Foo - My Candles!

So this is what Michelle and I did this friday night :). All soy based. If it's dyed blue, it smells like caramel apple cider. If green, storm watch (a "peaceful" smell - something you'd expect to smell at a spa). If red, it's raspberry. White is just pure soy wax (clean scent). The package with all the candle-making equipment arrived today, and so this is our first batch of candles. Obviously these aren't perfect but we'll get better!

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/theConditioned/Candles/IMG_3861.jpg

what do you think?

Which one has the black powder charge concealed in the middle?

Looks like fun, but can you make these:

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/152/339772376_5fb75b21ed.jpg?v=0

out of soy based wax?

the soy wax we're using melts into a pool pretty quick - not really meant for freestanding designs, like pillars, or w.e. the heck that is. that's why all the candles are in containers (aside from the small votive, meant to be put into a container).

the experimentation with the explosives comes later.

not sure what constitutes 'perfect' but those look wonderful!

where did u find the kit, if i may ask?

where did u find the kit, if i may ask?A hive of soy bees.

who'd have thought it could be so easy.....

who'd have thought it could be so easy.....Me.

it's not a "kit," exactly.

i went online to a wholesaler and bought 20lbs of wax (10lbs of the container wax, 10lbs of a harder wax for pillars), bought some dyes, wicks, and a sample pack of fragrances. some molds too (which i have yet to use).

i bought the jars and cooking ware from the salvation army (using a crock pot + cooking pot as a make-shift double-boiler).

went on the net for some instruction, and the concept is pretty easy. the hard part is making them "perfect." the picture doesn't show it, but there are small air pockets in the candles, thus making the candle imperfect.

we plan on making candle-making a regular hobby of ours. it's relaxing, time consuming, something we can do together, and is indoors (thus nice for these cold days of winter). we hope to be able to sell some of the candles to help cover the cost of producing them. not planning on selling them to turn any serious profit - just enough so we can keep the wax coming in.

That's cool. I'd love to try this.

a bit of an update:

These i made for friends:
Red = french vanilla
green = cinnamon bun
purple = raspberry
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/theConditioned/Candles/IMG_3882.jpg
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/theConditioned/Candles/IMG_3873.jpg

An old burnt-out pillar that i re-melted and re-wicked into this nice mini-pillar. 3" diameter, maybe 3" tall.

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/theConditioned/Candles/IMG_3887-1.jpg

and finally... an experiment! i used two types of wax. one wax has a low melt point, the other: a higher melt point. of course, the difference is only about 5F. There are colored chunks in the glass (Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, Violet - in that order, red starting from top). the colored chunks are made of the high-MP wax. the white stuff surrounding it is the low-MP wax. the idea is that when you light the candle, a big pool would form in the jar (it's a hot wick). the pool of wax would be the molten low-MP wax. the high-MP wax would stay solid - you'd have solid colored blocks in an otherwise liquid candle.
of course, the high-MP blocks would eventually melt and burn.

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/theConditioned/Candles/IMG_3901-1.jpg

i know it's not that pretty. i think next time i'll make sure the chunks stay below the top of the jar and pour the low-MP stuff to get a nice smooth finish.

i plan on lighting it tomorrow when michelle comes over... see how it works!

...

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/theConditioned/Candles/IMG_3901-1.jpg

i know it's not that pretty. i think next time i'll make sure the chunks stay below the top of the jar and pour the low-MP stuff to get a nice smooth finish.

i plan on lighting it tomorrow when michelle comes over... see how it works!

I think it looks quite cool as-is. Looks like it could be a tropical drink. :D

Looking good! We did candles for Xmas last year, it was fun and thrifty! :D

Those are really cool.

loved this one:
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/theConditioned/Candles/IMG_3887-1.jpg

i don't know how they produced that effect in the wax. it was originally a candle my mom bought from the body shop. according to the label it was made out of vegetable wax and beeswax. i think it would be mostly veg wax (since beeswax is $$$), with a bit of beeswax thrown in. perhaps they don't bind together, producing that swirly effect. i'll have to do more research on it.

Very nice work. I think they all look great. I really like the one that looks like a dessert or tropical drink.