Tutorial: Beautiful botanical candles made from soy wax and essential oils
Our most popular workshop is our candle making workshop - candles are super simple to make, and you can definitely do it at home, so here's an abbreviated version!
You will need:
Wicks
Soy wax flakes
Candle container
Lolly sticks
Masking tape
Clean saucepan (used only for candle making!)
Essential oils of your choice
Glue dots
Dried flowers
Melt your wax flakes gently in a saucepan, stirring as you go. Once all of the flakes have melted, take off the heat! The wax is ready to pour when it is about 40C - it will change colour from looking like an oil to a bit more milky in consistency.
Whilst waiting for the wax to cool, take your candle container* and using a glue dot, pop your wick in the centre of the container. Use lolly sticks taped at one end as a wick support to hold your wick in place. (*We've reused old candle containers for this tutorial, but you can use anything as long as it can withstand the heat! Glass is sometimes a bit iffy, so check beforehand)
When your wax is ready, carefully pour into the container from the saucepan, leaving about 1cm from the top of the container. At this point add your essential oils - a general rule of thumb for a lightly scented candle is 10 drops of essential oil per 100ml of container - add more for a stronger smell, but stir as you go!
If you want to add flowers, wait until the wax is slightly set, and place them gently where you would like them.
Wait 24 hours, remove the wick supports and trim the wick to 0.5cm.
Your beautiful new candles are ready to be burnt!