How to make Candles!

Step 2 What you'll need

• Wax - I got mine from Joanne's, a 4 pound block for something like $14
• Wicks - Got it from Joanne's, too, for $2
• Crayons (If you want your candle colored)
• Scent (I used vanilla extract)
• Olive oil (Optional)

(Joanne's sends out 40% off any item coupons every sunday in our newspaper, check for coupon's from your craft store, they're helpful =] )

*Double boiler (Or two nesting pots)
*Knife
*Molds (I used a soda can, and a dixie cup)
*Mixing Spoon

Comments

[Beekeeper]

Wicks are braided - either flat braided or square braided. Before braided wick was invented, candles used to develop great long wicks sticking up into the flame which required regular trimming to avoid clouds of black smoke and soot. Braided wick curls over as it burns and thus sticks out into the hot part of the flame where it is able to burn itself away. Flat braided wicks are usually better for paraffin wax candles wheres square braided is better for beeswax (which burns slower). Additionally you have to get the right size/diameter of wick proportional to the diameter of your candle. If the wick is too small you will get that big puddle of wax in the middle of the candle which snuffs out the flame, or the surplus wax runs down the side of the candle. The wick has to be big enough to soak up the amount of wax that the heat from the flame melts. I could go on and on about candle making as I have been making all kinds of beeswax candles for nearly 50 years.

[burnerjack01]

It would seem to me, anyone who has 50 years of experience at candle making ( or anything else for that matter) has an enormous amount of expertise that would be a travesty if lost. Please consider writing a book or video or even instructible series. Maybe even an internet workshop!
I envy the skill you must possess

[Beekeeper]

I have given workshops to friends and bee clubs but as for writing a book, no thanks. I tried it once on another subject and found the whole process too difficult. There are numerous videos on youtube on making candles, though of course not all good - in my opinion.

[ricoplace]

What are wicks really made up of?  Cotton string?. Like around the house or in 100 foot rolls? say 40 lb. test? if, so should i presoak the wick in wax? THere must be something lying around the house!

[bobftx]

Wicks are actually very clevery engineered textiles! Made to burn properly without smoking, to trim themselves as they burn, and to be exactly the right size and weight for a certain size of candle. You have to get wick! You cannot use string, and you cannot make your own.

[mikelz]

You can try using string but it probably won't work. I'm a Zippo user. If you light that thing when it's dry, the wick burns itself down. I think the same thing would happen here - the string would burn but the was never would.

[gilleseg]

Joanne Fabrics??

[Weissensteinburg]

It's a craft store, similar to Michael's.