How to Make Candles:
Still an Art

This page gives a brief overview of how real, homemade, hand poured candles are made.

There really is no mystery to it - again, it's like a good recipe: two cooks may make the same cake from the same recipe -but the resulting cakes may still taste different. Substantially different.

It takes a good recipe to make good candles, but not much in the way of equipment: a double boiler or even a simple turkey roaster will usually suffice (so the wax doesn't burn or scorch at high temperatures.)

Then there is the ratio of wax to oil: as we've said before, you can put too much or too little in - and wind up with candles that either won't burn correctly or won't give a decent "scent throw."

And, finally, there is the wick - ah, who would have thought that such a small detail could make so much difference? Truth is, wicks burn either hotter or cooler, depending on their construction and the material from which they are constructed.

Confused? Read a little more and the puzzle will start to clear a little. :-)