DIY clear gel candles at home
At home, you can create another type of candle - a gel candle. Its manufacturing technology is the same as that of paraffin. The difference is that the mold is filled not with wax, but with a special candle gel.
Gel for making candles – transparent. This makes it possible to create incredibly beautiful products. Inside the candle you can place shells, beads, stones , glass balls, beads, buttons, flower and even candied fruits or pieces of fruit.
Advice! You can choose the location of the decor inside the candle yourself. Elements lowered to the bottom before filling with gel will remain on the bottom, while those added to an already filled form will hang or remain on the surface.
The mold for a gel candle must be transparent (glass or plastic) - otherwise the beauty created inside will not be visible. Special gel dyes will help give a color tint. You can also add aromatic essential oils to this type of candle.
Advice! Before pouring the melted gel, heat the prepared mold. This will prevent the formation of bubbles.
To make a gel candle, you need to select a transparent container
Decorative elements are laid out in the mold both before and after the gel is poured.
Create a unique pattern inside a gel candle
Candle with dried flowers
It is possible to make candles at home using natural decor if you dry a variety of flowers in a timely manner.
They give the products an elegant look. Each candle, decorated with dried flowers, has a unique pattern, which will allow it to become a worthy decoration for any interior.
To work, you should prepare nail scissors, a teaspoon, dried flowers, tweezers, a little paraffin and 3 candles. Two of them will serve as the basis for decoration, and a spoon will be heated over the flame of the third during work.
Algorithm of actions:
- White paper is spread on the table and dried flowers are laid out to obtain the desired composition, which will be repeated on the surface of the candles.
- Light a candle and heat the inner surface of the spoon.
- A sprig of dried flowers is applied to the surface of the candle to be decorated.
- Use the outer side of a hot spoon to stroke the entire flower. Make sure that it completely adheres to the melting paraffin.
- All protruding stems are carefully cut off using nail scissors.
- Gradually all the elements of the composition are glued in a similar way.
- Then you should consolidate the result. For this purpose, select a tall metal container that matches the size of the candle.
- Lay out pieces of paraffin and melt them in a steam bath.
- The decorated candle is held by the wick and carefully immersed in melted paraffin.
- Then the product is taken out. Place it on a flat surface.
- Leave until the candle hardens completely. If not all elements of the composition are properly fixed, repeat the procedure of immersion in hot paraffin again.
“Delicious” candles: a fruit candle made from half a lemon and a coffee candle
You will probably enjoy making candles at home, and you will definitely want to create something creative and extraordinary. Candles made from fruit peels - oranges, limes, grapefruits - look interesting and unusual. Candles created with the addition of coffee beans . Be creative and experiment, and a couple of our ideas will help you with this.
DIY candle made from half a lemon
Necessary materials:
- wax or paraffin;
- four cotton wicks;
- water bath pan;
- container for melting wax;
- two lemons;
- purple food coloring;
- lavender essential oil;
- dried lavender flowers.
Step 1
Cut the lemons lengthwise into two pieces. Carefully remove the pulp.
Half a lemon will serve as a candle holder for your candle.
Step 2
Melt the wax in a water bath. Add lavender flowers, essential oil and food coloring to it, stir.
All necessary ingredients are added to the already melted wax.
Step 3
Place a wick in the center of the lemon half. Fill the fruit candle holder with melted wax.
After installing the wick, melted wax is poured
Step 4
Place the finished candles in a cool place until they cool and harden completely.
The wax must cool and harden.
Important! Do not refrigerate candles - the wax may harden unevenly!
Original lemon candle
Ready-made kits for creating candles
Kits for making candles yourself are most often intended for children's creativity. They use granulated white or already colored wax, gel, sterol or paraffin, which is proposed to be melted in a water bath.
The kit includes dyes and flavors.
Each set contains a certain amount of materials that will be needed to make crafts - figurines of animals, plants, fruits, fairy-tale characters. In addition to wax, the kit includes molds, stacks, wicks and wick holders, decor and instructions.
- DetiArt company offers a set of “Star Layer Candles” . In the box you will find granular candle mass, a melting container, a mold, dyes, a wick and all the necessary tools.
- “Fixies” set from CENTRUM contains only material, wick, dyes and molds - no tools or container.
- BRADEX produces “Do it yourself candles” with granulated paraffin, already colored in two bright shades and 6 packets of multi-colored stearin granules. In addition to the standard filling, the kit includes glass and silicone molds for candles and a metal filter holder.
