My daughter and I recently started making soy candles and they're wonderful, but we're sort of playing it by ear. Is there an easy way to keep the wicks straight? How about adding pine cones or other natural things? Are they a fire hazard? Any hints would be greatly appreciated. Thanks alot.

-- Mary Petersen (mpete05@aol.com), December 21, 2001

Answers

I sure would like to know how to make "soy" candles.

Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-- wolfie (wolfiequinn@hotmail.com), December 21, 2001.

Mary, I assume you are pouring your wax into molds. The way I learned to keep the wick straight is to tape or tie the wick to a pencil or small stick which then rests on the top of your mold. Using those wick holders for the bottom of the candle helps. Adding natural items is most definitely a fire hazard. I know someone who just about burned their house down when the potpourri in their candle burst into flames. That in turn caught the nearby curtains on fire. She was really lucky that she had just walked back into the room. Just a few seconds more and she would have been in big trouble. A lot of commercial candles have been recalled for the same problem. One idea is to make a wickless candle with the pinecones just for show. Or you could make firestarters for fireplaces or woodstoves. Usually these are made by filling a muffin pan section half full with wax and then inserting your pinecone. You can tie a piece of string to the top of the pinecone which is lit.

Can you please share with us your directions for making soy candles? I've learned how toxic petroleum-based candles can be and would like to try something besides beeswax. Thanks!

-- Bren (wayoutfarm@skybest.com), December 21, 2001.

To make a candle with embedded items you need two different sized molds, like a 3" and a 4" mold. Make the 3" candle out of a wax with a low melting point (like for container candles). Then take the 3" canldle and thread the wick through the wick hole in the 4" mold. Fill in the empty space with whatever you want your imbeds to be (better something non-flammable) then fill with a wax that has a high melting point. This way your candle with burn down the middle and is less likely to melt the outside wax "hurricane".

-- Tracy (tbrock@splitrocktel.net), December 22, 2001.