71 Comments | Jill Winger | Last Updated: December 4, 2020
*Flicker flicker flicker*
When I’m sitting by the blazing wood stove on a cold winter’s night, I gotta have a candle. No ifs, ands, or buts, the moment is simply not complete without the dancing light of a burning wick.
Even though I’m dumped most of my candles in favor of my essential diffusers (because not only do my essential oils make my house smell good naturally, but they also can provide health benefits), I still crave the cozy ambiance of a good old-fashioned candle.
Sadly, even though most candles no longer contain toxic lead wicks, many you might purchase at the store stillcontain lots of junk, such as artificial scents and paraffin. In short– stuff you don’t want floating around the air of your home.
No worries though– we’re homesteaders–we’ve got this whole homemade candle thing covered.
I’ve already shown you howto make tallow candles, but just in case you happen to be short on tallow, you can follow the same method to learn how to makebeeswax candles too. Beeswax burns beautifully and is a wonderful option for natural, non-toxic, homemadecandles.
I’ve also got a great tutorial on how to make homemade soy candles, which is a wonderful budget-friendly alternative if you cannot get good-quality beeswax at a reasonable price.
A note about beeswax: If you have bees, lucky you! 😉 Homegrown, filtered beeswax is a beautiful choice for homemade candles. However, if you don’t have bees yet (like me), you can always check with local beekeepers to see if someone has beeswax for sale. If you strike out there, Amazon is always an option too. (That’s where I got mine this time around).
(this post contains affiliate links)
- Beeswax (this is what I used)
- Wicks (these are the ones I used)
- Glass jars (canning jars work great!)
- Dedicated container, such as a #10 can, for melting the wax (because it’s impossible to clean out afterwards!)
(A Note About Amounts: One pound of beeswax equals approximately 20 ounces in volume. For this tutorial, I used one pound of beeswas pastilles. It filled the four small canning jars shown in the above photo. Thankfully, the recipe is very flexible, so if you have more or less beeswax, simply fill more or less containers!)
Place the beeswax into your dedicated container/can. Place the can inside a stock pot filled half-full with water. Simmer over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally as it melts.
In the meantime, prepare your jars and wicks.
The goal is to get the wick to stay in the middle of the jar as we pour in the beeswax and it sets. You can accomplish this a variety of ways. For example:
- Use a glue gun to stick the wick to the bottom of the jar
- Attach the wick to the jar with super glue
- Hold the wick in place with strips of masking tap
- Use pencils or dowels to prop/stabilize the wick.
- Or use a combination of these methods.
It doesn’t matter the method, as long as the wick stays in the center of the jar. In the above photos, I placed a dab of glue on the bottom of the wick to secure it to the bottom of the jar. I then curled the wick around a small dowel to keep it from tipping over.
Pour the melted beeswax into the jar, leaving one inch of room at the top. Set the jars aside and allow them to cool and set completely.
Trim the wick, light, andenjoy your homemade beeswax candles!
FAQ:
- Will my beeswax candles go rancid? No. One of the benefits of beeswax is that it will not go rancid like soy wax or palm wax.
- Can I scent my homemade beeswax candles? Sure! Many people use essentials to create natural aromatherapy candles. However, keep in mind that essential oils don’t love high temps, so often the scent will not be as strong as if you were using artificial fragrances. I usually just leave my homemade candles unscented, and then make my house smell pretty with my essential oil diffuser instead.
- After you learn how to make beeswax candles in this post, click hereto learn how to make tallow candles too.
- How do I filter beeswax for my candles? Here’s a video that’ll show you how!
More DIY Household Product Ideas:
- How to Make Soy Candles
- How to Make Tallow Candles
- How to Make Hot Process Soap
- Homemade Whipped Body Butter Recipe
- Homemade Tallow Soap Tutorial
