Make Your Old Candles New

While un-Christmas-ing our house last weekend I realized we have a bunch of candles that we can’t use anymore but I didn’t want to throw them out because there was still plenty of wick, wax and perfectly good jars for some left over. I have many a glass container sitting in our basement waiting for some good use and it struck me, I can make new candles out of these. I always struggle with our tea lights as well that can’t burn anymore but there is still wax left over. I did some online research and making old candles new really isn’t that difficult.

1. Separate your colored, scented and plain candle wax from each other. In the articles I have read mixing colors generally turns the wax brown so trying to mix may not always be that good of an idea. The same goes for scented wax. The idea of mixing scents sounds fun but they may not mix as pleasantly as you might think.

2. If you have wax in glass containers you can remove the wax by boiling water in a pot. Once the water is boiling put the glass containers in the water and let sit until wax is melted enough to pour out of the container.

3. While you are waiting for the water to boil/wax to melt get your new containers or molds ready.  Make sure to clean the containers first and that they are dry before pouring wax in.  Also make sure the glass is at room temperature before pouring the wax in.  You don’t want them to crack.

4. If you want to add color or scents to plain candles while the wax is melted add some food coloring, or your favorite scented oils. You can also add dried fruit or herbs if you want to get fancy. Make sure to stir thoroughly.

5. Once the was is ready you can pour into the container, mold or cookie sheet. If you are pouring directly into a container make sure to put a straw in the center of the candle while the wax is still hot so you can put the wick in it. Once you have the wick where you want it slowly remove the straw from the middle. I wouldn’t pull the straw completely out so you can make sure the wick doesn’t fall into the hot wax and melt back into the candle. If you are using a cookie sheet/mold and intend to cut out shapes let the wax harden a little before cutting the shapes follow the same instructions for adding the wick as in the container except you may have to hold the straw up if the mold isn’t tall enough to keep the straw from falling over while the wax is still hot.

6. Once the wax has dried a little and is ready to cut, do so carefully with a cookie cutter or knife. Remove the mold or cookie cutter quickly so the wax doesn’t stick to it but also make sure the shape holds. If it doesn’t the wax is too soft.

7. Once the wax is set and hard you have brand new candles without spending any money! You can give them away as gifts or keep them for yourself.

8. If you want to layer colors or scents you can use a oj or milk carton as a mold.  Pour the first layer in the mold and wait for it to set, then the next and so on until you have the layers you want.  You can follow the same directions with the straw as above for adding the wick.