perish, don't  hold or support their own shape, distort during cooling and leave an unattractive matt finish, and they cannot be used with stearin . Glass moulds leave a good clean finish on candles and the better ones are seamless, but glass moulds are very expensive,  fragile and shapes are limited to just cylindrical. Plastic moulds are inexpensive to buy and much more durable, but some leave a slight seam mark, although this is easily removed with a knife when the candle has set. Metal moulds in general are excellent, very durable and they cool quickly. A range of plastic and aluminium  moulds can be found in our Ebay Shop so please take a look.   

A good choice for a beginner  would be either the aluminium votive moulds or the 50mm x 90mm aluminim pillar mould. Both are available as candle kits or as moulds on their own from our Ebay Shop. They are quick to make and use relatively small amounts of wax. 500g of wax will make six votive candles or three 50mm x 90mm pillar candles. You can make two candles from our plastic pillar and globe moulds per 500g of wax, these are also available as kits or just moulds from our Ebay Shop.

Prepare the Mould
Wiping the inside of the mould with a little vegetable cooking oil will help release the candle from the mould. Make sure your candle mould is thoroughly cleaned of any wax that may have stuck to the inside as this will cause the next candle to stick. Warm the mould and wipe out with kitchen roll.

Sand Candles
Simply put some damp sand in a bucket, push in a suitable shape (you can be as adventurous as you like) firm up the sand and pour in the melted wax. The sand sticks to the wax and the finished candle looks stunning! You can then carve/scrape some patterns in the finished sand candle using wax carving tools. ( inexpensive Wax Carving tools available from our ebay shop). Use different colour sand and wax to either compliment or contrast depending on the finish you want. 

Melting the Wax
You don't need a specialist wax pot, but you will need a saucepan and a smaller saucepan that fits inside it. You can improvise by using a tin can in a saucepan or use a specialist pouring jug which has a handle, making it safer to use. We sell an aluminium candle wax melting jug, (shown below) which holds approx. 2kg of wax, and is available from our Ebay shop. For safety, the wax must never be heated directly in a saucepan and must always be heated indirectly using the double boiler method. Although the wax is not difficult to remove from saucepans it’s not a good idea to use your best ones! 

Fill the larger saucepan with a couple of inches of water, but not so much that your wax container floats. Place your wax container in the water and keep an eye on it while it is melting. Never leave your melting wax unattended. 

There must always be some water in the saucepan

 If you are using old candles cut them up into smaller chunks while your water is warming. You can use a mixture of paraffin candle wax, beeswax and old candles. Beeswax is a bit of a luxury, but it does give a nice aroma and will increase the burning time of your candle, but an ounce or two of Beeswax is normally enough. Beeswax is the only fuel known to modern science to produce a “negative ion” which when burned purifies the air by removing dust, pollen, household odours from cooking and pets, mold, mildew and toxic residues from household furnishings, construction materials and rugs etc. It also helps purify the air of viruses, bacteria and germs.

Church candles normally contain 25% beeswax, however no more than 10% beeswax is recommended for moulded candles. If you need any Beeswax or Paraffin wax we have plenty available in our Ebay shop.

If you're using old candles try and choose colours that will mix well together as you don’t want to end up with a muddy coloured candle. Cut off any charred wick ends as these may discolour the wax, although bits of wick can be removed from the pot with a fork while the wax is melting. When re melting coloured candles the colours will become weaker so adding a candle dye is a very good idea.  

How much wax do you need?
This depends on your mould and how many moulds you have. As a rough guide to find out how much wax a mould needs, fill the mould with water and then measure the water in a jug.  300ml of water is equal to approx 260g of wax. 400g - 500g of wax is a useful working quantity and any wax left over can always be reheated and used another time.

