Beeswax Candles

The way the internet age enables us to dip into any craft for a short while is pretty incredible. Back in the summer I bought a huge chunk of industrial grade beeswax from a farmers market vendor in Gainesville. I had big plans to use it to make body lotion (using instructions given by Root Simple). However once I looked into the details I decided to re-consider–the lotion isn’t shelf-stable, and the person who makes it re-mixes batches ever month in a clean and sanitized kitchen–definitely more than the once-a-year crafting schedule I maintain.

Instead I got interested in candles. I really love the color and scent of beeswax candles, and it looked like making them was relatively easy. I got some wicks from brambleberry.com, watched some youtube videos, and away I went.

I used the simplest of all techniques–pouring the wax into jars. We tried a few molded candles at my assistant’s insistence. The Hedgehog pictured above (from a baking mold we got at CostPlus World Market) is definitely not in a practical shape for a candle–but it’s pretty darned cute.

The biggest problem with candle making is that wax is incredibly messy. It felt a lot like a cat-in-the-hat situation, I’d get the wax off one thing and then of course it would get on something else. I suppose to make it worthwhile, you’d need to get dedicated candle making stuff and store it, which is a step I’m not willing to take. (Unless I ever end up with a beehive).

In the meantime, informal, 1ce a year candle making was pretty fun.