- In the Experiment Kit “Science with Beeches” – Candle Factory from BONDIBON, wax was chosen as the main material. The kit includes one white-pink dye, three molds - a heart, a rose and a circle, soft pink tweezers, measuring cups and even a mirror plate.
- Josephin offers a set of "Gel candles" . The material used is a gel that needs to be melted. For decoration, colored sand, shells, and sparkles are provided.
- LORI “Wax for candles” – the kits contain wax – a thin layer of beeswax, covered with miniature hexagonal cells. The sheet with the attached wick is simply rolled into a tube and you get an unusual candle.
Making candles yourself is interesting and accessible at any age.
DIY coffee bean candle
How to make a coffee candle with your own hands. Option 1
The easiest way to create a coffee candle is to add coffee beans to melted wax or pour them into an already poured mold.
To do this, you will need all the same materials as for a regular candle, plus coffee beans.
Coffee beans vary in shape and size, and when added to wax, they also harden differently. Therefore, each candle you create will have a unique design.
How to make a coffee candle with your own hands. Option 2
Another manufacturing option would be to decorate the finished candle with coffee beans.
To do this, in addition to coffee beans, you will need glue.
Advice! Coffee beans can be glued without glue - on still hot soft wax. To do this, carefully remove the uncooled and unhardened candle from the mold and “cover” it with coffee beans, lightly pressing them with your fingers.
Handmade coffee candles
Candle decorated with coffee beans
How to make a coffee candle with your own hands. Option 3
An idea for a quick and easy coffee candle creation. Remove the candle from the mold and place it in a wider transparent container. Fill the empty space between the walls and the candle with coffee beans.
An original idea for decorating a candle
How to make a coffee candle with your own hands. Option 4
To create the most aromatic version, add ground coffee beans to the melted wax before pouring the mold. A lit candle will envelop the room with an incredible coffee aroma.
Candle with ground coffee
Winter scented candle
In winter weather, you can create a cozy atmosphere in your home that will help you relax after a working day. In principle, we already know how to make a candle from an old candle. There are some tricks to ensure that the candle you make is an individual item. For a winter candle we need a standard set, vanillin and coffee beans. In any container, it can be a bowl, a mug, or a small vase, place a wick and fill it with a small amount of melted wax. Next we add coffee beans and vanillin. Then fill the container with wax to the brim. Using a wooden stick, you can move the grains to ensure even placement. Such a candle will give you a pleasant feeling and the aromatic smell of vanilla and coffee, which will give the room coziness and comfort.
DIY candle decor: decorate a finished candle
a photograph on it . This type of DIY decor element will give your home a cozy atmosphere.
Candle with a printed photo
For this you will need:
- ready-made wax candle;
- tracing paper or tissue paper;
- paper for printer;
- wax paper;
- tape, scissors, printer and hair dryer.
Step 1
Select the photo you want to put on the candle. Attach a sheet of tracing paper to a piece of printer paper using tape.
Prepare printer paper and tracing paper
Step 2
Print the photo. To do this, insert the paper into the printer so that the photo is printed on tracing paper. Peel the tracing paper from the paper and cut out the image, leaving a small white border around the photo.
Cut out the image
Step 3
Wrap the candle tightly in wax paper and heat the image with a hairdryer.
Avoid Creases
Step 4
Warm up until the photo is clear and bright.
Warm the candle well with a hairdryer
Step 5
Carefully peel off the wax paper. The candle with original decor is ready!
Remove wax paper
Advice! In a similar way, you can decorate a candle with any printed image. Or you can put your own drawing, pattern, inscription, wish on tracing paper.
Some more ideas for decorating a candle:
- painting with acrylic paints or sugar mastic;
Creative bright candles
- wrapping with fabric, lace or burlap;
Candles in lace look very gentle
- applications with dried flowers;
Dried flower decor
- decorating with glitter using glue or double-sided tape;
Use glitter or sequins for decoration
- decor of the container in which the candle is located.
Decorate the container with the candle with a sprig of rosemary or thuja
Decorating candles using coffee beans and beads
Lavender candle
The pleasant lavender aroma is good for health, helps you relax, calms you down and relieves stress. So, in any home the presence of such a candle is welcome. You can buy such a candle in the store, but how nice it will be to enjoy the aroma knowing that you made it yourself. How to make a candle from an old candle and what we need for this.
First, dried lavender flowers and essential oil with a similar scent. Secondly, the container is up to your taste. We get liquid wax from an old candle. Place the wick in the container, pour in a little wax and lay out the dried flowers. Add oil and pour wax again. So, by alternating, we fill our candle. For aesthetics, you can make the wax purple. As a result, the candle will turn out to be very attractive and individual.
