Basic Candle Making – Business / or Great Gifts!

Candle making in itself can be a reward, but can also provide a great cost effective business idea. Making candles is simple, and allows you tap into creativity, so it can be less boring then other small businesses. Candles are so easy to make that it will take very little time before you are ready to move on more advanced projects.

Now let’s put together a list of resources you will need to prepare Candles

  • Candle Making Wax
  • 100gm Coconut Oil (For Greasing)
  • Candle Making Mold(it is better to have steel/glass container or pot as a mold to shape the candle as desired)
  • Candle Making Jar (to melt wax)
  • Wooden Spoon (to stir the wax)
  • Gloves (optional)

That list should be all of the basic tool needed to make some Candles at home–even less if you really don’t want to pick up all of it.

Let’s get started; here are the basic instructions for making a candle.

Basic Candle Making:

Cut a piece of wick about the same length as your candle making mold–or if you’re going to do a dip candle then make it a little longer then the desired candle.

Place you candle making wax in the candle making jar. Heat the wax on low–or place jar in a pot full of water and heat to prevent wax from burning.

Once the wax is melted stir it a little with the wooden spoon. Once it’s fully melted turn the heat off.

Dip the wicks into the wax a few times–two or three will do nicely, and lay them on a plate to cool. Apply the coconut oil on the inside of the candle making molds. After the mold has been oiled, pour the hot candle making wax into the candle making mold until it reaches the brim. Leave it to cool for a little while.

After around 20 minutes take one of the now hardened wicks and place it in the center of the candle–while it is in the mold, hold it still for a moment so it sticks then leave it to fully cool. (Sometimes up to two hours)

When the candle making wax has finally cooled, turn the mold upside down and try to release the candle. If all went well you candle should come out easily due to the oil, you may now carve or decorate your Candle as desired.


Candle Making Molds – How to choose the right one!

There are limitless options when it comes to molds for candle making, you can use any mold from a very large selection to make something truly your own. Molds are available in many different sizes, shapes and made with a large array of different materials of your choice.

It’s always a good idea to have a clear picture of what you are planning to make before you get too far into the process. When choosing the candle making molds for your project, try and imagine how the candle will look, and what type of stand of holder it will be used in.

Even if you are looking for a certain shape of candle, there are likely many molds available for that specific shape as long as you know where to look for them. One type of candle that can be used in almost any candle holder is the pillar style–and may be a good first choice if you are just starting out.

Another option would be a votive candle mold–they will allow you to make quite a few small candles for use in votive holders. You can even find candle making molds in the shape of animals, or other objects from certain manufacturers–amazon.com is a great place to look for this sort of thing.

Some molds can be purchased that will make candles that look like plaques if so desired. These types of molds are so detailed that your candle will come out looking like a picture or a symbol in some cases. You can even find molds so detailed that they produce candles that appear to be hand carved straight out of the wax!

Look in your local crafts stores for interesting molds and sometimes wax and other supplies, or you might try searching online. Molds come in many different types of shapes and size, and also a wide variety of materials if you have a specific preference. Some options are cardboard, metal and of course plastic.

Plastic molds are easy to handle, and easy to clean, they are also usually so cheap you don’t have to worry about breaking them–and since they are also pliable, it probably won’t be much of a worry anyway.

Cardboard molds are great for kids–since you can just tear them up after the wax dries and get the candle out, but as this destroys the mold they are more of a onetime thing.

Milk containers make easy candle molds since they are free–hey they come with the milk after all, and provide a cube shape for the candle to boot. Some candle molds are available in aluminum as well. Pillar candles are often made professionally with metal molds since they are very reusable.

Metal molds are also known to provide a very smooth finish to the candles which is another reason they are the professional choice in use. There are a few things to consider when it comes to the type of mold you use.

  • Plastic molds are easy to clear, but will break much easier than a metal mold.
  • Cardboard molds are great for quick removal, but can fall apart if they get damp and are generally not good for too many uses.
  • Metal candle molds are strong, but they are not pliable which limits the style and appearances they come in, sometimes you will have to choose a plastic mold just to get the right style.

