These cappings from honey frames make the best candles, lip gloss
and hand lotion after they have been heated in a coffee can set in hot
water. We find old slow cookers are excellent for this. The next step is
to pour the melted wax through a mesh (old nylons or cotton fabric work
well) into milk cartons. We use the plastic berry baskets on top of the
half gallon cartons to hold the straining material. When the wax is
cold, any honey will have separated from it and sunk to the bottom. You
will have a lovely, clean block of wax to use when you do this. |
Liberty 4-H Beekeepers
made beeswax candles at their December 2004 Meeting . They used sheets
of colored beeswax. These are available at many craft stores and in
catalogs.  |
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Kaitlyn is demonstrating
the way to place the wick on the beeswax. She pressed it firmly onto the
edge of the wax. Next she will roll the wax tightly around the wick.
The top of the wick is 1/4" above the candle. Before rolling the wax,
she softened it with a hair dryer so that it was easier to work with.
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Kasey made her rolled candles and then cut out pieces to
make pictures. They stuck on after she warmed them slightly
with the hair drier. |
The bee skep candle is a favorite. Note the candle to the right
in the mold. We used wooden skewers to hold the wick up by splitting the
skewer and wedging the wick in the split. |
| Molded beeswax candles require clean wax filtered
through mesh or a nylon stocking. Wax saved from the cappings cut off
the honey frames is great. It has the best fragrance. Melting old comb
in a solar wax melter also gives a beautiful wax. |
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Hard plastic and metal molds require spraying with a
silicon spray. Always spray away from yourself and anything that could
cause a fire. Flexible silicon molds do not need spraying. |
Phoebe is pouring wax that is not too
hot. Pouring temperatures should be between 145°F and 155°F. Note she is
holding the container very close to the mold. |
To make this two color floating candle Jessie carefully
poured the red wax first and let it set awhile before pouring the
lighter color. |
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| Wood skewers work well to
support the wick in the large candles. We used hair pins for the little
votive candles seen in the photo. |
In November's meeting we made candles, lip
gloss and hand lotion bars. Some of the candles were made with soy wax
so we could see how it is different from bees wax. We much prefer the
real beeswax!
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The tallest molds were
expensive but will last for years. They are silicon flexible molds. The
two piece bee skep molds were the hardest to seal and pour. |
Arianna, Phoebe and Jessie are planning to give their beautiful candles
away for Christmas gifts. |
| Megan did a great job preparing a talk and
teaching the other 4-H beekeepers the art of making lip balms and
creams. She now prefers to use olive oil in these recipes rather than
the almond or other oils she found in her research. |
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Kendal is showing off the tuplip candle she made from real beeswax. |
This is a floating candle made from real beeswax. |