This method can be used to make candles with any scent. Dried orange peels, pine needles, lemon candles, mint or almond candles, etc.
Molds for candles at home: step-by-step photo instructions
You can make a geometric candle with your own hands. The variety of shapes depends on the selected template
Template No. 1 for creating a geometric candle
Template No. 2 for creating a geometric candle
Template No. 3 for creating a geometric candle
Print and cut out the candle templates. If possible, it is better to choose thicker paper
We assemble the forms according to the selected template. The photo shows the assembly of the form according to template No. 1. Gluing the parts
Creating a mold for a candle using template No. 2
Instructions for assembling a mold for a candle according to template No. 3
Ready-made shapes for geometric candles
We cover the molds with paint to make the product more durable.
We insert the wick into the center of the mold, attach it to a wooden skewer
We prepare the candle for filling the mold. Melt wax crayons and paraffin in a water bath
Pour the candle mass into a geometric shape and, after hardening, remove the paper
Ready-made geometric candles
Even an ordinary eggshell can be used to create candles.
A set of materials for creating an egg-shaped candle: wax, wick, shell and paint
Remove the contents of the egg through the top hole. Insert the wick into the egg
Pour wax into the mold
After the candle hardens, remove the shell
Ready-made candles made in eggshell molds
How to make a romantic candle with your own hands: ideas and options
You can make a candle stand from an ordinary tin can: paint it a pastel color and cut a hole in the shape of a heart. The atmosphere in the house will become much more romantic!
A heart-shaped candle can be easily created at home.
Edible candle stand in the shape of gingerbread
Pumpkins can be a home decoration for more than just Halloween. Instead of a scary face, cut a hole inside and place a candle there
Carved candle stands create a special magical atmosphere
DIY candlestick made from a regular jar and lace
Glasses half filled with berries can be used as a candlestick.
Idea of candlesticks for the kitchen
How to make a candle from bulk stearin
Frame: My Harmony / YouTube
What you will need
- Bulk stearin;
- glass or jar;
- wick;
- scissors.
How to do
Measure and cut the wick - it should be slightly longer than the glass.
Frame: My Harmony / YouTube
Warm the wick in your hands, smooth it with your fingers, compacting it so that it holds its shape better.
Frame: My Harmony / YouTube
Pour stearin into a glass and gently shake several times to even out the mass.
Frame: My Harmony / YouTube
Insert the wick so that it reaches the very bottom.
Frame: My Harmony / YouTube
This is what it looks like in the video:
What other options are there?
Stearin of different colors, poured in layers, looks good:
Especially if you make a simple pattern out of it:
What are the benefits of beeswax candles?
What benefits, besides aesthetic pleasure, can wax candles give us?
Their subtle, unobtrusive honey-floral aroma is provided by beeswax containing particles of products produced by bees in the apiary. This natural aromatherapy calms and relaxes, creating a favorable atmosphere in the house.
Such candles burn very cleanly and longer than paraffin candles, without releasing any harmful substances into the surrounding space. And they cope with their functional task of lighting the room perfectly.
Wax candles help maintain and restore health, filling the house with an aroma when burned that can affect microorganisms, due to the fact that the wax contains remnants of propolis, resins and other useful substances found in the beehive in the apiary. This feature allows candles to be used in folk medicine as a healing agent to stimulate the body and improve mood.
Wax candles not only provide us with a soothing and peaceful atmosphere, but also make the air in our home cleaner, providing a healthier environment. This is explained very simply. When burning, wax candles release negative ions, which easily neutralize the positive charge contained in dust and micropollutant particles in the air.
By the way, this is precisely the principle used in the operation of some air purifiers and water filters.
When burning wax candles, the content of dirty impurities in the air decreases and it becomes cleaner. A favorable atmosphere is created in the room, which contributes to a more comfortable stay for people suffering from allergies and asthma.
There is evidence that burning a couple of wax candles in a room for a while made it easier for allergy sufferers to tolerate the component that causes a persistent allergic reaction (for example, the presence of a cat), and for asthmatics to feel more comfortable.
In addition, the pleasant sweetish and light aroma of candles, consisting of 100% pure natural wax without fragrances, dyes and other additives, is not irritating at all.
Of course, high-quality beeswax candles are not cheap, but health concerns are a more compelling argument for many. When purchasing ready-made wax candles, you need to carefully study their composition. Sometimes, candles that are only 50% beeswax and contain not entirely safe paraffin are passed off as a pure product.
