We use a lot of candles around here. No, we aren't Amish or living off the grid. We just enjoy candles. We use them when eating dinner and have them throughout the house for when we want a nice warm light. Candles are however expensive to purchase new. This is how I get around that. I buy all my candles at either Salvation Army or our annual Humane Society Garage sale (unscented only, I do not want chemical perfumes in my home). Through these two cheap methods I have a stockpile of both taper and large candles that would make a survivalist proud. But my savings doesn't end there. That only gets a silver medal in the green/frugal Olympics and I'm going for the GOLD. Often you cannot burn the last part of a candle but still have wax left and in the case of a large candle it can equal a good chunk of perfectly fine wax. I toss these ends into an old pan that I use exclusively for candles. When I have a good amount I round up some candle jars in need of candles and cut wicks for them from wick I buy at the craft store (the most expensive part of the process - I've also used embroidery floss but that tends to flop over and be hard to light). I put the bottom of this wick through an old wick holder from an already burned candle. I then wrap the top of the wick around an old disposable chop stick and hang it over the jar so it is centered and hanging down the middle to the bottom of the container. I now heat up my old wax either on the stove or in the microwave and once it is liquid I pour it into the waiting jars (be careful it is hot and I'm going out on a limb to guess it is also flammable). Once your newly made candle dries there is a rather deep indentation in the middle which, if it bothers you, you can fill by reheating the wax left in the pan. My last batch was birthed from the remnants of a big red candle and several white candles giving me several lovely new rose colored candles (as seen in photo above). These also make good gifts and you could layer different colors if you have lots of time on your hands and a craft streak in you that is roaring to get out.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
New Candles from Old Candles or Let there be (cheap) Light
We use a lot of candles around here. No, we aren't Amish or living off the grid. We just enjoy candles. We use them when eating dinner and have them throughout the house for when we want a nice warm light. Candles are however expensive to purchase new. This is how I get around that. I buy all my candles at either Salvation Army or our annual Humane Society Garage sale (unscented only, I do not want chemical perfumes in my home). Through these two cheap methods I have a stockpile of both taper and large candles that would make a survivalist proud. But my savings doesn't end there. That only gets a silver medal in the green/frugal Olympics and I'm going for the GOLD. Often you cannot burn the last part of a candle but still have wax left and in the case of a large candle it can equal a good chunk of perfectly fine wax. I toss these ends into an old pan that I use exclusively for candles. When I have a good amount I round up some candle jars in need of candles and cut wicks for them from wick I buy at the craft store (the most expensive part of the process - I've also used embroidery floss but that tends to flop over and be hard to light). I put the bottom of this wick through an old wick holder from an already burned candle. I then wrap the top of the wick around an old disposable chop stick and hang it over the jar so it is centered and hanging down the middle to the bottom of the container. I now heat up my old wax either on the stove or in the microwave and once it is liquid I pour it into the waiting jars (be careful it is hot and I'm going out on a limb to guess it is also flammable). Once your newly made candle dries there is a rather deep indentation in the middle which, if it bothers you, you can fill by reheating the wax left in the pan. My last batch was birthed from the remnants of a big red candle and several white candles giving me several lovely new rose colored candles (as seen in photo above). These also make good gifts and you could layer different colors if you have lots of time on your hands and a craft streak in you that is roaring to get out.
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