Gift idea...Candles

Pre-warning, this post is pretty picture heavy.

After seeing various pictures on Pinterest, I just hand to give candle making a go, and what better excuse than Christmas! I intended on it being a sweet little gift idea that saved me some money but unfortunately I decided on the idea to late and had to buy all the items from places like Hobbycraft (which we all know is an extortionate store). If i'd been more prepared, I definitely could have ordered it all online for much less.

You will need:

Glass jars

Thermometer

Wicks

Wax

2x pans (1 smaller than the other)

Pouring jug

Fragrance

Colouring (optional)

Decoration

I decided to use frosting spray over some stars to decorate my jars but you could do whatever you like, or you can even leave them plain if you are that brave!

I can't say that I weighed how much wax I melted, I just hacked away at the block for as long as I could manage before my arms felt like they'd fall off. Put a cookie cutter on the base of the bigger pan and add some water (don't go higher than the top of the cutter) and place the smaller pan on top. Boil the water and then turn the temperature down slightly. Add your wax to the small pan and place the thermometer in the wax. Slowly melt the wax but don't rush it by turning up the heat, the thermometer shouldn't read above 170 degrees Fahrenheit at any point.
I decided to add a bit of colour so I threw in a couple of coloured tea lights which worked perfectly.  

I brought the temperature down to about 150 and added some of my Christmas fragrance (I completely guessed the amount.) I should probably add that while your wax is melting you should put your wicks in your jars. I took the easy option and bought the pre-waxed wicks and clips and used a glue gun to stick them to the bottom (tee-hee) although I did give the normal wicks a go in my bigger jars and used a pencil and some tape to keep them straight. To be honest, it was a lot of effort, if you can, i'd go for the pre waxed ones! Pour straight from the pan, or like me, use a jug and fill the jars to about 3/4's full. I've been told that you should tip the containers as you're pouring to avoid air bubbles. I can't say it worked all that well, but I think the air bubbles just add to the rustic-ness. Once your candles have fully set you can cut your wick down a tad and finish any decorating.

I have to admit, the white and the light coloured wax candles don't really show off the frosted glass :( but I also did some dark purple ones that look really cool!

This is a perfect gift idea for Christmas, but they would also make perfect Birthday or Mothers Day presents. If you do give this a go, I would love to see a picture so please tweet me @strawbteacake

Have a very Merry Christmas and I will see soon!

xoxo