Wacky & Unique Candle-Making Guide for Beginners

By Selina Osman

                                                                          Wacky Waxes and Crazy Candle Recipe Combinations!

Are you looking for new and unique candle recipes? Are you new to making candles and want something new to create? Look no further than my book, all about wacky and beautiful candles!

If you have never made candles, this is the book for you. Here, I will show you each step for making dipped, rolled, pillar, tapered, and container candles.
If you are a seasoned candle maker looking to make unique candles that no one else makes, this is the Candle-Making Recipe book for you.

What makes my book different from all the rest? It shows you how to make balloon candles, Orange peel candles, Shell candles, Bacon Candles, and many more unique recipes.

As I turned on the lights one day, I wondered how far we had come from using lamps. We used to have people whose job was to light and turn off candles in street posts. Oh, how far we have come from using candles!

Candles make lovely gifts.

Also, everyone loves a fragrant candle – smells can spark memories for us. The right smell can also affect us as an aromatherapy treatment.

Here is what you will learn at a glance:

•    The History of Candles
•    A Description of Candle Types
•    Wax Types Defined
•    Wick Types Defined
•    Tips and Tricks
•    Safety Tips
•    Over 40 Techniques and Recipes
•    Going Through the Testing Process
•    Steps to Starting Your Own Candle Business
You will learn all of this and so much more!

Here is one of my favorite candle recipes from my book:
Balloon Candles

The hollow bowls of wax give these candles a lantern feel to them. Giving the wax some colors adds to the warm glow and nostalgic appeal of the lantern.
What you need:

•    Paraffin wax
•    Balloons
•    Wicks of your choice
•    Wick sticker
•    Large pot
•    Color of your choice
•    Fragrance of your choice
Directions:

1. Measure out your wax and add the coloring and fragrance of your choice. Do this in a large pot to give some space for the balloon, so choose one that is appropriate for the size of your candle.

2. Once the wax is ready, fill your balloon with some water, inflate it to the size you want and tie off the end. Hold the balloon by the end, and carefully dip it in the wax. Get it up about ¾ of the way up the balloon. Let the excess wax drip off, set it a bit, and then dip it in again. Go for about 10 to 15 layers.

3. Hang the balloon by the end and let it fully set. Once it's set, carefully pop the balloon and remove it. Wipe the inside of the Candle dry. Set your wick inside it, and melt the leftover wax. Pour in the leftover wax inside. Let it fully set and cure before lighting.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Galicia Publihing House
• Release date: Apr 5, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224257188

Book preview

Introduction

As I was turning on the lights one day, I got to thinking about how far we have come from just using lamps. I mean, we used to have people whose job was to light and turn off candles in street posts. My grandfather used to be one back in the day in Boston, though, in his time, the street lamps used gas burners. However, he also used to tell me stories of using candles for street lamps and in mines. Candles used to be the pinnacle of home lighting systems and are so important that we even named the standard unit for luminous intensity after it - the candela. Even in today’s digital world - even if light is readily available and at a more potent intensity - candles are still relevant and available. Be it a nice romantic dinner, a form of relaxation, or even religious implements, candles bring the right mood for the situation. Candles do have a nostalgic feel to them - they bring you back to a simpler time and make you feel good.

Having heard the stories from my grandfather, as well as being someone who is into crafts and hobbies, I decided to go down that rabbit hole and expand my knowledge on candle use and candle making. I am sharing the condensed knowledge of what I’ve researched and learned in this book. We are going to explore the world of candles through recipes of different forms, use formulations, and scents. We’ll bring the traditional to modern iterations of the famous light bringer into your homes.

This book caters to everyone - from homeowners who want to spruce up their living spaces, religious acolytes who want to prepare something for their respective churches, yoga practitioners who want something to soothe their energies, or even someone who is looking to start up a small neighborhood business (like me). Candle making, as a hobby, can fill in several niches and can easily accommodate total beginners. Even just the simple process of making ordinary white candles can make you feel like being part of history and something bigger.

