DIY Candle Making

When I had a riffle through my sister’s makeup bag I mentioned her new candle making venture. Well since then she’s become quite the candle chef, with all sorts of concoctions and scents coming from the kitchen so I thought I’d nab her mid-melt for a quick chat on one of our favourite topics among gossiping about Catfish: The TV Show and moaning about why our Mum insisted on dressing us the same as children…

“I began looking massage candles up online after sticking my finger in candle wax one time and thinking that actually it was quite moisturising (a snippet of sisterly advice – this is not recommended), so I did a bit of searching. I found all sorts of ones that you can syphon off the wax that melts and use them as a body oil – but they all seemed really expensive, so I decided to make my own. Scentymental is a good place to start and I’ve found their ‘How To Make a Massage Candle’ recipe to work really well. I stocked up on all the ingredients I needed from Amazon and reckon it cost around £25 to make up a kit that includes a bottle of Sweet Almond Oil, a selection of Essential Oils, Shea and Cocoa Butter, Soy Wax, wicks and an old saucepan (with a pourer on the rim) and spoon that you don’t mind getting a little scented. You can buy jars too, but I just reuse any old candle holders I have hanging around – jam jars look really cute too. I made one for Anna in an old Nutella jar! 

The first time I attempted the recipe I followed it to the gram, but now I just tend to throw it all in; if the candle is too hard at the end you can just melt it back down and add more oil, too soft and I drop in an extra handful of wax. My favourite scents I’ve whipped up so far are Sweet Orange on its own and Peppermint and Eucalyptus. I like to pair those with Cocoa Butter instead of Shea as it adds a bit of a chocolatey-ness to them – think Terry’s Chocolate Orange and After Eights. Tasty. Lemon and Lavender is a good one too with Shea Butter, just like my personal fave Yankee Candle. I find them to be super moisturising – no need to layer any other products over the top. The first time I used them I thought I’d wake up with a layer of wax settled over me, but I just felt super smooth – where does it go!? It’s a mystery. I think next I might branch out into normal candles and go a little crazy with colour; ombré candles are in my sights. My top tips? Try to get the wick as straight as you can by securing it with sellotape and string – YOU DON’T WANT A WONKY WICK.”

We then both descended into a fit of chortles over the ‘Wonky Wick’ comment. Sisters, eh? Happy DIY-ing could-be candle chefs.