Candle Making Guide

Essential products which you've got to make candles in a safe manner

The very first thing you will need is something to melt your wax in. Lots of people believe you might want to only use the double boiler method to melt wax. The double boiler method is the safest way to melt wax however it's also the slowest. There are many ways to melt your wax for making candles, and we'll discuss those so you can weigh up which way is effective for you.

One thing I will warn you is to never melt wax on your stove unless you are using the double boiler method. Never melt wax on or in anything that don't even have some form of temperature control because wax does have a flash point but will burst into flames without warning once it reaches that point. Depending on the wax the flash point may be between 290 - 380 degrees. Often be safe when you make candles.

You don't have to have an expensive wax melter to make great candles either. You ought to purchase a Presto "Kitchen Kettle" from your local hardware or Walmart Store. I've seen them in just about every Walmart That i have ever been in and they're no more than $20.00! Make certain you are getting the "Kitchen Kettle" there are many variations but the Kitchen Kettle comes with a numerical temperature gauge. Never melt wax in anything that doesn't need a numerical temperature gauge. Don't ever use anything with just high, medium and low settings.

The next thing you will need is a good thermometer. You need to use this with your kitchen kettle to make sure a proper candle wax temperature at all times. You can buy you a good thermometer while you're buying your kitchen kettle for under $5.00. Even a candy making type thermometer works great when you are learning how to make candles. We also offer a great thermometer for candle making from our shopping cart.

You will need a "pour pot" to pour your melted candle wax into your molds. We offer quality aluminum "Candlemaker's" pour pots, but I will tell you that a glass pyrex measuring cup works just as well. You can even start out using an old, clean coffee can to pour your candles.

Next, you will need an accurate and reliable scale for weighing your wax to put in your melter. A scale that weighs up to 10 LBS should be sufficient. You can usually find one at Walmart or at any office supply store. When we weigh our wax we break it up with a hammer and put the chunks the digital scale until we reach the amount we are going to melt.

The Presto "Kitchen Kettle" we talked about earlier will hold about 8 LBS of wax. You can melt anywhere up to that. Eventhough it will hold 8 LBS of wax, I don't recommend that you start off ever melting more than 5-6 LBS at a time while you're learning how to make candles, because when you try to stir it can slosh out of the pot and cause a big mess.

Scented Pillar Candle Starter Kit

 So far you will require the next items to begin your candle making:

 1. Melting Pot
 2. Thermometer
 3. Pour Pot
 4. Scale to weigh your wax
 5. Hammer to break up wax

Candle Making Supplies

Now we will cover the actual Candle Making supplies you will need.

You will need wax. If you want to make quality, fragrant candles not just any wax will do. We recommend one of our blended candle waxes that are manufactured exclusively for making candles. Our candle wax page offers only premium candle wax that was formulated to make creamy, rich looking candles every time when used properly. There's lots of types of waxes available, you can read more about all of the various candle making waxes on our web site in greater detail, including Soy Wax.

You will need wax coloring or dye. Perhaps you are wondering if a crayon would work to color your wax. The short answer is yes, but the pigments accustomed to make crayons will clog your wick and prevent your candle from burning properly. We recommend a dye that was formulated for candle wax. Our professional candle wax dyes come in a 1 oz drip bottle and they are very concentrated. A 1 oz bottle will last you a long time. They are convenient and easy to use whether you're a pro candle maker or just learning how to make candles.

Metal Candle Wick Centering Device, 1 – 99 quantity, priced each

Next, you will need some wicks. To save you time and money we offer pretabbed and prewaxed wicks. Wicking is a very instrumental part of candle making. Too big of a wick or too small of a wick is not good. We always advise that you test various candle wick sizes to ensure that you are getting the proper burn for your candles. With that said, I will tell you that we use a 44-24-18z wick for our votive candles. The wicks we offer are proven to give a good burn and scent throw when used with our quality products.

Of course, since you're want to learn how to make highly fragrant candles you're going to need fragrance oil. I am often asked: Isn't all fragrance oil the same? Let me assure you with an empathic "NO". Allot of people waste a lot of money trying to save in this one area where you just shouldn't, not if you want to make great candles that is. The next paragraph explains why.