So, let me light up your way to the world of candle making!

1. Candles Through the Centuries

A lit candle on a table Description automatically generated with medium confidence

Humanity’s first attempt at indoor lighting existed even before there were doors. Stone-oil lamps dating from 10,000 or 8,000 BC have been excavated in Montignac, France. Oil lamps remained to be the craze until around 500 BC when the Romans started dipping wicks in tallow. The fat allows for easier handling or transport of the lighted wicks instead of sloshing around containers of oil. It also makes for easier storage and allows the fire to burn slower through the wick.

Other evidence of solidified medium for burning wicks crop up as early as 200 BC, like the whale fat candles in China or the cinnamon wax from India. The spermaceti (sperm whale wax) candles back then may have been a luxury, but most wax sources were natural, such as tallow or beeswax. Candles may have existed in these early parts of our history, but they are more for religious or ritual purposes. The Roman candles, which were made from tallow, were customarily given as gifts during the Saturnalia, with oil lamps still being the primary indoor lighting. The Ancient Greeks were known to place candles over cakes as their offering to the Greek Goddess Artemis during her birthday, which is also how we got the birthday cake tradition nowadays - though their version of cake may be slightly different from ours. The cinnamon wax candles from India were used as lighting and offerings within the temples. China also made use of whale fat candles in their temples, but those made from beeswax became the utilitarian candles for traveling or indoor use.

Though famous during that time, candles remained expensive and a symbol of wealth because of the rarity of spermaceti and beeswax. Tallow may be cheap, but manufacturing and the use of tallow candles gave off unpleasant orders, and they were banned back then. Despite the relative price, candles remained relevant during the Christian proliferation in the Middle Ages, and people even incorporated candles into their masses and celebrations. Around the same period in the Middle East, they were importing beeswax from all around to provide lighting for the palaces of royalties. The lower social classes in the Middle East still did enjoy candlelight, as it became their custom to light one during wedding ceremonies.

Candlemaking moved into a guild profession during the 14th century. They improved the tallow candle-making process to yield a tolerable product, and the candles became the primary light source for streetlights in England and France. Chandlers, the term used for guild candle makers and sellers, redefined the process and invented the first candle mold around the 1400s. The profession even spread towards Africa and the Middle East, where it became viable work for the lower class to earn some money.

Across the pond, the colonials were setting up in America, and they also needed some light for dark nights. Mostly they used large bonfires, but the amount of fuel needed seemed excessive, so they also had chandlers available. They would make use of beef and sheep tallow melted in hot water for candles. Molds, though present during that time, were not so popular since the dipping process allowed them to produce more candles faster. Using molds limited the chandler to how much the mold can handle at a time.

Moving up through history, people’s love for candles may have had a hand in the rise of the whaling industry during the 1700s. Beeswax candles are nice, but beeswax is hard to come by and expensive. Whales, on the other hand, contain a lot of wax and fat, particularly the spermaceti from sperm whales. Plus, when harvested, they also give meat and whalebone, which can also be sold. Whale fat produces wax that does not melt easily compared to tallow or beeswax and does not produce any foul odor - which is unfortunate for the whales.

After developing some empathy for the whales and luck, people discovered colza oil, similar to rapeseed oil, which can produce smokeless flames at a cheaper price too. At the same time, a couple of French chemists patented stearin, which - even though it comes from animal fat as well - does not produce the same smells you get from tallow candles.

The 19th century rolls around, and candles become mass-produced and available to everyone regardless of social status. The creation of a machine that pushes out cylindrical candles as the wax solidifies allowed the creation of tons of candles in a matter of hours. Innovation in wicks also came through, with tightly braided cotton wicks being favored over the loosely twisted pieces of cotton which burn fast. The braid also helps in maintaining the fire size, so you won't have to trim