Candle Making for Beginners: Everything You Need to Know

🕯️ How to Make Candles at Home: A Step-by-Step Beginner’s Guide

Ready to create beautiful homemade candles? Whether you’re just starting out or looking for DIY candle making tips, this easy guide will help you craft candles that look (and smell!) amazing.

Step 1: Choose the Best Wax for Candle Making

Choosing the right candle wax is key to success. Let’s explore the most popular options:

🌿 Soy Wax

✅ Eco-friendly candle wax — biodegradable, renewable
✅ Burns clean with minimal soot
✅ Long burn time, perfect for beginners
✅ Holds fragrance oils beautifully

⚠ Can be softer — may need blending
⚠ Surface may appear frosted

👉 Soy wax candle making is what we use in all our products because it’s reliable, clean, and popular!

🕯 Paraffin Wax

✅ Affordable and widely available
✅ Smooth, glossy finish
✅ Great for pillar homemade candles

⚠ Petroleum-based (not eco-friendly)
⚠ Produces more soot

🍯 Beeswax

✅ Natural, long-lasting
✅ Purifies air, subtle honey scent

⚠ Pricier, trickier to work with
⚠ Doesn’t hold added fragrance oils as well

Step 2: Melt Your Candle Wax

For DIY candle making at home, you can melt wax using:

• Stove (double boiler method)

• Microwave (small batches)

• Wax melter

💡 Tip: Always melt slowly at a low temperature to avoid burning. This helps when adding colour and fragrance oils.

Step 3: Temperature Guide for Candle Making

📌 Why check the temperature?

• Prevents burning your wax

• Ensures fragrance binds properly

• Helps achieve a smooth finish

👉 Use a thermometer and follow your wax supplier’s candle making temperature guide. Keep notes for next time!

Step 4: Add Fragrance Oils & Colour

🌸 Adding Fragrance to Candles

• Most waxes hold 6–10% fragrance load

• Example: 150g wax + 10% = 135g wax + 15g fragrance oil

👉 Adding too much fragrance doesn’t boost scent strength — it just wastes oil!

🎨 Colouring Your Homemade Candles

• Options: liquid dye, beko chips, mica powder

• Always use colouring for candle wax that’s tested for safety

Step 5: Choose the Right Candle Wick

Selecting the best candle wick size ensures an even, safe burn:

• Wick names (TCR/2, TCR/4 etc.) — higher number = bigger wick

• Wick size guides = a starting point, always burn test!

👉 Click here for more details on how to perform a candle burn test.

Step 6: Pour & Set Your Candle

Slowly pour your wax and let it set undisturbed for 48 hours — essential for fully blending the ingredients.

Step 7: Trim & Enjoy

Trim your wick to about 5mm before lighting. Your homemade candle is now ready to enjoy!

🌟 Final Thoughts on DIY Candle Making

DIY candle making at home is fun, creative, and rewarding. Choose your candle wax, fragrance, and wick carefully — and don’t forget to enjoy the process!

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FAQ

Are your candles vegan?

Yes they are! Its not just what goes into our candles that make them vegan. Our scents are made from natural ingredients , the wax we use is soy wax, and our vessels are also vegan friendly! We only use natural ingredients within our candles.

Whats the difference with container and pillar wax? 

Container Wax
Candles in jars or tins
Soft and sticky
Sticks to containers, holds fragrance well
Soy, coconut, container-grade paraffin

Pillar Wax
Freestanding candles (like pillars or molds)
Hard and sturdy
Holds shape without a container
Beeswax, palm, pillar paraffin

Quick Tip: Use container wax for jar candles, and pillar wax for mold or standalone candles.

Whats a burn test?

A burn test is when you light a finished candle to check how well it burns. It helps you see if the wick is right, how long it lasts, how evenly it melts, and if the scent throws well. It’s a key step to make sure your candle is safe and performs well.

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Whats the 4 hour rule?

The 4-hour rule means you shouldn’t burn your candle for more than 4 hours at a time to prevent overheating, uneven melting, or safety issues. Let it cool before lighting again.