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| - Container: melted wax is poured around a wick in a glass, jar or other container and allowed to set. | - Container: melted wax is poured around a wick in a glass, jar or other container and allowed to set. | ||
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| - Pillar: melted wax is poured into a mould, which is removed after the was has set. | - Pillar: melted wax is poured into a mould, which is removed after the was has set. | ||
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| - Taper: a wick is dipped in melted wax and allowed to cool; the process is repeated until the desired thickness of wax is reached. | - Taper: a wick is dipped in melted wax and allowed to cool; the process is repeated until the desired thickness of wax is reached. | ||
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| Early candles were made from rush lights or papyrus soaked in animal fat, though these lacked the wick of true candles. Over the centuries, different cultures experimented with adding a wick to a variety of combustible materials and by the Middle Ages tallow (from rendered animal fat) was the most common material for household candles across Europe. The introduction of cleaner-burning beeswax - obtained from bee-keeping monasteries - was a major improvement over the smelly, sooty tallow, but the high cost meant they were only affordable by the church or the wealthy. The development of stearin wax (from animal fat), paraffin wax (from petroleum) and braided wicks in the 19th century marked the high point of industrial production, but candle making declined shortly afterwards with the advent of electric lighting. | Early candles were made from rush lights or papyrus soaked in animal fat, though these lacked the wick of true candles. Over the centuries, different cultures experimented with adding a wick to a variety of combustible materials and by the Middle Ages tallow (from rendered animal fat) was the most common material for household candles across Europe. The introduction of cleaner-burning beeswax - obtained from bee-keeping monasteries - was a major improvement over the smelly, sooty tallow, but the high cost meant they were only affordable by the church or the wealthy. The development of stearin wax (from animal fat), paraffin wax (from petroleum) and braided wicks in the 19th century marked the high point of industrial production, but candle making declined shortly afterwards with the advent of electric lighting. | ||
| - | Today, apart from the odd retro power cut, candles are almost exclusively used for decorative or therapeutic purposes and ‘natural’ waxes such as beeswax, soy and palm are now preferred over paraffin wax by hobbyists and small producers. [Essential oils](http://lowimpactorg.onyx-sites.io/ | + | Today, apart from the odd retro power cut, candles are almost exclusively used for decorative or therapeutic purposes and ‘natural’ waxes such as beeswax, soy and palm are now preferred over paraffin wax by hobbyists and small producers. [Essential oils](/eoil/essential_oils) can be added for fragrance. |
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| - Coloured wax if using (tends to be paraffin-wax based). | - Coloured wax if using (tends to be paraffin-wax based). | ||
| - | - [Essential or fragrance oils](http://lowimpactorg.onyx-sites.io/ | + | - [Essential or fragrance oils](/eoil/essential_oils) if using. |
| - Oven or safety gloves and an apron. | - Oven or safety gloves and an apron. | ||
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| ### Container candles | ### Container candles | ||
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| - Calculate the volume of container by weighing it empty and filling it with water, then weighing it again to find the weight of water it contains. | - Calculate the volume of container by weighing it empty and filling it with water, then weighing it again to find the weight of water it contains. | ||
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| - Weigh out the same amount of wax (wax will weigh more-or-less the same as water), but leave enough room for fragrance oils / colour if using them, and melt in the pan or bain-marie at 60°C maximum. | - Weigh out the same amount of wax (wax will weigh more-or-less the same as water), but leave enough room for fragrance oils / colour if using them, and melt in the pan or bain-marie at 60°C maximum. | ||
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| - Add essential or fragrance oils and colour if using. Oils can be added up to 10% of candle volume. Any more will affect the solidity. Natural waxes don’t take as much colour as paraffin so you tend to end up with gentle hues rather than strong colours. Take care not to add too much colour as this can affect the burning properties of the candle. | - Add essential or fragrance oils and colour if using. Oils can be added up to 10% of candle volume. Any more will affect the solidity. Natural waxes don’t take as much colour as paraffin so you tend to end up with gentle hues rather than strong colours. Take care not to add too much colour as this can affect the burning properties of the candle. | ||
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| - Wicks usually come with a little metal disc on the bottom which you glue into the bottom of the container with the glue gun. Trim the wick to the desired size, i.e. not so long that it flops over into the wax. | - Wicks usually come with a little metal disc on the bottom which you glue into the bottom of the container with the glue gun. Trim the wick to the desired size, i.e. not so long that it flops over into the wax. | ||
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| - Pour in the melted wax at around 55°C for metal containers; 40-44°C for glass or ceramic containers (which should be at room temperature). | - Pour in the melted wax at around 55°C for metal containers; 40-44°C for glass or ceramic containers (which should be at room temperature). | ||
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| - Leave to cool in a draught-free area. You can buy special wick holders - or make them yourself out of chopsticks or barbecue skewers – to keep the wick upright during cooling (although if you pour at the correct temperature this shouldn’t be an issue anyway). | - Leave to cool in a draught-free area. You can buy special wick holders - or make them yourself out of chopsticks or barbecue skewers – to keep the wick upright during cooling (although if you pour at the correct temperature this shouldn’t be an issue anyway). | ||
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| ## Further resources | ## Further resources | ||
| - | + | - [Live Simply](https:// | |
| - | ## Specialist(s) | + | - [Let's Make Candles](https://letsmakecandles.com/) - DIY info |
| - | + | - [National Candle Association](https://candles.org/) | |
| - | **Thanks to Sarah Harper of [Rowan Tree Studio](http://www.rowantreestudiodevon.co.uk/) for information.** | + | - [British Candlemakers Federation](https: |
| - | + | - [Candle Science](https://www.candlescience.com/ | |
| - | + | - [WikiHow](https://www.wikihow.com/Make-the-Most-from-Your-Old-Candles) - recycling old candles | |
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| - | Sarah Harper is the owner of the [Clovelly Soap Company](http://www.theclovellysoapcompany.com/ | + | |
| + | ## Specialist curators of this topic | ||
| - | _Date on Lowimpact: | ||