maryta Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 Hi all...I have about 60 pounds of 14 kinds of wax (paraffin, soy, natural soy, parasoy...specifics below). I put aside some for making scented tart melts and tried to sell the rest on Craig's List but no one is interested (probably because I have less than 8 lbs of each kind to get rid of). I'd like to just be rid of it but my husband now wants to be thrifty and keep the wax and make candles...just for home use and unscented. He thinks we just need to pour the wax into any empty glass jars we have and stick wicks in them. I KNOW it is not as easy as that to make a good candle but we are not looking to make anything great so I just want to get some basic supplies and instructions/book so that when he does start making candles, they are at least safe. I, myself, have no interest in making candles (I think it is too complicated), but he is all excited to try this so that we aren't "wasting" the wax. I did some research and this is what I was thinking about getting that would be okay for all of my waxes, mostly to be made into container candles:- Wicks: "LX Wick" (https://www.candlescience.com/wick/lx-26) - pre-tabbed. It sounds like these will work for the waxes I have. I'll buy some 8" ones and cut them if needed (?) - Glass Jars: I will probably buy a box of tumbler jars made for candles (we don't need that many and they aren't too expensive and I know they will be candle safe).- Recycled glass jars: leftover jam or pickle jars? Would these be safe?- Wick Stickers: do I need them?- Votive wax: can I pour votive waxes as container candles? Or can I mix with some container wax?- Pillar wax: can I use silicone molds (I have a few small ones)? Or should I buy a metal cylinder mold? Or not bother with the pillar wax? Or can I mix pillar with container wax to pour as a container candle?- Book/Instructions...is there an up-to-date book that we should get or do we just pour at 185 degrees into room temperature jars and let them cool before covering? I just want to get minimal supplies and instruction and give to the big guy. Any advice for the above will be greatly appreciated!! (I already have a Presto Pot and a thermometer and craft sticks for making wick holders)(The waxes I have: Golden Wax 444, 464, 415, 416, KY Parasoy Tart & Votive, Ky 143, IGI 13434641, 4625, 4627, 4630, 4633, 4795, and Tennessee Candle Celestial Votive) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisR Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 Since you have a little of this and a little of that, by the time you actually test container candles for the proper wick, you will be out of wax and it will have cost you quite a bit of money. Plus, I wouldn't mix container & votive/pillar wax for containers, as it will pull away from the sides and create 'wet spots'. I couldn't recommend any specific wicking with the various mix of waxes you have. Personally, I would use up the wax with tarts, so you wouldn't have to expend a lot of money to test candles. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcbrook Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 Yes, I agree with Chris on this one. By the time you get the wicking right you might just be out of that wax! Ask you husband if he would rather do melts! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maryta Posted December 2, 2015 Author Share Posted December 2, 2015 (edited) Thank you both very much! I was hoping that the wicks would be "good enough" but we really don't have the time to test test test. And since it will be a one-time thing, I do not want to spend too much extra money just to avoid throwing the wax away. I will tell him it's a bust or just buy one small set of wicks and let him try one of the waxes in some jelly jars. As for melts, he is not interested. He want to have flames Edited December 2, 2015 by maryta Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest OldGlory Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 There is certainly no shortage of people wanting to make candles this season, LMBO! We have a newbie once a week, so if you wanted to, you could read all the threads in the general candlemaking category, and the vegetable wax candle category. You will find all of your questions answered there. They are kept for just this purpose - for all the questions people have about making candles. You can save yourselves a lot of frustration by NOT trying to make sense out of the assortment of supplies you have there, oryou can research each of the waxes by going to a variety of websites that sell those waxes and read about the waxes to determine how to use them, which wicks to use, etc. If your husband is determined to make candles, I would gather a list of suppliers websites, and tell him to have at it. If he's the one wanting to make the candles, he should do the research. The 444, 464, and 415 are all container soy waxes and will have pretty much the same wicking requirements, but I don't use the LX wicks, so you're on your own figuring out which wicks will work. I use Premier wicks. Please don't use jars that are not heat safe, or made for candlemaking. You could set your house on fire. 416 is a tart wax. The 1343 and 4625 are pillar waxes and you will need an aluminum mold for those some sealant, and a method for inserting/using a wick. I would also suggest some mold release. And I use zinc wicks in those applications, again not the LX series. I don't know a thing about your other waxes, but I'm sure you can look them up using your web browser.Good luck and above all, please be safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candybee Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 Seriously what I would do if I just had to have a flame. I'd make tea light candles. Just about any tea light wick should work out fine enough for most tea lights. Tea light containers are fairly inexpensive. Also, you can use up the container wax, votive wax, and pillar wax to make tea lights. I wouldn't necessarily combine them together thou. Just try out one wax at a time. Buy fragrance oils that are made specifically for candlemaking and from a reputable candle supply company. Make sure you burn the tea lights on a flame proof surface as even tea lights can be potentially hazardous if not burned or watched properly. