How to make shell candles

I visited my friend at her little house on the ocean and collected a ton of these shells without really knowing what to do with them  When I got them home, I realized they were the perfect size and shape for some whimsical, romantic candles.
They are great for adding a pretty touch to any room and would make great centerpieces or favors at a wedding.

Step 1 Materials

You will need:
-large shells (you can probably buy them online or at your local craft store if you don't have access to a beach)
-wicks (craft store)
-wax of your choice (I used soy wax shavings since I live in a dorm and they melt in the microwave)
-bowl or cup for wax
-larger bowl for water to create double boiler effect
-spoon for stirring and pouring
-fragrance (soy doesn't hold on to scent very well, but I added some vanilla and lavender to different batches and it still smelled nice)

Comments

[momoli]

Thank you, this is awesome and i'll be making these on a date with my girlfriend :)

[iac]

You can also use vegetable oil and make a repro anciant lamp.

[Danger is my middle name]

Oh yeah, that would be awesome! I have some vegetable oil right now! Maybe I'll try that...

[Oscelot]

I thought about doing this too. you could use a dremel to drill a hole in the bivalve (the roundy bit at the back where it connects to the other side) for the wick.

[Danger is my middle name]

Oh please make an instructable about it! That would be awesome!

[krysteanuh]

This is such a smart idea.
Whenever I go to the beach, I always hoard a bunch of shells, bring them home, and don't have anything to do with them.
I will definitely try this!
Thank you for the 'ible. :3

[Danger is my middle name]

Awesome! Post pictures if you want. It's super easy and fast and a great excuse to collect shells :)

[Nemesis201077]

Nice 'ible I've done something like this myself a long time ago and think it might be nice to do again, especially as wedding favours.
I found lining a shallow tray with sand helped me to keep the shells steady when doing this. That way I didn't need anyone else to hold them whilst the wax set.

[Danger is my middle name]

Oh that would have been so helpful! I sort of did that with a towel and I also enlisted the help of my room mate, SelkeyMoonbeam, to help me, which is why she is a collaborator on this one. A tray of sand would have been awesome though, and I bet it would look pretty just to keep them there.

[tim13211]

Omfg! I did this exact same thing, 2 years ago. And was in the process of making an ible when I saw this!

[Danger is my middle name]

oh no! sorry! You should still go ahead and make it. You might have a different technique and more insight than me.

[MadBricoleur]

COOOL an oil lamp out of this would be AWESOME!

[tim13211]

:'(

[SHIFT!]

You know, there's a beach immediately outside my campus and I've been collecting all these different tiny sea shells and keeping them in a pot. I think I will definitely have to make them into this this weekend, maybe even add hooks so they can hang up. Nicely done!

[Danger is my middle name]

If you hang them as candles just make sure the wax doesn't drip on anything important!

[SHIFT!]

Yeah for sure. I have some larger shells, so I might have the smaller ones dripping into a large collection at the bottom.

[Danger is my middle name]

that would be awesome. I can't wait to see pics!