Guest Post: Environmentally Friendly Candle Making with your Kids

September 18, 2010 by Brenda
Filed under Family, Featured Posts, Guest Posts, Things To Do

We’re all looking for ways to live a little greener—and to spend quality time with our kids! Making candles is a great way to encourage eco-friendly practices in your children, and it’s incredibly fun too! There are a variety of ways you can make candles, and many styles that they can take. Reusing old candles, or that box of crayons that no one seems to be able to use anymore because they’ve gotten so short, is a great way to recycle to create beautiful candles that you can use in your home, or as gifts! The rest of the materials can easily be found in thrift stores, or at your local craft store.

Materials:

Wax: Old candles are perfect for this. Old crayons can be incorporated, but aren’t recommended as the only ingredient. Try mixing crayons in to create different color combinations!

An old pot: You need a pot to melt the wax, so make it one you don’t mind sacrificing, or head to a thrift store to find one for less than a dollar!

Wicks: These can be found at craft stores—but make sure you cut them to the size of your candle!

Containers or Molds: If you’re going to create a candle in a container, you can use an old mason jar—or a washed, recycled jar that would have ended up in the trash. You could also use small tins from old candles. If you’re planning on making pillar candles or another free-standing, you’ll need some sort of mold, made from glass, plastic, or metal. Many things could be used as a mold, but be sure that it has smooth sides and no lip—you have to be able to get the candle out!

Decorative items: Adding decorative items, such as leaves, flowers, or other natural notions on the sides of your candles can be a great touch.

Instructions:

Before starting any candle making process with your children, be sure to educate them on the safety hazards of the process, and provide them with protective gear (gloves, or possibly safety goggles) if you have them on hand, or if you feel they need them.

For all varieties, heat the wax in the pan on a low setting. You want it to melt slowly, and avoid any dangerous splashing.

Jar Candles

Jar candles are incredibly easy, making them one of the top choices for kids. Cut the wick, and hang it from a pencil, so that it falls straight within the jar. Pour the wax into the jar, and let it cool. When it cools, remove the wick from the pencil and cut to proper length. Then decorate with ribbons, bows, stickers, or whatever else you and your children desire! Or leave in beautiful simplicity.

Free-standing Candles

These instructions are identical, except you use a mold—and you coat the inside of the mold in cooking spray prior to pouring the wax. Try experimenting with different shapes for unique candles. I once used the small milk cartons from children’s lunches with the top cut off, filled with ice, and poured the wax in. This causes an almost swiss-cheese like effect, and is incredibly unique.

In all cases, these candles can be made with recycled materials—providing a fun and educational experience for you and your kids. Get creative!

Kyle Simpson is a writer for luxury scented candles, where you can find an amazing assortment of high end brands at competitive prices.

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