Any wax you choosed to use to make your candles will only hold a certain amount of fragrance oil. This equates to approximately 1 oz - 1.5 oz of fragrance oil per LB of wax at most. After that, the fragrance oil will simply seep from the wax once your candle is made. So, since you can only put so much fragrance oil in a candle it only makes sense that if you want a truly strong scented candle you've got to use a quality fragrance oil. You'll be glad you used quality ingredients once you begin making candles.

All of our fragrance oils are 100% pure, uncut, no dilutions or additives, only pure quality fragrance oils you will be proud to use. Here is another money saving tip, whether you buy your fragrance oils from us, or another company, always purchase the 1 oz sampler size first so you can evaluate each fragrance and performance before you invest a lot of money in a bigger size bottle. A 1 oz bottle of our fragrance oil will scent 1 LB of wax and should give you a very strong scented candle.

And lastly, if you begin your candle making experience by learning how to make votive candles you will definitely need a few votive molds. We recommend using our seamless, metal votive molds and wick pins to ensure a perfect made votive candle with a perfect centered wick. I also want you to email me if you have any other questions that I might possibly not have covered in the instructions below, also be sure that you let me know how your first candles turn out! Most of all... Have fun when & make great candles!

 The candle making supplies you will need are:

 1. Candle making wax
 2. Wax dye
 3. Wicks
 4. Fragrance oils
 5. Votive molds or glass containers

 You can click any of the links above to go directly to that web page. http://kindlovinggifts.com

 I hope we've helped you save a little time and money with this little guide. Be sure to print out any of the candle making guides below that you may be interested in. If there is ever anything that I can assist you with don't hesitate to let me know.

History of The Wreaths

In the Greco-Roman world, wreaths were used as an adornment that could represent a person’s occupation, rank, their achievements and status. The wreath that was commonly used was the laurel wreath. The use of this wreath arose from the Greek myth involving Apollo, Zeus’ son and the god of life and light, who fell in love with the nymph Daphne. When he pursued her she fled and asked the river god Peneus to help her, in which Peneus turned her into a laurel tree. From that day forth, Apollo wore a wreath of laurel on his head. This became associated with what Apollo embodied; victory, achievement and status and would later become one of the most commonly used symbols to address achievement throughout Greece and Rome.
The laurel wreath was also used to crown victors at the Pythian games dating back to the 6th century BCE and was later used in the Ancient Olympic Games as well. In present day society, the use of the laurel wreath is still honoured as to follow tradition. Modern Olympic medals are designed with a sprig of laurel engraved to pay homage to the first Olympic games. A more recent example is the coins minted for the 2004 games that were held in Athens, Greece. They featured an olive wreath on them, as well as the victors were crowned with an actual laurel wreath.
The Romans use of laurel wreaths echo the Greek traditions. The wreath was a symbol in the arts, literature, government and education in Roman society. In the arts, it expressed that one was valued and respected with a laurel wreath resting atop one’s head. Ovid, the famous Roman poet, is almost always depicted with laurel in his hair. Kings in both Greece and Rome donned the laurel wreath to illustrate sovereignty. Julius Caesar for example, proclaimed the laurel wreath "to be a symbol of the supreme ruler." The wreaths worn by kings were reminiscent of the traditional laurel wreath by the shape and its connotation yet were embellished with gold and gems. This eventually led to the modern day crown.

Since the classical use and symbolism of wreaths, the meaning and  representation has taken on differing views, depending on the culture. In Christianity, wreaths are used to prepare for the Advent season or the "coming of Christ."[6] The first known association with these now modern day wreaths dates back to the Lutherans in Germany in the 16th century. In 1839, Johann Hinrich Wichern used a wreath made from a cart wheel to educate children about the meaning and purpose of Christmas, as well as to help them count its approach. For every Sunday of Advent, starting with the fourth Sunday before Christmas, he would put a white candle in the wreath and for every day in between he would use a red candle. The Advent wreath is constructed of evergreens to represent everlasting life brought through Jesus and the circular shape of the wreath represents God, with no beginning and no end. The Advent wreath is now a popular symbol in preparation for the coming of Christ, to mark the beginning of the Christian Church’s year and as décor during the Christmas festivities.