D I Y HOMEMADE CANDLES

Candles are a great way to bring light and fragrance into a room and making them yourself is a fun craft project. Candles can truly be very meditative and thought provoking. There are endless ways to customise your candles .So get creative and don’t be afraid to experiment. Happy crafting !

Floating Candles

                                                         

MATERIALS  YOU  NEED :

1. Paraffin wax or Soy wax(natural product)
2. Wicks  with metal base or thick thread 
3. Mould such as small glass , Jars or tin containers    Or  Terracotta  Diyas    Or   Removable  mould i.e  metal dishes with shallow depth , paper cups , paper glass   Or Commercial metal moulds for stand candles / floating candles (available in market 

   

   
   

4. A double boiler ( one large pot and one small pot or kettle)
5. Scents / fragrance oil (optional)
6. Colouring agents (optional) /chopped wax crayons 
7. Spatula  or Spoon ,  Knife  
8. Cooking oil and brush
9. Wooden sticks / pencil / large clip
10. Metal tray
11. News paper or old cloth to protect the work place
12. Water

HOW  TO  MAKE :

1. Set up newspapers around your work area .
2. Measure out how much wax you would need to fill your container or mould, then double it. That’s how much wax you will need to melt.
3. To melt the wax , put good amount of water in the bottom pan and put wax chunks in the double boiler or small pot / kettle. Stir it and break up big chunks with spatula.
4. Adhere wick to the container or mould , which will depends on the type and size of container TERRACOTTA  DIYA : Paint and dry before pouring the melted wax , as it has shallow depth, you can easily put wick into wax and adhere the metal base by holding the other end of wick. 

MOULDS (JARS or TIN CONTAINER , GLASS) : 

Some wicks have a little sticker built in , on the bottom but most do not , then dip the metal tab of the wick into that melted wax , then quickly adhere it to the bottom of the container , as the wax hardens, it’ll be stuck solid to the bottom. Tie the other top end of wick to a stick / pencil and put it on the brim of the container. 

REMOVABLE  MOULDS : Grease the inner side of mould such as paper cups or metal dishes with narrow base and broad opening, using cooking oil and brush before fixing the wick as it will help to remove the mould after cooling the wax candle. 

COMMERCIAL METAL MOULDS :  As this type of moulds have two parts and clamps so at first clean the mould’s inner part and grease both parts with cooking oil and brush and tie the thick thread to the bottom and top of one mould at the specific place for it .Cover the other part on it and use clamps to tightly secure both parts together before pouring the melted wax.

1. Add colour and mix it properly by stirring then add fragrance according to the prescribed directions on that bottle . 
2. Now pour the wax into container or mould. Keep the light hold on the wick so that it stays in the center. Don’t pour all the wax just yet, though, you’ll notice that it generally gets a sinkhole in the centre, as the wax sets . Reheat the wax that you left in the pot and top off the candle. Please , don’t add too much or you may end up with another hole, just fill in the depression. 
3. Trim Wick down to just about 1/4” .
4. Clean up the wax by wiping the wax away with paper towel while it’s still in liquid form or use disposable rag.  

Enjoy your candle !