Soy Candle Making

Ideas, tips and tricks for making decorative soy candles (plus how-to videos)

This page shares all the great tips, tricks and resources I've come across in my candle making adventures.

If you're looking for step-by-step instructions for soy candle making read the linked page first, then jump back here for additional soy wax candle information.

Click on the links below to jump straight to each topic, or scroll down the page to browse through them.

Making Candle Molds

Candle Making Chat

Okay, let's jump right in...

Tips for working with wicks for soy candles

• For soy container candles, I like using a pre-waxed wick with a metal tab on one end. Then you can just use a little bit of hot glue or wick putty to hold the metal tab in place in the bottom of the jar.

  (Sometimes I'm lazy and I just mash it into place with my fingers - it usually sticks reasonably well.)




• For small candles like votives, use a clothespin to keep the wick centered at the top of the container.




• For larger aromatherapy candle recipes, if you're using a pre-waxed wick (which is slightly stiff) prop the top end of the wick against a pencil or popsicle stick laid across the top of the container to keep it centered.




• If you're using a soft wick, tie the wick onto the pencil and lay the pencil over the top of the jar to keep it centered.

1. If the wax is hard, put the container in the freezer overnight. Next morning, shake out the wax (it will be brittle) and warm the glass up to room temperature.
2. Scrape out as much of any remaining wax as possible using a spoon wrapped in a rag or paper towel (to avoid scratching the glass.)

3. Fill the glass with boiling water. Let it soak until the wax floats to the surface. After it cools, skim off the wax with a spoon.

4. Dump out the water and wash the container in hot, soapy water.
5. If there's any glue or other sticky gunk on the outside of the container, clean it off using a product like "Goo Gone", which you can usually find in office supply stores.

Photo courtesy of ecram1

Using a container such as a cup or frosted glass eliminates the problem entirely - and they still look pretty!

Crafty Ideas for Your Decorative Soy Candles

Here's another wonderful soy candle making idea... My friend gave me a rustic candle holder I just love. She got a birch branch, cut it about 6" tall and drilled a hole in the top just the right size to hold a tea light. Then she tied some raffia around it and tucked in a sprig of plastic berries. It's so pretty, and when it runs out I just put in a new tea light.

The internet is packed with sites with great ideas for decorative soy candles. If you have a favorite candle site or decorating project to recommend, it would be lovely if you'd take a moment to share it. Just type it into the form below to create a web page with your ideas.

Here's another cool trick. People know I love candles, but they often don't realize that I don't love paraffin wax candles (how could I - they're toxic!) so I've been given some really pretty paraffin candles I'll never burn. So I cut out a tealight-sized hole in the top, and now I tuck soy wax tealight candles inside and burn them. I just replace them when they run out.

Making Your Own Candle Molds

If you've done this craft, we'd love to hear about it. I'd be delighted if you'd take a second to share your story in the candle making chat box below.

YOUR Great Candle Tips, Ideas... and Questions

Click below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...

What Next?

Instructions for Soy Container Candles

Instructions for Scented Soy Pillar Candles

Essential Oils Blends for Soy Wax Scented Candles

Soy Candle Supplies

Soy Candles Main Page

Go to Aromatherapy Recipes Homepage from Soy Candle Making