Handmade candles
People have been making their own candles for thousands of years. Today with the availability of electricity we no longer depend on candles for light. Yet their popularity remains. Nothing beats candles, especially handmade ones, for creating just the right atmosphere whether it be romantic, soothing, or exhilarating.
Relax to the max : 60 candles, scents, soaps & potpourri crafts to create your own bliss
by Rosevita Warda ... [et al.].
New York : Sterling Pub., c2005.
Delight your senses and indulge in luxurious, homemade aromatherapy candles, bath products, and potpourri. Whether you want to calm jagged nerves or encourage a good night's sleep, there's a perfect project in Relax to the Max for pampering body, mind, and spirit. Book jacket.
Making candles & soaps for dummies
by Kelly Ewing.
Hoboken, NJ : Wiley, c2005.
Whether you're a beginner or seasoned craftperson, this fun book offers everything you need to make beautiful, professional-looking candles and soaps at home. You get practical tips on dyeing and scenting wax, using unusual molds, adding embellishments to candles, working with soap ingredients, and even turning your hobby into a business! Book jacket.
The complete book of candles and candlemaking : 150 practical projects and fabulous decorative displays
Gloria Nicol.
London : Lorenz, c2004.
Includes a practical guide to making candles, from melting, scenting, dipping and twisting to eleaborate decorative effects.
Crafting candles at home
text by Jane Blake & Emily Paulsen ; photography by Keith Scott Morton ; styling by Christine Churchill ; foreword by Rachel Newman.
New York : Hearst Books, 2003.
Forty exquisitely illustrated recipes showcase candles to use as centerpieces, create a romantic mood, and brighten the home and garden. Crafting beautiful candles just takes a few ingredients and basic techniques, like rolling a sheet of beeswax into an elegant taper, dipping and molding, and scenting the wax with fragrant essential oils. Make candles in decorative tins. Press flowers in the candles or place them in seashells to celebrate the summer. "Plus: dozens of decorating ideas.
The ultimate gel candle book
Marcianne Miller with Julie Boisseau and Alice Donnelly.
New York : Lark Books, c2003.
New gel candlemakers get a friendly greeting to the craft with plenty of basic projects and helpful tips on technique; as they gain more experience, more detailed and exquisite items await their imaginative touch. Add glitter, insets, fragrance, and layers of color #8212;even vertical ones. Among the awe-inspiring projects: a polymer clay spider #8220;weaving #8221; its web in stylish clear gel; a patriotic Stars #38; Stripes design; and even a Gumball Machine candle.
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Make a pillar candle
Melt wax to 180 degrees in double boiler
Prime the wick by dipping in melted wax
Add additives, color, and scent
Pour wax into metal pouring pot and then into prepared mold
Tap mold several times to remove bubbles
Let set for several hours
Pour a second layer of wax into mold because wax retracts as it cools
When set remove from mold |
| (more details at CandleTech) |
A candle is simply a body of tallow, wax, or other fatty material formed around a wick composed of braided cotton threads.
Early candles were made of vegetable waxes produced from plants such as bayberries, candilla leaves, and various varieties of palm leaves. Tallow candles were made of sheep, cow, or pig fat. However, these crude candles were smoky.
Since 1850, paraffin was refined from oil, making petroleum-based candles possible. This type of candle burns clearly and without any odor.
Candle makers, also known as chandlers, often made candles by dipping wicks into melted wax. There were formal candlemakers' guilds in place by the thirteenth century. By 1292, there were 71 chandlers listed on the Paris tax rolls. Today candle makers can be either professionals or hobbyists.
Candles are named for their shape, or by the method used to make them. Pillars, tapers, votives, tea lights, are just a few shapes that they are made.
There are many methods available to make candles. These include: Cast and molded, dipped, drawn, extruded, poured, pressed, and rolled.
Being creative with candlemaking will add a personal touch to your candles. Try decorating them with pressed, dried flowers, lace, or even colourful buttons. Use various shaped molds, or pour your wax into sand. Old milk or orange juice cartons are great for creating tall, pillar candles.
Enjoy this hobby with your family and have lots of fun making your own holiday gifts.
Article by: St. Louis Public Library staff.
