Wooden Wick Candle Tutorial

Making candles with wooden candle wicks can be a lot of fun and can make your candles unique and different. This tutorial will show you how to make a candle using a wooden wick candle. 

Supplies:

• 5 oz. of Golden Brands 464 Soy Wax (pre-weighed before we start)
• 8 oz. Candle Tin
• .35 oz. of Pistachio Dream Cake Fragrance Oil
• Green Leaf Liquid Dye
• Candle/Soap Making Scale
• Large Wooden Wick (note: if you are using a different wax other than soy, you may need a different wick size)
• Wick Sticker
• Thermometer
• Pouring Pot
• Hot plate (if not using a stove top)
• Pot to create a double boiler
• Wooden spoon for stirring
• Wax paper to protect the surface you will be working on

Step One: Prepare Container & Area

Pre-wick your container by taking the paper off the back of the sticker and applying it to the bottom of your wick tab. Then place the wick in the center of the container and press it down firmly. Next, fill your pot about 1/3 full with water to create a double boiler. 

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Step Two: Melt Wax

After measuring out 5 oz. of soy wax, pour it into your pouring pot. Place the pouring pot into the pot with water, creating a double boiler. Using this set up to melt the wax prevents the wax from getting too hot and potentially scorching the wax. Turn your hot plate or oven on to a medium temperature and heat the wax to approximately 185°. Heating to 185° helps to ensure your fragrance oil (especially heavier fragrance oils) are hot enough to disperse throughout the wax. Once your wax has reached 185°, add your dye and fragrance oil. We used 2 drops of liquid dye for this candle. Finally, remove the wax pitcher from the double boiler and allow the wax to cool to approximately 130° - 140° and then pour into the container.

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Step Three: Finalize Candle

Once the candle has cooled and solidified, trim your wick to about ¼”. You want to be careful on this step. Trimming the wick too short and not leaving enough of the wick exposed above the wax line can cause your wick to burn out shortly after being lit. Leaving too much of the wick exposed above the wax line can cause a large flame and the candle can burn too hot. (Tip: Toe nail clippers are great for trimming wooden wicks.) 

If you are using soy wax, as we did, we recommend waiting at least 5 – 7 days before burning to allow the candle to fully cure. If you are using paraffin wax or a paraffin-soy blend wax, candles are generally cured after about 48 hours. That’s it and you are now ready to enjoy your new wooden wick candle.