Candle Making

Do you love the sight and smell of luxurious candles around your home? If you've got some time and want to impress the heck out of your friends, consider making your own candles to light up your room! With a few tools and supplies and a lot of creativity, you can make endless amounts of gorgeous candles perfect for your lifestyle.

Here are some of the basics that you will need:

• A stove or a hot plate  to warm the wax.
• To keep the hot wax hot, you will need a double boiler  with a pouring pot.  You can put a coffee can full of hot wax inside the boiler to keep it separate.
• Obviously, you will need colored wax to melt and then shape into candles.
• You might want to keep a thermometer handy to test the temperature of the hot wax before pouring.
• You will need as many wicks  as you intend to make candles.
• The wax will need to harden in a candle mold.  Beginners may want to try using a Dixie cup, while the more experienced use a metal mold for votive and pillar style candles.
• Glass candle holders or pretty candle sticks for display.
• Fragrances and aromas to add that finishing touch.

How to Choose the Right Wax and Wicks

It might seem like all candles use the same type of wick, but that is not the case. Depending on what type of wax you pick, the wick should measure up. The wick is actually a very important part of the candle, seeing that it absorbs oil and keeps the candle burning uniformly. Fragrance, coloring, and the specific type of wax all impact the way that the wick burns yielding results like mushrooming (carbon build-up) and drowning.

Wick types:

• Pre-tabbed votive wicks  are great for beginners looking to do votive candles. Pre-tabbed wicks can also be used for container candles.
• Braided Wicks
• Flat braided wicks are best for tapered and pillar style candles. You cannot use these for container candles, votive, or tea lights.
• Square braided wicks are great for just about every type of candle out there, especially beeswax candles.
• Both types burn on a slight curve, for even burning. These wicks are also less likely to have problems with mushrooming.
• Picking the right sizes wick can be tricky:
• Get 18 ply (#1) for pillars with a one to two inch diameter.
• Get 24 ply (#2) for pillars with up to a three inch diameter.
• 32 ply (#3) is best for pillars up to four inches in diameter.
• Bold TextCored Wicks
• Zinc Core  wicks are the most common wick type. It burns the slowest and coolest of all, which makes one the ideal wick type for votives, container candles, and tea lights.
• Paper Core  burn the hottest and are mostly used for container candles.
• Hemp Core  wicks are the strongest and most rigid. Use these for heavy-duty type candles.
• Bold Text HTP Coreless
• Coreless Cotton  are often referred to as self-cleaner wicks. They are ideal for container candles.

Wax Types

• Paraffin wax  is a good place for beginners to start. It is ideal for making votives as well as container candles. Parrafin wax is relatively inexpensive and easy to find, plus it comes in a variety of melting temperatures. Refined paraffin wax offers a more high grade option-it emits less smoke and it burns slower. Both types are good for adding color and fragrance.
• Beeswax  is slow burning and more expensive than paraffin, but it is still a pretty popular type of wax used by many candle makers. When burning, beeswax emits a faint honey smell. For a super easy candle, beeswax is sold in sheets and they can be rolled up instead of melted down. How simple is that?
• Soybean wax  comes in a variety of melting temperatures and is clean burning. However, some complain that this wax does not burn evenly.
• Palm wax  is a hard type of wax with a high melting point. When it hardens, palm wax tends to look crystalline.
• Bayberry wax  is rigid and sometimes brittle. It has a melting point of around 120 degrees and it's known for its green color and faint scent.
• Gel wax  is a new, easy to pour variety.