Choosing the Right Wax for Your Candle Project
- Kimmy
- Sep 13, 2022
- 4 min read
If pa-start palang ang candle-making era mo, it can be hard to choose between all the different kinds of candle waxes you might find. Or, you might fall into the trap of just using one kind of wax for every kind of candle project forever — and then wondering why things don’t work out. 👀
The truth is, different waxes have their own strengths and weaknesses. Choosing the right wax (or waxes!) for your project will depend on what kind of candle you want to achieve.
Wait, there’s more than one type of candle?
Yes, sis! In the world of candle-making, there are different kinds of projects you can start with. Knowing the type you’re making ang key for choosing the right wax for your candle.
Container candles
Container candles are exactly what they sound like: They’re candles that you make inside a container, like a glass jar, a tin can, or even a cement container that you can DIY.
If you’re up for a challenge, you can even make your own candle container.
These candles don’t have to stand on their own, so you don’t have to worry about what mold to use or how hard your wax is. Most types of candle waxes will do, such as soy, paraffin, coco, palm wax, beeswax, and soy/paraffin blends.
Pillar candles
In contrast, pillar candles are those that do not need a container. These are the type of candles you’ll need a mold for — whether it’s a simple cylinder-type form or an elaborate figure of people, shells, or funky geometry.
Pillar candles let you have a lot of fun with molds.
Because pillar candles need to stand on their own, you’ll need harder waxes and wax blends to make them work, like paraffin, palm wax, and beeswax.
Votive candles
Kind of a cross between container and pillar candles, votives are sold separately from their glass containers, but are meant to be used in a votive container. Once they’re all burned out, you need only remove it from the container and replace it with a new one.
Votive candles are common in churches, but you can certainly make your own for home use!
Because they’re not exactly freestanding, you have a bit more variety to choose from when it comes to waxes and wax blends. You can opt for natural waxes like soy and palm wax, or harder ones like paraffin and beeswax.
Tealight candles
Sometimes confused with votives, tealights are much smaller and come in their own little metal or clear plastic cups. Usually around an inch or so high, tealight candles are designed to burn pretty quickly in their containers.
Tealight candles typically come circular, but these days, you can make them in the shape or squares, stars, flowers, and even hearts!
Like container candles, you can make tealight candles using most waxes, like soy, palm, and beeswax, paraffin, and their different blends.
Tapered candles
Typically used in candlesticks, tapered candles are long, thin candles that have a circular base and then narrow up on top.
Though you might’ve seen them in period films, tapered candles are making a major comeback in fresh colors and styles.
Because they need to stand tall and strong, you’ll need harder waxes — like beeswax and paraffin — to make them.
Candlemelts
If you want to get the vibes of a candle but don’t want to mess with wicks, then candlemelts might be for you. This type of candle usually looks like small pieces of wax that you can melt in potpourri burners. And because they’re smaller and don’t rely on wicks, you have room to experiment with colors, fragrances, and even shapes that you can mix and match on your burner.
Like pillar candles, candlemelts or wax melts can be a fun way to let your creativity run wild.
To make it easy for you to remove the candlemelts from their molds, opt for paraffin, palm, beeswax, or soy wax. Soft waxes like coco wax can make demolding a little hard.
Gel candles
Gel candles are soft, transparent, and almost gelatin-like — way different from your regular candle. That’s because gel candles are made of gel wax, which isn’t even a kind of wax at all.
(image source: HGTV)
Gel candles aren’t made of wax at all! Just a mixture named like a wax.
Instead, gel wax is made of mineral oil and a polymer resin, giving this type of candle its distinctive, see-through look.
Other considerations to make
Fragrance
Some waxes are better at holding fragrance than others.
For example, paraffin and coco waxes are known for holding (and throwing) scents well. In comparison, soy wax doesn’t hold quite as much fragrance, which can be a good thing if you want a subtler effect.
If you want to use beeswax for your candle, do know that it comes — surprise! — from bees’ honeycomb hives. As a result, they have a naturally sweet aroma that you need to consider if you want to mix in fragrances. Mahirap na if you choose a fragrance oil that clashes!
Color
If you want your candles to be a certain color, then it’s good to look into the kinds of wax you’ll choose and which colorants work well with them.
For example, soy wax is naturally opaque, which makes it a little tougher to color than the likes of paraffin, which is translucent. Meanwhile, palm wax produces crystals as it cools, which can create a really pretty effect when used with color.
Budget
Last but definitely not least, your choice of wax can also depend on your budget.
Best budgetarian options are paraffin, palm, and soy waxes. Mid-range naman are coco and gel waxes, and pinaka-shala ang beeswax.
Mixing and matching
If you’re unsure about the best wax for your dream candle, know that you can mix and match!
For example, if you want your scented container candle to be scented and plant-based, but also want to save a little money, then a coco-soy blend can be right for you.
Don’t forget to document your progress!
As with many things, practice makes perfect in candle-making. So as you enter your candle-making era, make sure to take notes of which wax, fragrance, and mold/container combinations work best for you.
Happy crafting!
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