Types of Wax
Most Candles are made from Paraffin Wax, which is a by-product of the Petroleum industry, and is the most cost effective way to make candles. Candles are also made from a blend of Paraffin Wax and Beeswax. Both Paraffin wax and Beeswax are available in beaded (pellets) or in slabbed form, but there is no real difference between beaded or slabbed wax, it’s just a matter of personnel choice. Unblended paraffin wax will need stearin added to it. This hardens the wax to prevent pillar candles from bending and also shrinks the wax slightly allowing the candle to be released from the mould more easily. Blended paraffin wax already contains a percentage of stearin and so needs no more added to it. Again it is a matter of personal choice. We also sell in our Ebay Shop a special "Container wax" especialy for use in glass containers and is not suitable for moulded candles as it becomes liquid when the wick is lit. It is designed to cling to the container so no gaps are visible. Any heat resistant container is suitable. As this Container wax becomes semi-liquid when hot a paper cored wick is essential, as a normal un cored wick will simply fall over and drown in the wax.

Colour the wax (Optional)

We sell a wide range of candle dyes singly and in assorted packs, in our Ebay shop, that are tested for their burning behaviour, light fastness and their chemical reactions with fragrances, and just 1 gram of Candle dye will colour 100 grams of wax. You can test the colour of your wax by allowing a teaspoon full to cool on some greaseproof paper, as candles tend to finish slightly darker in colour than in their molten wax state. 

Coloured Layered Candles  ( Variation )
Why not try making candles with different coloured layers, they look expensive, make nice gifts and are very easy to make. Simply allow each colour about 45 minutes to settle before adding the next coloured layer, but don’t leave it  much longer as you want the waxes to gel together. The candle can even be made at an angle for an even more striking effect! You could also try using a different fragrance to each coloured layer!

Fragrances
While candle fragrances are the obvious option to add scent to your candle you can also use some Essential oil, Pot pouri refresher oils and Natural oils such as Citronella to give a fragrance of your candle. You will need to experiment as to exactly how much essential oil to use, but try adding around 8ml of fragrance per 100 grams of wax. We use a  plastic fragrance oil dropper to measure exactly how much oil to use and give consistent results, this takes away the guess work! (99p for 3 Oil droppers in our Ebay shop).  You can test the fragrance by putting some on a candle wick, lighting it and then blowing it out, this will give you an idea of how it will smell.  Add to your wax just before you pour. 

Optional Other ingredients
Stearin is recommended and most people use it mainly because it helps release the candle from the mould by slightly shrinking the candle. Stearin has other benefits, it hardens the finished candle and this hardening extends the candles burning time and helps to stop tall candles from bending. It also enhances the richness of coloured candles and different percentages of stearin can slightly change the finished colour. Use approx. 1 part Stearin to 10 parts Wax; just melt it in with your wax.

The Candle Wick

There are several methods of how and when to insert the candle wick this all depends on the type of mould, so please read everything before you start pouring any wax!

Method for moulds with a wicking hole in the base.
Firstly measure the wick against your mould. Lay the wick along the length of the mould and allow about an extra 3/4 inch top and bottom. Push the wick through the hole at the base and seal with candle mould sealer or blue tack, making sure you press down firmly to create a seal all around the wick. The wick pin is then pushed through the other end of the wick and laid across the top of the mould. It can be useful to have a bowl of cool water handy, to place your candle in if it starts to leak, as this will stop the flow immediately.

Moulds without a wicking hole
Use a wick tab (sustainer) to centre the wick in the base of the mould. Push the wick through the tab and crimp closed. Use a self centering votive tab for votive moulds as this will keep the tab central without having to stick it down. For larger moulds you may find sticky double sided dots useful to keep the tab central, or you can put a blob of glue from a glue gun. Tea light moulds do not really need wick pins, as the wick is so short and the wax cools so quickly, you will find they stay upright on their own.

Inserting the Candle Wick later
The wick is inserted into the candle after the wax has hardened and is perfect for putting several wicks in one candle. Use a Wick Pin or a length of straight, thick wire (a wire hanger will work ok ) held in an oven glove or cloth over an open flame to heat it.  Insert the heated wire into the body of the candle. Insert the wick into the hole you've just made.  Repeat this until you have as many holes as you want. An odd number of  wicks always looks best. Once the candle is lit any gaps between the wick and the body of the candle will soon fill with melting wax.  If using several wicks, the wicks should be placed a minimum of 6cms apart or you will end up with a large puddle of wax and drown your wicks, as each wick produces heat equal to a 40 watt bulb.

