Christmas is coming and its decorations, its warm atmosphere, its festive tables. Why not opt for pretty candles to decorate your interior during this winter period? The commercial ones have fairly low-end flavors that leave something to be desired. In addition, some products used – like the good old paraffin, are quite harmful to health. So, if you are passionate about interior decoration, you know that home-made allows you to create unique and personalized objects that give a unique charm to your home. And making natural candles for Christmas is no exception to this rule.
Creating your own candles is disconcertingly easy. You can personalize them: choose a color, opt for a perfume and make a dressing in particular through ribbons or custom labels. In this article, we explain step by step the making of candles in Do It Yourself (DIY). You will find the list of ingredients and equipment you will need as well as the instructions to follow. Of course, as with any DIY session, pay attention to the safety instructions. Prepare your workspace well and beware of splashes when melting the wax.
How to make natural candles for Christmas?
To make your own natural candles for Christmas, you will need wax to start. You have several options including beeswax, soy wax or palm wax. Of course, the latter has nothing to do with the environment. Soy wax has the particularity of burning very slowly. It is naturally white and opaque. Added to this are candle wicks, for example 100% cotton. Add your favorite essential oils to the mix to create fresh, personalized scents.
Preparation time
10 minutes
Temps total
4 to 6 hours
Material and ingredients
- soy wax
- cotton wicks
- Containers (jars, glasses, cups, etc.)
- essential oils
- boiling water
Instructions
- Fill your containers to the brim with wax. Place your containers in the bottom of an empty Dutch oven and slowly pour boiling water around it until it reaches about halfway up the sides.
- Place the lid on your Dutch oven or pressure cooker and set the temperature.
- After two hours, the wax will melt and you will end up with containers filled to about half their original volume.
- Add more wax and stir. If you want to add color to your candles, do it now.
- Then put the lid back on the casserole or pressure cooker and leave to sit for another hour.
- Once all the wax has melted, remove your containers from the pressure cooker or Dutch oven and let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes. Add essential oils.
- When the wax begins to harden, insert your wicks – you may need to use a knife or chopstick to poke a hole in the wax.
- To keep the wick straight while the wax cools, tie a piece of string around the wick and secure it to either side of your container with tape. You can also insert a wick into the hole in the center of a wooden clothespin, then lay it over the top edge of your container while the wax sets.
- Let the candles cool for several hours before cutting the wicks, putting on the lids and decorating, for example with twine, ribbons or labels that you have created yourself.
Note: Essential oils add a more subtle fragrance than artificial fragrance. Go for it frankly: rather than a few drops, opt for the teaspoon so that your candle has a more perceptible scent. At least, pour at least fifteen drops. With regard to essential oils, inform yourself precisely because some are flammable at a certain temperature. So be sure to choose essential oils that can be heated to a high enough temperature to cause no damage.
How to make natural colored candles for Christmas?
If you want to involve children in the making of your candles, the best way is to introduce color frankly! It could not be easier. If you have crayons and candles that you don’t use, that’s even better. Because to make such candles, you mainly need shavings of wax that you can recover from old candles and colored wax that will be obtained by melting a few pieces of pencils – obviously having removed the labels beforehand. Ideal for making new with old!
Material and ingredients
- recovery wax
- A knife to shred your old candles
- Wax crayons in your favorite colors
- cotton wicks
- Containers (jars, glasses, cups, etc.)
- boiling water
The procedure is the same as before with two exceptions: add color wax and do not use essential oils. It is often said that essential oils are not recommended for young children. And if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, their use is also to be avoided.
Add pieces of colored wax to your containers right from the start. They will melt and mingle with your wax shavings. You can mix everything together to have a homogeneous mixture. When filling your containers, have fun! A layer of one color, then pour another of another color and so on. Many tutorials are available everywhere on the web.