Candle Making Wax - A Beginners Guide
If you’re going to make candles, obviously you’re going to need wax. But that isn’t as simple as many beginners think – there are a lot of choices to choose from. This article is a short list of the different types of candle making wax on the market.
Paraffin Candle Wax
Paraffin is the workhorse of waxes. Most commercially made candles are made from paraffin wax.
Paraffin is a residual of the process of refining crude oil.
Different grades of paraffin candle wax are available. Most suppliers indicate which is their “general purpose” candle wax and that’s usually a good one for beginners to start with. The wax is widely available, relatively inexpensive, very stiff at room temperature, holds dyes and fragrant oils well and burns relatively cleanly.
Soy Candle Wax
Soy candle wax is a recent invention. Researchers developed it by hydrogenating (adding hydrogen molecules to) soybean oil. With the addition of hydrogen, it becomes solid and suitable for making candles. However, unless the candle maker uses additives, most soy candle wax is too soft to use reliably to make taper candles or pillar candles.
Soy candle wax really shines when it comes to making container candles. It has a long burn time, burns cleanly and does well with added fragrance and color.
Beeswax
Beeswax is a great, albeit expensive, candle making wax. The wax comes from bee hives. Bees make the wax to form honeycombs to store honey. Beekeepers can harvest both the wax and the honey.
Beeswax produces very little soot and burns smoothly and evenly. It is a firmer wax than soy candle wax so you can use it for tapers. You can add scent to beeswax, but I prefer not to – it has a very subtle scent of its own.
Unfortunately, beeswax costs more than other waxes. It has always been a premium wax. In the past, only the wealthy could afford beeswax. It’s less costly these days, but it’s still somewhat of a splurge.
Where to Learn More
These waxes are the ones most candle makers use most of the time. You’d do just fine if these were the only ones you knew about.
However it’s well worth at least becoming aware of some of the other choices available. One place to start is the page: Candle Making Wax. You’ll discover some interesting waxes I haven’t mentioned here, as well as some more details about paraffin and soy wax.
Of course wax alone does not a candle make. You can learn what equipment and supplies you’ll need at: Candle Making Equipment
I want to recommend an excellent site for you to find out everything you need to know to produce candles every bit as beautiful as those you buy: The Candle Making Connection. I’ve learned the hard way that you can save a lot of time and frustration if you visit sites like that and get some insider tips and advice before you start experimenting on your own.
Making candles is a wonderful hobby and I hope this article helps you get started with.
Tags: candle making, candle making wax, candlemaking waxes, making candles, soy candle wax
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admin | September 11, 2009