A few weeks ago I picked up a set of pretty teacups from a carboot sale. At only £10 for the 6 I thought they'd make perfect little presents. They're a lovely pale green with gold flowers all over them and I'd love to keep them for their original purpose if only they weren't so tiny {we're talking espresso cup sized}.
I'd wanted to have a go at making my own candles for a while but unsure as to whether I'd enjoy it {how daft that seems} I picked up a cheap starter kit online that came with the all the bits and pieces I'd need to make my own, including some fabulously 90's candle moulds - star shaped pyramid anyone? Not quite what I was after but it would do the job to get me started. I also picked up some superglue from my local shop and I bought oil from this website here. I had wanted something fresh and light to go with the colour of the candles and so picked a lime, basil and mandarin that is listed as being very similar to the original and popular candle itself. I have to admit, I was a bit apprehensive buying it with no idea what it would smell like but I lucked out - the stuff is gorgeous and really does smell like the original at a fraction of the price!
I started off gluing my cups and saucers together, giving them plenty of time for the enamel to bond.
Meanwhile I set about getting the wax melting in a ban marie {is that how you spell it?}. Basically a pan within a pan of boiling water, rather than over a direct heat. Using about a cup and a half of wax for each teacup candle I was making, I added a tiny amount of fragrance {as in less than 5ml?} once the pellets had begun to melt into liquid wax.
Ideally I would've had a metal weight for my wick but my kit didn't come with any. I improvised in the end and used the tiniest piece of blue tack just to hold the end in place. I bluetacked the other end too and wrapped it around a chopstick to hold the wick vertical whilst I poured in the wax to set.
I left them overnight to set. The kit had warned that the surface might crack as they cooled, in which case score the top of the candle and add another thin layer of molten wax. I didn't have this problem though the surface of my candles isn't perfectly flat. It doesn't bother me to be honest but I'm sure the problem would be easily fixed using the same method if it did.
Once set, I unwound the excess wick and trimmed it down to probably just over a cm?! Total guesswork on my part!
Anyway the finished result is lovely! They smell fantastic and look so sweet too. I only made 3 this time around so I have another batch to do but I need to get my hands on some more wax - god knows why I thought I might not enjoy this.
The possibilities, now, are endless! I can't wait to stock up on some more oils - Christmas candles for example {though even I can't think about that in this heat!} or stocking up on oils that smell like pomegranate noir so I don't end up spending a fortune on them!
LOVE IT. What do you think?
Love
B
x
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