Another important note is that candle wax sticks much more often to the metal molds, so you will have to oil them of you won’t be able to easily remove the finished candle–no fun, but spray oil easily fixes this problem.

The good news is whatever design you have in mind, there are MANY candle making molds available for you to choose from, take a look and find one that really makes your project come to life.


Candle Making Crafts – A lit candle is symbol of knowledge and wisdom

A lit candle is symbol of knowledge and wisdom. Candles make a house more romantic, cozy and beautiful. Candles make a house into home. There is a significant bond between human life and candles. Originally candles were made as a source of light and heat. The creative candle making craft is a daily developing art to suit the changing life styles and market dynamics. Rapid changes are made with innovative ideas to suit the requirement of candles, whether for romantic ambience or healing aromatherapy or to give as a personal home made gift.

Candles are used for decorating our homes, for celebrations and to soothe our senses. It is used for spiritual and religious rituals and prayers. At times we give it as a good presentation to our loved ones with dignity. The lighting of candle heals the mental wounds and develops positive thinking in human beings. It is a spiritual companion. Candle making is gaining momentum as an industry and as a hobby.

One has to learn the basics of candle making. The medium of candle making which suit you best has to be understood along with other prevailing in the market. A visit to one candle making unit will give you on the process and can opt for a better training.

How to make Gel candles: Conventional candle consist of solid wax and a wick. Contemporary ones are made of paraffin, bee wax, gel etc. More popular among them are gel candles made of Gel. Gel is combination of polymer resin and mineral oil. This is transparent. Transparency of the gel makes it unique and the charm is mystique. Gel candles are made of gel, zinc wick and fragrant oils. Inflammable embeds are selected to suit the theme of craft. It can be a shell, false fish, glass etc. anything to suit the occasion or purpose.

Precautions: Gel is more combustible than wax hence fire safety precautions have to be taken in advance. Keep a chemical type fire extinguisher handy. Fire resistant aprons and gloves have to be worn along with safety glasses for fire safety.

Gel candles have to made with utmost care. The container is selected with a minimum diameter of 2 inches. The zinc wick is fixed at the bottom of the container with hot glue and set aside. The gels cut to small pieces are melted using a multi –cooker to liquid form. At 200 degree F it melts and makes it to syrup by stirring. A small amount of liquid dye added. To make fragrance essential oil added. The selection of essential oil again depends on choice of scent for the candle. Pour the gel into the container by placing the wick in the middle and place he embeds in position. Let the candle cool for about four hours. The candle is ready.

How to make paraffin candles: Paraffin wax is a by- product of crude oil refining. This is white and colorless odorless and waxy. The mold and wick are selected. Mold should have a mouth wider than the base and the wick is cut to equal length of mould plus 6 cm. Primed wick is used for the purpose, to ensure proper burning. The wick is inserted through the mould, where a groove is provided for the purpose. At the bottom side of the mold place the wick flat and cover it with enough mould sealer. Inside of the mold apply some vegetable oil for easy removal of candle. Heat wax indirectly with a double mold. Remove the wax from boiling water and allow to cool for a moment. Pour it inside the mold slowly and allow a little space at top without filling wax.

The creative imagination has no limit in candle making craft ideas. Never feel failure in the process and practice is the only way for mastering the ideas. Basic candle making requires some training and practice. Combination of wax and wick has to be carefully practiced. Candle making supplies like wax, tool kit, containers etc are now available in shops and on line. For beginners candle making kits are available with vendors and on line. Better start practicing with this and build up experience and confidence.


Make Money with Candle Making Crafts

Have you ever wondered if you could find a way to make some extra cash from home—and better yet something that was a little more fun than data entry? Well you’re in luck! Candle making has recently turned into a decent hobby/small business option.

Yes you heard me right you can actually make some money from those candles your making for fun! The secret is to make sure you keep you costs low and only sell what you have on hand—don’t want this to become a stressful chore, but instead a fun way to make money at home, that even you teenage children can do and have a good time.