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Great suggestion Candybee. tea light wicks are a narrower range, but at least once dialed in you have not wasted lbs of wax. And you are totally right that they should be treated with care like any other candle.As far as mixing other waxes, if for personal use wet spots mean nothing to me. If the wax burns safely i'm all happy. I'd probably get a case of canning jelly jars from a local store and go for it testing with a few packs of wicks. Pick one wax to start. Try as many wicks as needed to find a safe burn, and go til that wax runs out. With no color or Fo most of the variables are eliminated. Repeat with the next wax. I learned a LOT about wax and wicks with 10lbs of wax at a time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trappeur Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 I agree.....make tarts....since you are not going to be making candles and your husband isn't either your best bet is tarts. Since you said you don't even want to test, why waste so much of everyones time here as we try to explain about wicking, jars, etc if you are not even going to come back here to the site.....I'm not trying to be mean or anything...but candlemaking is a long, tedious, trial and error, testing procedure. There is much to be be found here in all the forums and how to start. You said you don't even want to do any fragrance....so yep, I would do tarts/melts. Have fun! Trappeur Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trappeur Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 The last sentence I typed, I meant to say go with tea lights, not tart/melts. Trappeur Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maryta Posted December 3, 2015 Author Share Posted December 3, 2015 (edited) Thank you very much, everyone!! Your replies are really helpful and now I can have dh come here and read them so that he see the experts' advice himself. That way he doesn't think I am just being overly cautious and that it is not as simple as he thinks. Plus, it can be dangerous. He trusts online forums (he builds furniture and relies on his forum friends for that a lot) so I know that he will take your advice to seriously. I didn't mean to come across as asking for a lot of info...I just wanted to know if I needed to do the research for more info or if we could just melt and pour using one set of wicks and candle-safe containers (I am pretty experienced with tarts but know that have no knowledge of candles). We don't care how the candles would look or wet spots,etc. Anyway, he's on his own now and can decide how to proceed...tea lights, candles, etc... he definitely will have some fun, in any case...and thank you all again!!! Edited December 3, 2015 by maryta Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trappeur Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Hello Maryta, I didn't mean to come across so abrupt myself as when I went back and reread what I wrote, it does somewhat come across as that. You have sooo many different types of wax and not all can be used for container candles and some can be blended with one another so that is why the suggestions were made to you to keep it as simple as possible since this is only going to be a one time shot with you using up your wax. And keep in mind too that (every) different style jar takes a (DIFFERENT) size wick and every style wax will work with only certain style wicks....There are so many types of wicks out there, cd, htp, eco, lx, premier, etc......That is why you have to test, test, test, to find out what wick will go what wax and you need wicks stickums also. You can't just place any wick in any jar. There is a lot of research that has to be read as you already know now...And with your husband being in the retail business and makes custom furniture, he should be able to appreciate what we all are saying. I was wondering also,....all these waxes....how old are they and where did you get them from? There might be some people here on the board who might be interested in purchasing some of these waxes for experimenting themselves if they were offered at a good enough price...just a thought. Trappeur Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candybee Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 If you go with tea lights, here is a tutorial I posted about them in the tutorials section: http://www.craftserver.com/page/articles.html/_/tutorials/candles/basic-tea-lights-r110 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maryta Posted December 3, 2015 Author Share Posted December 3, 2015 Thanks for the link, Candybee! Trappeur, thanks for your post...I bought all the wax since April of this year to try to find a new/better formula for my tarts (I succeeded, thank goodness...I did over 100 formulations ). Anyway, the shipping is so $$, that I thought I'd just try to sell locally on Craig's List. I am in Connecticut ... if I have time this weekend, I'll post a coherent list of what I have in the Classifieds section of the forum. And just keep one or two for hubby to play with. Thanks again, everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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