Ready for a fun candle making project? Well, let’s see how it goes. For this first review article, we will be experiencing the art of candle making with “The Complete Candlemaker Book & Kit”, an original Lark kit that I recently purchased.

What an exciting moment when the postman rang the bell, greeting me with a smile as he uttered these words: “A package for you.” My first steps in the creative world of candle kits. Let’s not wait any longer and start filling our home with candlelight.

Unpacking the candle kit

First things first: let’s unpack the kit and lay everything out in front of us to familiarize ourselves with the contents. What do we have here?

– 3.5 pounds of paraffin wax

– 1 immersion spigot

– 4 colors of dye chips

– 3 yards of wick

– 6 metal weights

– 1 vanilla candle fragrance block

– 1 beehive-shaped reusable rubber candle mold

– 4 pages of Instructions

– 1 copy of The Complete Candlemaker – Techniques. Projects. Norma Coney’s book of inspirations.

This 128-page book is packed with gorgeous images and contains several candle projects in addition to the ones we’ll be making with this kit. Lots of inspiring ideas. Now, let’s talk about the additional material needed, not included in the candle kit, to complete the two projects in The Complete Candlemaker Book & Kit which are: Hand-Dipped Tapers and Bee-Hive votives.

Other materials you may need:

– Water bath configuration (note 1)

– Immersion tank (note 2)

– Spoon or stick to stir the wax

– Candy thermometer to control the temperature of the wax.

– Scissors

– Cold water bath (note 3)

– Drilling device

– tapestry needle

– Paper towels or old hand towels

– Spoon

– Clean the freezer paper

– Hook or other drying apparatus to hang candles while cooling

– Pliers

Note 1. The configuration of the double boiler

When a bain-marie bottom is called for, don’t take it literally! In fact, it would be a shame to damage good kitchen equipment. Essentially what you need is a pot, not too tall and quite wide, which you will fill with water.

You will then fill the dipping tubs with wax and place the tubs in the water to melt the wax. This will keep the wax away from a direct heat source, so the temperature will not fluctuate much and the wax will melt slowly.

An old pot that is used infrequently or a thrift store find works well as a double boiler. Expect the inside of the double boiler to be scratched and eventually covered in wax.

Note 2. Immersion tank

The immersion tub(s) go into the bottom of the double boiler.

The size of the candles you want to make will determine what size soak tub you need. For smaller candles (eg, birthday candles or small sets of decorative candles to hang on the wall), you can use soup cans, tomato paste cans, or any other 8 oz. food can.

For taller candles, the ideal method is to melt all of the wax in a large juice can (such as a large 46 oz metal juice can, etc.) and coil the wick so that both candles hang fairly close together. You can then dip both candles into a tin.

If you want to make very tall candles, you will need to use a very tall, very thin dip tub.

Three pounds of wax can make a lot of candles, but if you’re trying to fill a very wide coffee can, the wax won’t go as deep as if you were filling a skinny milk carton, for example.

Always make sure your soaking tub has tight seams before filling it. Just fill it with water first and check for leaks.

Note 3. The cold water bath

Almost any type of container will work for this – you just need a tub or bucket that is deep enough to submerge the entire length of your candle in a bit of cold water.

In the next article, we’ll begin the first project, a step-by-step procedure for creating the Bee Hive votive candle.

Stay tuned for more action with the help of the candle kits!