Wax and Bubbles

…..for that fresh drunken Irish clean feeling.

Glycerin soap, clear for a more transparent green or white for a more solid green color
Soap dye in green
Soap molds in shamrock shape or other St. Patrick’s Day shape
Microwave safe liquid measuring cup
Spoon
Popsicle stick or coffee stirrer
Knife

If using bars of soap, cut into three pieces. If using purchased glycerin blocks, cut off 2-3 pre-measured chunks. Place glycerin soap into a measuring cup, microwave for 20 seconds), then in 10-second intervals until melted. Add colors. Add a few drops and stir with a spoon. If you want the color darker, simply add more dye.

Slowly pour the liquid soap into the mold. Set aside to harden for 45 minutes to an hour.

After soap has cooled completely, pop them out of the molds.

*While you’re in the festive mood, why not make a St. Patrick’s Day Green Beer Candle:*

A glass beer mug
Candle gel
Standard paraffin wax
An appropriate wick length
Green candle coloring and fragrance if desired
A wire whisk
Standard candle making equipment

Take the wick, make it longer than you would need and tie it around a pencil. Place the pencil length-wise across the lip of the mug. Melt the gel over med HIGH heat on the stove or in a microwaveable-safe dish in the microwave. Once the gel is liquefied add green coloring and fragrance if using. Once fragrance and color is incorporated, pour directly into mug. You might want to hold the wick by the pencil straight up from the middle to keep it straight while pouring. Before starting the next step, allow the gel to fully harden.

Next step is to melt the paraffin wax in the same manor as above. Either way will work fine. While the paraffin is melting your need to whip the wax so as to add bubbles to the wax. Pour the whipped wax directly on the top of the gel in the mug. Be sure to hold the wick straight up and down do that it is even with the rest of the candle and won’t burn sideways. Let everything harden completely for a day or two before burning. Or use it for your St. Patrick’s Day decor while you party it up Irish-style this evening.

The bottom line in candle making is patience. Next would come the equipment. If you have been wanting to make you own candles but just haven’t really know where to start, there is candle making kits avaliable almost everywhere, even Wal-Mart. The best candle making kit that I have run across is at Great Candle. They pretty much include in their kit everything you will need in order to get started right away. Their kits include:

• Votive Kit $28.00 - Perfect Kit to start with, Kit contains: 4 lbs of Soy/Blend votive wax, 8 votive molds, 32 wicks 4 - 1oz. bottles of fragrance, Honeydew Melon, Apples and Berries, Kiwi Strawberry, Cherry, approx 1/2 red color block, approx. 1/2 green color block, and complete instructions . Kit makes approx. 32 candles.

• Basic Soy Container Kit $28.00 - Perfect for the beginner. Kit contains: 5.25 lbs Southern Scentsations GW Soy, 12 Jelly jars, 12 Htp wicks, 3.95 oz’s of Southern Apple Pie, 3.95 oz’s of Love Spell fragrances, a Red Dye Block. Kit contains instructions, and Candle Making tips.

• Deluxe Soy Container Kit $75.99 - Kit includes all of the Basic Soy Kit: 5.25 lbs Southern Scentsations GW Soy, 12 Jelly jars, 12 Htp wicks, 3.95 oz’s of Southern Apple Pie, 3.95 oz’s of Love Spell fragrances, a Red Dye Block. Kit contains instructions, and Candle Making tips. Plus you get a Presto Pot for melting wax, A Pouring Pot, Thermometer, and a Ladle.

You can take any of these candle making recipes and supplies and add an essential oil to them and make them original and your own. You can even get a register from your own state and patent these candles for profit. Simple as that. The more you make the better you will get and the more you experiment with oils and floral scents the more you will learn about what scents last longer and what scents don’t.

More supplies you may need are as follows.

° Wicks

° Dye

° Containers

° Molds

° Scents

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FUTURE POST LOOK-ON:

• Sore Muscle Soak

• Cucumber Facial Mask

• Herbal Facial Steam

• Herbal Massage Oil

• Antiseptic Mouth Wash

Since it’s Friday, I thought I’d share some interesting gel candles that are available online. Use them as inspiration for your own candle projects this weekend, or simply have a look and be impressed with the creativity of these candle makers. Enjoy!

First we have one of the most popular types of gel candles - the seascape. Gel wax does look like water in a container, so adding shells and fish just comes naturally. Blue Chopsticks has a pretty one that features a starfish, while Joissu has made theirs look more like an aquarium.

100 Candles has taken clear glass shot glasses and suspended gold and silver flakes in their gel candles. These are so simple, but the result is quite elegant. eCrater takes the basic champagne candle one step further with strawberry champagne candles, served up in champagne flutes.

(more…)

Making gel candles is a lot like making melt and pour soap, with a few extra safety precautions. We’ll address those safety issues in the future, but for now let’s take a look at the three different types of gel that can be used in candle making.

Low Density Gel (LP)

Low Density candle gel is perfect for simple candles. You’ll get few bubbles with LP gel, it’s easy to work with, and holds a small amount of scent. You won’t be very successful embedding objects in low density gel, as it just isn’t strong enough to keep them in place. The candles in the photo here were made with low density candle gel.

Medium Density Gel (MP)

Medium Density gel has more bubbles than low density gel, and is a bit thicker. It’s still pretty easy to work with but you have to work a bit faster once it’s melted. MP gel holds more scent, and this is the one you want if you’re putting embedded objects in the bottom of your candle.

High Density Gel (HP)

High Density gel is thick and bubbly. This is the stuff you’d use to suspend objects in the candle, or if you want a lot of scent. It can be tricky to work with because it sets up quickly and it’s hard to control the bubbles in the finished candle. If you’ve ever seen gel candles that look like little aquariums with embedded fish “floating” in them, you’ve seen high density gel in action.

For the beginner, it’s best to make a few very basic gel candles with low density gel first, just to get used to the process and overcome any fears you might have in working with gel. Once you get the hang of it, move on to more involved candles like this one, using a higher density gel.