How to Make Soy Candles
I’m so excited to share today’s post with you guys. It’s the second installment of a year-long series called …With My Sisters. This past weekend, we spent a fun afternoon together. We laughed and lingered over lunch, made soy candles and crafted a sweet project for my nephew’s first birthday party. This was our first time making candles together. It was so easy and we all had a great time.
I don’t know about you guys but the three of us are constantly burning candles. On the days I’m working from home, lighting a candle is one of the very first things I do in the morning. If I’ve been out all day, I’ll light a candle as soon as I get home. They definitely feel like a luxury. My baby sister eats by candlelight with her family almost every night. My middle sister gave me one of my favorite scents, Capri Blue Volcano Candle for my birthday. The mix of tropical sugary fruits gets me every time.
Walking into a home that’s filled with a warm and cozy smell instantly makes you feel welcomed so I was super excited when we decided to make soy candles for our February project. I bought the soy wax flakes, the wicks, a candle thermometer and a glass container from Hobby Lobby. I ordered the essential oils from Amazon. I bought a metal pouring pitcher from a local thrift store to make pouring the hot wax easier. I also didn’t want to melt the wax in the same containers we eat out of just as an added safety precaution. Once you’ve used a pan/container/pot/pitcher for melting wax it should not be used for preparing food. When making candles always have a fire extinguisher handy and know how to use it.
My sisters also brought candle making supplies and their containers too. This is pretty much our personal styles captured in one shot…simple, coastal and boho chic.
We used the double boiler method to melt the soy wax flakes. Never leave a double boiler unattended. The first step was to fill a large saucepan about half full with water. Place it on the stove to heat. Next we emptied the contents of the soy wax flakes into the metal pouring pitcher.
We placed the metal pouring pitcher inside the large saucepan using medium to low heat until the soy wax flakes were completely melted. Make sure you add water to the large saucepan as needed to keep the water from evaporating.
Use a candle thermometer to monitor the temperature of the wax.
Add the fragrance oils at 185 degrees and stir well. Remove from heat. Different containers will use different amount of oils so make sure you use the appropriate ratio.
While the wax is cooling, prepare your candle containers by placing a small dot of hot glue (the glue will be hot so be sure to use caution and care when doing this step) on the bottom of the wick bracket if your wick doesn’t come with a wick stickum and secure to the bottom of your container. Make sure the wick is centered. It’s also recommended to use a wick bar, pencil or skewer to help keep the wick straight while your pouring the melted wax into the containers.
Once the wax has been cooled to125 degrees, pour the melted wax and fragrance oil into your prepared containers. The melted wax and the metal pouring container will be hot so use caution and care when doing this step.
For best results, let the candles cool overnight. It’s also recommended you trim the wick to ¼ inch each time you use your candle. Here’s a look at how our soy candles came out. I love how we each styled them differently…
We made a few votive style candles in these vintage jello molds. Make sure to place these on a heat resistant surface as the tin from the jello molds will get really hot when they burn down. Never burn a candle in any container unattended.
Since Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, these would make great gifts for teachers, family, friends or coworkers. They were easy and so much fun to make. Our favorite scent combinations were orange and vanilla, eucalyptus and peppermint, lemongrass and lavendar. I’ve been obsessed with all things citrus lately so my whole house smells like an orange grove.
See you guys back here tomorrow. I’m sharing 14 Budget Friendly Valentine’s Day Gifts to get you ready for next week.
Many blessings,
CoCo
I am so excited that you posted this!! I have never made my own candles, but I have wanted to give it a try. Now I will!
We burn candles all the time! I love the way it give the house a warm, cozy feel. We burn them so often it really starts to add up each week so I was really glad we decided to try to make our own. It was so much easier than I thought it would be. I can’t wait to see how you like it, CoCo
Hello CoCo! I didn’t realize it was that easy to make such pretty candles! 🙂 These look lovely and I can only imagine how great they smell! Thank you for sharing! I may have to go get some supplies and my girls and I can try making some 🙂 I hope you have a great day!
Smiles!
Terry
It was so much easier than I expected and tons of fun to be able to spend some time together. I think your girls would love these. We made different scents but the orange and vanilla was our favorite. That combination smells like an orange creamsicle 🙂 Sending you hugs, CoCo
It was a lot of fun and easy. Lots of down time to chat and do other projects. Thanks for hosting! Love my time with my sisters
Always tons of fun to be with you, Sis 🙂
Hey CoCo – LOVE your candles! We got some essential oils for Christmas and never thought to use them in candle wax…great idea! Love that you did this project with your sisters and that you each showcased your individual styles.
We are going to be EO converts! I swear I want to use those things in everything. The orange/vanilla smells so good. I want to try orange/clove next. Hugs, CoCo
You made this look so easy. I also love that you can use any glass container. I will keep that in mind on my next thrift store shopping trip. Have a blessed day. P.S. Love this series.
You’re sweet, Renee, thank you. It’s been so much fun to hang out with my sisters and take an afternoon just to talk and craft. They make my heart sing. I can’t wait to see what containers you find. Hugs, CoCo
What a fun post! I especially like the pictures showing how you and your sisters each styled your candles differently. All pretty and they are all unique! Your home must have smelled amazing after making the candles!
Thanks so much Jamie! As soon as they pulled out their containers we all started giggling. They were totally us – simple neutrals, coastal and boho chic. We look the same way when we’re taking pictures for Mothers Day and at Easter too ha ha. The house smells amazing and they were easy to make too. Hugs, CoCo
Oh these look so pretty – I love the multi coloured holder. You make them look so easy to make and obviously they would be much less expensive than buying them retail, yet they look just as good. Thank you for sharing with us at #OvertheMoon and have a lovely day!
Thanks so much, Sue! They were fun to make and it was great to hang out with my sisters too 🙂 Hope you have a lovely day as well, CoCo