My candle making.

[meconella]

Hi, I'm new, but have been reading here for several weeks and learning a great deal. I've made candles for many years. I am not a professional and dont have the intent, but love to make a good product for my own use, and occasionally for gifts, with aethetics and safety the two main concerns.

I'm sure most of you will cringe with my supply source, but I am very frugal and except for wicking, hardly ever buy supplies in stores. I shop yard sales and have collected used candles for years. Occasionally I'll find someones old candle making supplies, and will get them too. Over they years I've purchased molds, dyes, additives, even slabs of unused wax, but mostly it's partially burned candles. Fortunately I do not have to make a consistent product.

The downside is I never really know everything about the materials I am working with. But the upside is I end up with some very interesting scents and colors. And the price is right. Just last week I purchased a partially burned 7 pound indigo candle with very appealing scent for $1.

Right now I am making extra large tealights (2 and 3/4 inch wide) in a variety of colors. I got 40 of the larger glass holders at a sale for very little and they are very appealing to me.

Also over they years I've purchased at sales many traditional candle holders, my favorite of which is a pair of very old iron floral holders that require 5 larger tapers each, about an inch wide at the bottom. So I dipped my own to fit. Actually while I was at it, I dipped about 80 or so of them.

Anyway, I'm having great fun, and am very grateful to have found this group so I can learn more about some of the more sophisticated aspects of candle making.

[elfcat]

Hi and welcome!

One of these days you should try your hand at buying some new supplies and FO from one of the many great companies out there. That way, you know exactly what you have. Starting out with a slab of wax and a couple of FO and wicks. There is nothing quite like starting with fresh batch of wax and new FO's. It's like christmas morning.

Warning, it is very addictive and then you can't stop! :embarasse

[meconella]

Hi elfcat, thanks for the welcome.

I would absolutely love to go wild in some of the candle supply stores and buy a lot of new things. I often will go look at all the luscious things they have to offer, and maybe some day I will. But right now I would be unable to justify the outlay of so much money for something that I consider a hobby and have no way to recoup the expense. I also know that if I were to start....

I was looking at some of the very appealing waxes but would find it hard to justify ordering a few slabs when I currently pay an average of about 10 cents/pound now. LOL, of course there is that unknown element in not knowing what I am getting, but if a used candle has burned well, there is little risk.

As to FOs, I can be allergic to certain scents and now always give the sniff test to the used candles I buy. I get only those that are unscented or non-allergy producing. I would love to be able to use a lot of FO's because some can be very nice, but that likely isnt in the cards for me. I've had to get rid of some of the candles I've made when I was less careful about scent.

And yes, it is very addictive. From the time I saw my first tapers and votives in church when I was a kid, I've been hooked. I've made candles on and off for well over 3 decades and have boxes and boxes of supplies in the garage.

Just loving it.

[topofmurrayhill]

I probably don't have to tell you, but since your results are liable to be a little unpredictable at times, you have to be careful about monitoring your candles when burning them. Apart from that, it's great that you're getting so much enjoyment out of it and welcome to the board!

[DONNAMAC]

Hi and Welcome to the board, it sounds like you are having fun, be careful and enjoy your hobby.

[CareBear]

how do you know what wick to use if you don't know what your candle is made of? are you buying wicks or pulling the mystery wicks out of mystery candles?

Have fun, but like top said - be careful.

[elfcat]

Hi elfcat, thanks for the welcome.

I would absolutely love to go wild in some of the candle supply stores and buy a lot of new things. I often will go look at all the luscious things they have to offer, and maybe some day I will. But right now I would be unable to justify the outlay of so much money for something that I consider a hobby and have no way to recoup the expense. I also know that if I were to start....

I was looking at some of the very appealing waxes but would find it hard to justify ordering a few slabs when I currently pay an average of about 10 cents/pound now. LOL, of course there is that unknown element in not knowing what I am getting, but if a used candle has burned well, there is little risk.

As to FOs, I can be allergic to certain scents and now always give the sniff test to the used candles I buy. I get only those that are unscented or non-allergy producing. I would love to be able to use a lot of FO's because some can be very nice, but that likely isnt in the cards for me. I've had to get rid of some of the candles I've made when I was less careful about scent.

And yes, it is very addictive. From the time I saw my first tapers and votives in church when I was a kid, I've been hooked. I've made candles on and off for well over 3 decades and have boxes and boxes of supplies in the garage.

Just loving it.

I don't know what I would do if I were allergic to FO's. I would probably have a lot more money from NOT buying so many.

[meconella]

I probably don't have to tell you, but since your results are liable to be a little unpredictable at times, you have to be careful about monitoring your candles when burning them.

Not to worry. I live in a high danger fire zone and am always aware of any sort of flames. We had a major wildfire come within about 2 blocks this summer, and had to evacuate for several days. Candles are flames.... danger. I never burn anything outside of my view, and all my burning candles have additional fireproof containers beneath them. I'm actually somewhat paranoid about burning candles, lol.

how do you know what wick to use if you don't know what your candle is made of? are you buying wicks or pulling the mystery wicks out of mystery candles?

I'm pretty relaxed about it. Wax, wick, pour, set, light. It works or it doesnt. I've actually had very few failures, esp the past few years. In the beginning I had far more problems, but then I was just beginning everything.

Over the years I've gotten pretty good about visually sizing up the wax that is in candles. Maybe not exactly what it is, but how it will burn. I also have several kinds of purchased wicks, and I do make test runs. And, yes, I will sometimes re-use a wick if it looks good.

I don't know what I would do if I were allergic to FO's. I would probably have a lot more money from NOT buying so many.

Well, there are some fragrances I really like that dont make me sneeze, but it's so hit and miss that I wouldnt want to take the chance of buying any. I was in a store with candles the other day, and when I passed one section, I could tell there was something there I was reacting to. Too bad. Oh well.

Thanks everyone for the nice welcome. I've enjoyed reading a good number of past threads and learning more, and look forward to even more.

[Alajane]

meconella, I did the same thing when I started out. My introduction to candle-making was a gift of a craft-store kit using the granulated (bead-type) wax. After using that up, I thought--oh, I have lots of candles lying around--I'll melt them down. Then whenever I found a good sale on candles at a store or yard sale, I bought all I could get my hands on. Of course, I was just doing it for fun and for myself.

The problem started when I actually bought my first slab of wax and a few FOs online!!! I gave some of those candles to a friend for her birthday; she told one of her friends I made candles, and lo and behold--I was making candles.

Of course, once I really got into it and found bulletin boards like this one, I realized how many things I was doing wrong and set about correcting them, but I'm warning you--recycling those candles starts you down a slippery slope!! Now I'm totally addicted and can't stop even on the days I want to!

Have fun,

Jane