I am making candles from left over candle wax. Does anyone know an alternative way to get rich colour in them apart from buying candle dyes? Many thanks.
By helen from U.K
Add your voice! Click below to answer. ThriftyFun is powered by your wisdom!
Just pop a wax crayon into the candlewax when melting - you will be surprised at the rich colour that results! I put some essential oil into the wax too, so that I get a lovely smell when they burn.
Well, when my mother used to make candles she used crayons for color. That might work for you too.
Some things are worth the investment, after the initial outlay, they come in useful for recycling old candle wax. Part of the reason why you need to look for a coloring agent is because recycled candle wax gets dirty. I save like colors together, when I am ready to recycle, I get out coffee cans, and use a pair of pliers to form a spout on one side. I keep like colors together, or if I don't have enough of one color, look for ways to blend colors. I melt the wax down in one coffee can, then strain it through cheese cloth into another coffee can, this helps to clean a lot of the soot from the wax.
Metal pillar and votive molds are worth the investment, after years of recycling candle wax, the cost per use goes way down. Instead of buying the clay they sell in the candle dept to plug the hole in the mold, I go to the hardware store, and buy the same exact stuff, but it's marketed as a product to hang pictures on the walls without putting holes in them, same exact stuff, but way cheaper when you buy it in a hardware store. Two part plastic candle molds don't even need the clay to hold the wick in place, you can place the wick with duct tape in a quality two part plastic mold. I would have concerns about using a lead sinker in a candle, don't know if that would put lead in the atmosphere or in the wax as it is being used, and using a quality mold or the appropriate tab at the bottom allows you to burn the candle all the way down cleanly, as long as you are using the right wick, and placing it in a candle holder so the wax from the sides melts back down into the wick. If cleaning the wax still leaves it dirty looking, then you may want to color.
Sometimes I will use crayons as a substitute, but I find that the crayon wax is heavier than the candle wax, and tends to sink to the bottom. This is not necessarily a bad thing, it can lead to a cool ombre effect if that is what you want, when you go to pour your second pour, you will kind of wind up with graduated stripes in it, for lack of a better way of putting it. The bulk of the color will settle to the bottom of each pour, and you need to stir it thoroughly as you are pouring to distribute the color from adding crayons. I find the dye made for it works better, but sometimes have broken crayons around to recycle.
Some things are worth the investment, if you buy molds then you won't need tabs, and you can re-use the molds and clay many times over. The correct wick is definitely not something to skimp on. I go ahead and invest in coloring agents anyway, as the wax gets dirtier from several recyclings, even though it is cleaned some, it still starts to show some soot in it, so then I dye it a dark color so the soot doesn't show as much. After a point the wax really gets too dirty to recycle what is left, so I use that to make fire starters for the fireplace.
I collect all the little splinters of wood that shed from the logs under the area where I store it, put it in to paper muffin cups, and pour the wax into it, to make a yummy wood shaving and wax cupcake for the fireplace to enjoy, it only takes one to get a good fire going, no matter if your logs are damp or whatever, they work well. When the cheese cloth gets too full of wax, it also makes a dandy fire starter as well. Rather than looking at some things like molds as "spending money", if you look at things like that as a long term investment, and spend the extra time, you will have a better looking and better quality candle to enjoy in your home the second time around.
I use old candles or the dye. Crayons don't seem to work as well as they used to, I think they are made differently now than they used to be.
Add your voice! Click below to answer. ThriftyFun is powered by your wisdom!
