You can buy ready-made candle wicks if you want to make candles at home, but you can make your own wicks just as easily. Borax-coated candle wicks are the most commonly used. In addition, you can also be creative with wooden axes or moving axes using some basic materials.
Step
Method 1 of 3: Part 1: Making a Borax-Coated Wick
Step 1. Heat the water
Boil 250 ml of water in a small saucepan or kettle. Heat the water until it is hot, but not yet fully boiling.
Step 2. Dissolve the salt and borax
Pour hot water into a glass bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of salt and 3 tablespoons of borax. Stir until both are dissolved.
- This salt and borax solution will be used to coat the wick material. A layer of borax on the wick can make the candle burn brighter and longer. In addition, the borax solution also reduces the amount of ash and smoke produced when the candle is lit.
- Keep borax out of reach of children and pets as it is toxic if swallowed or inhaled.
Step 3. Soak the wick in the borax solution
Take a piece of cotton mattress thread and soak it in the borax solution. Soak the yarn for 24 hours.
- Make sure the thread is longer than the height of the wax container you will be using. If you don't know the size of the candle you want to make, soak about 30 cm of thread. You can cut it as needed later.
- Mattress thread is made from a material that is excellent for candle wicks, but almost any thick cotton thread will do. You can use embroidery floss, strips of cotton fabric, or clean shoelaces that have removed the plastic ends.
- Soak the yarn for 24 hours for best results. You can actually use the yarn after it's been soaked for 20 minutes, but it won't turn out as good as if you soak it for 24 hours.
Step 4. Dry the yarn
Lift the thread from the borax solution using tweezers. Hang the thread and let it dry for 2-3 days.
- The yarn must be completely dry before you proceed with the next process.
- Use clothespins or similar to hang the processed yarn in a warm, dry location. Place a sheet of aluminum foil under the thread to catch any excess dripping solution.
Step 5. Melt the wax
Crush to cup of wax. Melt the wax using a double boiler.
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If you don't have a double boiler, you can use a clean metal can and a small saucepan.
- Pour 2.5-5 cm of water in a saucepan and heat it on the stove. Let the water generate hot steam, but not yet fully boil.
- Place the can in hot water. Wait a minute for the can to heat up before adding the wax.
- Liquid wax can cause serious burns. So, be careful when finishing the rest of the candle making process.
Step 6. Dip the dried wick
Gently dip the borax-coated wick into the melted wax. Try to keep most of the thread covered with wax.
Basically, you can just use a borax-coated thread without waxing it. However, wax makes the thread stiff, making it easier to work with and easier to burn later
Step 7. Let dry
Hang the wick as before and allow the wax to harden. This process should only take a few minutes.
As before, place a sheet of aluminum foil under the hanging string to catch any excess wax dripping off
Step 8. Repeat
Dip and dry the yarn one or two more times to get a thick layer of wax.
- Ideally, the resulting yarn should be fairly stiff, but still flexible.
- If there is not enough wax available to coat the thread, you can grease the thread with wax that has been placed on top of the aluminum foil. Let the yarn dry on the foil, you don't need to hang it anymore.
Step 9. The wick is ready to use
Once the wax-coated yarn is completely dry, the entire process is complete and the wick is ready to be used to make candles.
Method 2 of 3: Part 2: Making a Wooden Axis
Step 1. Cut the balsa sticks
Use scissors to cut the balsa stick to the required size or at least 1 inch (2.5 cm) longer than the candle holder.
- Use thin balsa sticks that you can buy at a craft store. This stem has a diameter of about 1-4 cm.
- If you don't know which container you will use the candle in and how big the candle will be, cut a stick about 15-30 cm long. You can trim off the excess later. Better too long than too short.
Step 2. Soak the wood in olive oil
Place pieces of balsa wood in a shallow dish. Pour enough room temperature olive oil into the dish until the wood pieces are completely submerged.
- Although balsa wood is flammable, coating it with oil will make it burn faster and burn more steadily. Olive oil produces a clean burn so it is perfect for candle making.
- Soak the wood for at least 20 minutes. If you want, you can soak it for an hour so the wood can absorb more oil and create a brighter fire.
Step 3. Absorb excess oil
Remove the stick from the oil and use a clean paper towel to wipe off the excess oil.
- Instead of rubbing the logs dry, you can place them on a plate lined with a paper towel and let the wood dry on its own for a few minutes.
- After a few minutes, the wood still feels damp and slightly greasy to the touch, but doesn't leave a greasy trail on the hands.
Step 4. Attach the axis supports to the base of the log
Open the wick supports and press one end of the processed wood into the hole.
Press the wick into the hole as far as it will go. The wick supports will hold the wood firmly in place when it is placed in the molten wax during the wax making process
Step 5. The wick is ready to use
The wooden wick is now ready to be used for candle making.
Balsa wood that has been processed in this way is easy to use and burns well. In addition, compared to thread wicks, wood wicks will give off a woody scent when the candle is lit and produce a crackling sound when a fire burns
Method 3 of 3: Part 3: Candle Wick Moving
Step 1. Melt the wax in a double boiler
Crush about to cup of wax or paraffin and place it in the top container of a double boiler. Heat the wax until it melts.
- You can use new candles or recycle old ones. Break the wax into small pieces so it can melt faster.
- If you don't have a double boiler, place a metal can or metal bowl in the pot and pour the water to a height of 2.5-5 cm. The water should be in the pot, not in a metal can.
- Heat the water, but don't boil it. Once the wax has melted, proceed to the next process.
Step 2. Twist the pipe cleaner tip
Wrap the tip of the pipe cleaner around a pen or pencil. Once the tip of the pipe cleaner touches the stem or slightly exceeds it, twist the excess pipe cleaner up so that it is perpendicular to the stem of the pencil.
- Once the pipe cleaner has formed, remove it from the pencil.
- Keep in mind that cotton pipe cleaners are highly recommended. Pipe cleaners made from synthetic fibers are not as flammable or as safe as cotton fibers.
Step 3. Cut the pipe cleaner
Use pliers to cut off the excess length of the pipe cleaner. The ready-to-use wick should protrude about 1.5 cm above the circular support.
- After cutting the pipe cleaner, use long-nosed pliers to slide the upright portion of the pipe cleaner toward the center of the circle. This section should remain in an upright position, but should be exactly in the middle.
- If the perpendicular portion of the axis is too heavy or not centered, the weight distribution is imbalanced so that the axis will tip over and cannot stand upright.
Step 4. Dip the wick into the melted wax
Take the cut pipe cleaner with long-handled tweezers and slowly dip it into the melted wax. Let the wick soak in the wax for a few seconds.
- Be careful when working as liquid wax can cause severe burns if it splashes or drips on the skin.
- Make sure the entire wick is submerged in the melted wax. Try not to let the wick fall off the tweezers because you will have a hard time getting it back.
Step 5. Dry the wick
Remove the wick from the melted wax and place it on a sheet of aluminum foil. Wait a few minutes for the wax to dry and harden.
- Stand the wick on a circular support and let it dry.
- When ready, the wax coating the wick will feel hard and cool to the touch.
Step 6. Repeat the above process if necessary
Repeat the dyeing and drying process 1 to 3 more times, but allow the wax to dry before repeating the process.
You should create a thick, even layer of wax on the outside of the wick. The wax will make the wick burn faster and last longer
Step 7. The wick is ready to use
Once the wick is completely dry after the last wax coating process, the wick manufacturing process is complete and the wick is ready to be added on top of the solid wax that has no wick.
