Candlemaking!
Sunday, February 13th, 2005 02:31 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lethargic_manBurning Chanukah and Havdalah candles always leaves such a mess! I collect up the wax drippings, and from time to time make them into a new candle. Commercially, candles are made by dipping them into hot wax, letting the new layer on the outside set, them repeating the process until it's the width you want, but that's far too much effort, so here's what I do for cottage-industry candles. :o)
First, make a mould out of thin cardboard. Cylindrical is the simplest, but you can do other shapes as well, even non-prismatic: my brother once made a dodecahedral candle! Your cardboard should be smooth to the touch; rough cardboard will stick to the candle. (If you only have rough cardboard, line it with Vaseline first.) Use Sellotape to close up your mould, but try to minimise the area in contact with the interior - Sellotape adheres poorly when in contact with liquids, and we'll be relying on any leaks being small enough that wax escaping through them solidifies, blocking passage to further loss.
Now, take a piece of string, unravel it into its component strands, and plait three strands or strand pairs to make a wick. (I have no idea if this is more efficacious than just using a normal piece of string, but someone once recommended it to me, and I'm sticking with what I know works.) Punch a hole through your mould's base for the wick; the knot at the bottom will hold it in place. Now Sellotape over the hole you've made! To keep the wick central to the candle, hold the top of the wick in place with a hairgrip, or alternatively pierce it with a needle or unbent paperclip.
Now melt your wax in an old tin can; it's safest to do this in a saucepan of boiling water. When the wax has melted, let it cool (see above point about ready solidification), then pour it into your mould. It's best to do so with the mould in another tin can, both to keep it unright, and also in case wax escapes at the bottom.
The wax will (being more sensible than water) shrink as it solidifies, you may want to top your mould up as it does so. When the whole lot has set, you may find it's constricted towards the mould walls, leaving a hole down the middle; you can fill this up too.
And now I bet someone follows up telling me the flaws in my method, and giving a much better method for making your own candles. :o)
First, make a mould out of thin cardboard. Cylindrical is the simplest, but you can do other shapes as well, even non-prismatic: my brother once made a dodecahedral candle! Your cardboard should be smooth to the touch; rough cardboard will stick to the candle. (If you only have rough cardboard, line it with Vaseline first.) Use Sellotape to close up your mould, but try to minimise the area in contact with the interior - Sellotape adheres poorly when in contact with liquids, and we'll be relying on any leaks being small enough that wax escaping through them solidifies, blocking passage to further loss.
Now, take a piece of string, unravel it into its component strands, and plait three strands or strand pairs to make a wick. (I have no idea if this is more efficacious than just using a normal piece of string, but someone once recommended it to me, and I'm sticking with what I know works.) Punch a hole through your mould's base for the wick; the knot at the bottom will hold it in place. Now Sellotape over the hole you've made! To keep the wick central to the candle, hold the top of the wick in place with a hairgrip, or alternatively pierce it with a needle or unbent paperclip.
Now melt your wax in an old tin can; it's safest to do this in a saucepan of boiling water. When the wax has melted, let it cool (see above point about ready solidification), then pour it into your mould. It's best to do so with the mould in another tin can, both to keep it unright, and also in case wax escapes at the bottom.
The wax will (being more sensible than water) shrink as it solidifies, you may want to top your mould up as it does so. When the whole lot has set, you may find it's constricted towards the mould walls, leaving a hole down the middle; you can fill this up too.
And now I bet someone follows up telling me the flaws in my method, and giving a much better method for making your own candles. :o)