What you will need to pull this off is a few design ideas. Some people like to make candles in old jars—like from the pasta sauce you got at the store. Of course others take it much further and make molds for their unique candle designs which could be a lot of fun if you are artistic—which since you enjoy this type craft you probably are in one way or another.

So let’s get started, first off you are going to need a marketplace. I suggest eBay as the solution for this, and one search on their site will reveal I’m not the only one with that idea. Candles range in price based on the design or the size—and thus the wax needed to make them—from anywhere to $0.50 to almost $40.00—large and unique candles mostly though.

You need to find candle making supplies that can be bought in bulk such as the ones listed below from Amazon.com:

Once you have the supplies, choose one or two designs and make around 5 candles for it to test the waters so to speak. You will then take some pictures—try and lay them out on a beautiful cloth or table set, make the scene magical for the buyer of your wonderful art work.

Take the photos and a quick description of your candles and make an auction on ebay, try selling the candles one at a time, or in batches of 3 and see what works best for you. Since eBay doesn’t cost much to list you candles if won’t matter if you play around a bit to get a feel for the market.

That’s it, the basis for your own online business from home. If you are truly interested if making a full-blown business out of your candle making art, then please by all means try our mini-course, and grab a copy of our great book for all you could ever want to know about candle making.

ATTENTION

We will soon be releasing a BONUS book about starting your OWN candle making business from home, and I’m not going to make a big deal of it anywhere on the site, but mini-course members can pick it up at a discount and here is the big one. For my loyal customers whom have already tried out the wonderful book we offer here on the site I’ll send them a FREE copy of this new bonus booklet.


Get started with Crayons – Candle Making Crafts

Hey, do you ever think about the things you did when you were younger? The fun things you mom or dad showed you have to do as a child. Well I do, and one of the wonderful things I did learn from my mother was how to make candles.

Yes it might sound a little odd really, but making candles is both fun—and it gave me something to do with all the crayons I broke—and didn’t eat. *grin* By the way it seems to be the popular opinion that the blues one are by far the best to munch.

Anyway, I learned to make candles by dipping a wick into hot wax—which it is important to remember is best heated in a pot floating in a pan full of water, or you risk the chance of setting it on fire…

So what can you do about candle making crafts you might ask? Well they are great fun to do with your kids, or if you simply like to have a lot of fun little hobbies. Homemade candles also make great gifts.

For over a thousand years candles have been an important part of human life. Back when the United States of America was first founded some families would burn some 200 to 400 candles a year for lighting. But I suppose enough of the history lesson already.

I am going to describe a simple candle making example to get you started—really this article only scratches the surface of the art of candle making.

First off you are going to need wax..and a good amount of it as well. (Crayons are a great example, or you should be able to pick up candle wax at a crafts store locally)

You will also need some lengths of wick—the part of the candle that will actually burn when you are done, like a fuse but with no explosion at the end *grins*. I would suggest you stop by a local crafts store and pick some up, substituting other things for wick rarely works out well in the end.

First off fill a large pan about half full of water and heat it up. Place another pan—or my personal favorite a empty can from say olives or something—in the water filled pan, but make sure it doesn’t tip over.

Now places you wax—or crayons into the can—or pan that you don’t mind if you never get the wax out of again… It should melt without any trouble as long as you have the heat up, and since the water is in the first pan and the second pan is floating, it will not burn.

Once the wax is melted, you should take a length of wick and dip it into the wax slowly. Then slowly lift it straight back out of the wax. Wait a few seconds for the wax to cool, and then repeat the steps until you candle is as thick as you want.

You will want to hold the candle by the wick for a few moments and let it cool before you lay it down anywhere and trim the wick to about 1/3 of an inch at the top.

Booo-ya! You have made your first candle—told you it was easy. Now if you did as I like to you have a can that you can keep with that color of wax for any time you want to make a candle. Try keeping 3 or 4 colors hot and twisting the candles as you dip them into the different colors. You can make some wonderful candles this way.

I hope you found this article a fun introduction to the art of candle making. Please check back often for more great information!