About making candles?

Question

Okay I am attempting to make candles this year for our annual Christmas craft fair...I have heard parriffin wax is a low temp. melting wax and easily cumbustible...what temp is a good temp for melting parriffin wax...AND....can you use crayons for dyeing?

Answer 1

It really depends on the type of paraffin wax you are using! Container wax melts as low as 125 F and Pillar wax can melt as high as 165 F (with additives). You should always us a "double boiler" or thermostatically controlled griddle to melt your wax and NEVER leave hot wax unattended! I would not use crayons as dyes, your results will be inconsistent and it can clog the wick causing the flame to be too small or even go out. in addition cheap crayons have been known to contain lead. Here is my standard answer for folks new to candle making:

Candle making is not really that hard, but you do have to be cautious (making candles involves high temperatures, flammable substances, and potentially harmful chemicals). The beginner should start with container candles (usually in tins or glass jars) as this will get you some experience working with waxes, wicks, dyes, and scents. Note that there are many different types of waxes (container, pillar, soy, gel) and scents (not all are all safe together). I would recommend that you look at some of the sites I provided links to, take a lesson, or buy an introduction book/video. There is a lot of good and bad information out there, please use caution.

http://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&marketpl... (Kits & Videos)

http://www.candlesandsupplies.com (good for kits, supplies, info, videos, etc)

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/candlemaki... (great on-line group)

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/candleques... (great on-line group)

http://candleandsoap.about.com/ (good instructions)

http://www.candlecauldron.com/ (a very informative site)

http://www.gatehousecandles.com/ (my site)

Hope this helps!

Answer 2

Whatever temperature you use to melt the wax, if you use a gas flame and the wax begins to smoke, you've got the potential for it to burst into flames.    An electric stove, hotplate or even a griddle would be a better choice - better temperature control and MUCH less likelihood of igniting smoke from teh wax if you do get it too hot.

Crayons may work okay for small candles, but candle dye is very concentrated and will yield better colors.