How to make a candle with your own hands? There is nothing simpler - you need to take a wick, material for a candle and dishes in which wax will be cast. All these materials are inexpensive, so everyone should try! A self-made candle will always be in place - at a children's party, romantic dinner, birthday. Or you can make a candle as a gift - everyone will be happy to receive such an unusual present. And on a rainy day you can light a candle and enjoy the romantic atmosphere.
We collect materials
For manufacturing, you need very few materials.
- The form where the wax will be poured - a plastic mug, a glass, a glass, an egg or an ice mold - everything that is at hand will do.
- Casserole and water for a water bath. It is best to heat the wax in it, since it melts it gradually, without sharp heating.
- Wick.
- The material for the candle itself : paraffin, gel, wax or cinders of past candles - everything will be needed.
- Essential oils - if you wish, you should choose the ones that you like. You should choose carefully - they evaporate quickly, and the candle may not smell at all.
- Dyes - ordinary colored wax crayons or special dyes plus paints for wax (needed for complex patterns on the candle itself).
- Materials for decoration - beads, small pebbles, glass, coffee beans, dried flowers. Here you can show your imagination. There are practically no restrictions (the only thing is not to take small sparkles and thin sheets of paper - they can catch fire or melt).
- A sharp knife - for cutting patterns on a candle or in order to trim its bottom (the wick must be cut with scissors to make it smoother).
The right wick is half the success!
As there is no smoke without fire, there is no candle without a wick. You can make it yourself or buy it in a store.
For a good wick, you need a cotton thread, a little wax, a weight and two sticks. First, the thread must either be twisted or braided with a pigtail. Do not make it too thick - the candle will smoke, and if you make it too thin, it will constantly go out. It is best to find a balance between these two extremes, then the flame will be even, the middle of the candle will melt faster than the edges. You need to attach a small weight to the finished wick - a nut, a pebble, a bead. The load must be heavy enough to pull the wick. Then process the wick with wax - dip it two or three times so that it burns better and holds the shape inside the candle itself. The ready-made wick must be placed in the form for a candle, and its upper end is clamped between two thin sticks (or simply wound on one).
Choose the material for the candle
Now we proceed to the selection of materials for the candle itself.
- Cinders of old candles. The easiest option is to simply melt them in a water bath and pull out the remnants of the wicks.
- Wax crayons - they can be melted in the microwave and immediately poured. The candle will turn out just in the color of crayons.
- Special gel for candles - it can be painted with dyes. The only “but” - the gel does not hold its shape, so it will not be possible to get it out of the mug.
- Wax. These will be the simplest candles. The material is sold by plates. The plates can be cut with an ordinary knife. Of the minuses - the candles will be similar to each other (you can not paint and decorate from the inside).
Materials for decoration
It is better to collect in advance everything that the candle will be decorated in order not to look for anything at the very last moment. Dried flowers will look good - the main thing is that they are not too fragile, otherwise it will not be possible to work with them.
Coffee beans also look good - they can be placed both inside the candle and pasted over already ready (you need a special glue that will not melt).
And how to forget about the threads and ropes for the winding, which are always at hand? They can be supplemented with beads and other interesting details.
From simple to complex - the first steps
Let's start with the basics - making a simple candle with your own hands. We wax the wax in a water bath, slowly pour it into the mold (it is better to grease it with oil or soap beforehand, so that the candle can be easily removed). When the wax hardens, carefully remove it from the mold by the wick - if you do not get it, you can slightly warm the mold in warm water.
Candles in the form of a cone: cut out a blank for the cone from cardboard (the size of the sector depends on the desired thickness of the candle). The place of the cut is securely sealed with tape (before that you need to pass the wick through the top). Fill the wax, let cool.
And a small workshop on candles made with their own hands from wax. Put the wick on the wax, begin to gently twist the plate around it. Wax is fusible (sticks together from the simple heat of the hands), so the room should not be hot.
And the most meditative option is to slowly dip the wick into the molten wax. After each "run" you need to wait until the wax hardens. You can’t keep it in the mixture for a long time - the previous layers may melt. The candle will look like a carrot. When the length suits you, cut the bottom of the candle with a knife or heat it and place it in the candlestick. You can add essential oils to the molten wax for a smell, but this is optional.
Go to the next level
Are simple candles uninteresting? We complicate the design!
We create coffee candles with our own hands at home. We fuse the coffee beans into the candle - put the beans in the form, fill the first part of the wax, wait until it hardens a little, lower them with a stick to the bottom, fill the second part of the wax.
We make an openwork candle - put ice in a container, pour wax on top. The ice will melt inside the hot wax. The result will be a very unusual pattern (you will need to drain the water from the tank before)
Colored candles - melt wax crayons (or add dye to the wax). Pour into the form. And if you fill it at an angle and wait until everything hardens, you can get "angular" multi-colored layers (you need to alternate colors).
Decorate a candle
At this stage, fantasy is where to roam:
- Gently apply the flower to the candle, drive along the contour with a warm spoon, wait until it adheres tightly to the wax. You can do the same with all other pictures - print them on a printer or draw, then stick them on.
- Add beads, threads on top of the flower and process with glue.
- You can also create “geometric” candles - cut out a shape with numerous faces from cardboard, walk around the folds with a needle and fix the entire structure with tape, insert the wick and pour wax.
And these are only the most popular options - there are no restrictions for creativity!
Engaged in wax carving
Wax is a fertile material for the manifestation of their creative abilities.
You can cut different patterns on it:
- The first way is to apply a pattern to the finished candle with a pencil, heat up the knife and begin to slowly cut the necessary pieces. The method is long, but in this way you can achieve an interesting effect - for example, make a small log out of a candle (cut out patterns with a knife, paint with several layers of acrylic paint).
- We create such a candle with our own hands (master class) - we heat the knife, cut out patterns similar to the bark of a tree on wax, draw tree rings on top. We paint in several layers, shade on the edges with white. Paint with ocher on top, along the edges you can walk with yellow or brown paint - voila, the log is ready!
- Option two - cut on still hot material. To do this, you will need to build a "hanger" for the candle, as it will have to be cut by weight. With a sharp knife, layers of wax are cut from top to bottom and bent up (or down).
- And another option - put baking paper on the bottom of the pan, top it with wax, cut it out with cookie cutters. Remove excess wax and melt.
And what can nature offer?
But organic candles look best. They are most interesting, because you can put them anywhere, such candles will elegantly complement the atmosphere.
We create original candles with our own hands at home using improvised materials:
- The peel of an orange or mandarin. Carefully cut a half of the fruit with a knife, with a spoon we clean out the remaining contents. In the resulting form, you need to insert the wick and pour the wax.
- The peel of nuts is similar. Crack, peel the remains of the shell, pour wax.
- Egg - break the very tip of the egg, drain the protein and yolk. Inside, you need to pour the wax, then gently break it (a wonderful idea for Easter), the same can be done with coconuts - they look very original, the main thing is to be able to chop them fairly evenly (and peel the flesh).
- Large stones - a hole for a candle can be cut out in them, but this requires a large number of tools and is quite laborious. It’s better to just put the candle on a flat stone, and replacing the candles with your own hands in such a material will be difficult to do - you have to get the wax with a knife or fork (it sticks to the edges of the mold).
What's next?
All that remains is to practice. It is difficult to make candles with your own hands right away - either the wick does not burn, then the wax solidifies with voids. The main thing is not to give up, everything will come with experience. Do not abandon such an interesting activity over time.