Pouring the wax
When the wax has all melted to the correct temperature, switch off the heat. Ideally the wax should be about 78C – 82C  for pouring. Wax poured colder may cause the candles to have a rustic-looking surface – which can look quite good, but if you want to be sure you are pouring the wax at the right temperature a thermometer is handy. We sell a clip on dial thermometer in our Ebay shop. Carefully remove the wax container from the boiling water. Pour the wax carefully into the mould leaving a little space at the top edge. After you have poured the wax carefully give the mould a firm tap with the back of a spoon, this will help dislodge any air bubbles. As the wax cools it will contract slightly leaving a "well area" in the centre which is quite normal and is normally topped up about 20 - 30 minutes later. Most candles need at least 24 hours to harden before removing them from the mould. Even though they may look hard outside the wax inside is not yet solid. Don't rush the cooling process or your fine efforts may be undone. Although that said, you can speed up the cooling time by standing the mould in cool water (ideal water temp of 50C - 60C) this can even improve the smooth appearance of the candle. The larger the diameter of the candle the longer it will need to cool.  

Removing your Candle from the Mould
If your candle won't budge from the mould, immerse the mould in very hot water for 30 seconds. This will slightly melt the outside of the candle and it should slide out Ok. Or you could try putting the mould in the fridge for 15 minutes and then turn the mould upside down and tap the bottom. When your candle is out of the mould make sure the base is level for the candle to burn centrally. If you need to, level the base of the candle by standing it briefly in the base of a warm saucepan, or use a steel scraper. Also carefully remove any seam lines from your candle with a sharp knife. Cut the wick to length, 6mm is about right, and try and keep the wick to about this length to reduce candle soot.

Decorating your Candle

Carved Candles
Many people like to add patterns to their candles by carving designs on them. This can be very effective, especially if the finished candle is dipped in a different, contrasting colour wax. This thin coating of wax will give the candle two colours and is an ideal base for decorative carving. The wax here needs to be hot (165F) and ideally made with a good strong dye mix to give a dramatic effect.  Another method is to use a pyrography pen, these we sell in our Ebay Shop, and Wood Carving knives are equally suitable for carving wax we also sell a selection wax carving tools & pyrography kits.

Chunk Candle
These Chunk Candles or " Tutti Fritti Candles" as we like to call them are an easy way to make stunning decorative candles. These candles look more effective made as large diameter Pillar candles  ( 75mm x 165mm Pillar mould is about perfect )
To make these candles, prepare the mould and wick in the normal way, then loosely fill the mould with chunks of different coloured wax (old coloured candles are perfect ), ideally you want to cut the chunks about ¾" in size. Melt some clear wax to around 90°C (194°F  then carefully pour the melted wax into the Candle mould on top of the chunks. ( Pour the wax into the mould at about 90°C not the normal 78°C - 82°C ) 
You can of course make your own coloured chunks of wax and in any colour combination. Colour small quantities of wax and pour into ice cube moulds and allow to harden. We sell a huge range of single colour candle dyes in our Ebay shop. 10 grams of dye 99p. (10 grams is enough to colour 1kg of candle wax)

Ice Candles
Another variation on the chunk candle is an ice candle. Fill your mould with ice cubes and pour the hot wax over them. The result is a candle that's full of holes with the finished candle looking very much like a piece of Swiss cheese! As the candle burns down in the centre the light glows through.It’s a very effective candle that uses less wax and cools very quickly. Use the largest mould you have for the best effect.  Ideally a mould of at least 75mm in diameter.

 Bamboo Candle Boats
Another simple, cost effective and  decorative Candle is to use a section of 100mm (approx) diameter bamboo. This can be used either upright, with just the top section filled, or split length ways and each section filled.

As you can see there are endless possibilities when you make your own candles. As long as you always apply the basic rules for safety you can let your imagination run wild.

Have fun,  Matthew & Christine from Endless Green

Please check out our 100% feedback and our Ebay Shop. We sell Candlemaking wax, Stearin, a good selection of moulds,  candle dyes, wick pins as well as wicks & sustainers. 

 Candles are easy and fun to make, but please, be careful.