How To Make Votive Candles

A votive candle is similar to a pillar candle except it is not freestanding and, rather, is removed from the mould and kept until being placed into a votive-specific container. Votive candles form the perfect balance between container candles and small tealights. Another great feature of votives is that because they are created using a mould and a wick pin, they usually look so perfect you can't even tell they are homemade!

• Votive Glassware
• Tart Wax - Approximately 55 grams of wax per votive you wish to fill.
• Votive Mould and Wick Pin
• ProWicks™ CDN 7 (60mm)
• Colour (optional)
• Your Favourite Candle Fragrance Oil (optional)

• Double Boiler Set Up
• Rubbing Alcohol (if moulds need cleaning)
• Paper Towel
• Newspaper (if you would like to use to protect your work bench from wax spillage)

If you want to protect your workspace from wax spillage, lay down some old newspaper. Ensure that your votive moulds are clean and ready to be used. If they are dirty, wipe them out using a paper towel and a small amount of rubbing alcohol.

Insert and carefully centre one votive wick pin into each votive mould. The wick pin is going to reserve a small tunnel through the votive candle, once set we can remove the wick pin and insert the actual candle wick.

Measure out approximately 55 grams of Tart wax per votive you wish to fill. Use a pouring pot and the double boiler method to heat the wax.

If you have decided to use colour, stir this in now. You can add dye chips, dye blocks or liquid dye to colour your candle.

Let the wax cool to the proper pouring temperature (if you are using tart wax it is 65°C).

Add 4 to 6% fragrance and stir gently for a minute or so. This means that each votive (55 grams of wax) uses between 2 and 3.5 grams of fragrance depending on the percentage you choose to employ.

Slowly pour the wax mixture up to the top of each votive mould. Votive candles do require a second pour so be sure to reserve some of the wax mixture for this.

Heat the leftover wax to pouring temperature and carefully pour into the remaining space until it fills the rest of the votive mould all the way up to the lip.

Allow your candles to cool completely. For optimal results, leave to cure for 24 hours.

Carefully remove the votive candle from the mould. They should come out quite easily, however, if you experience any problems, a good tip is to briefly place them in the fridge allowing the wax to contract from the edges of the moulds.

Once you have the votive candle separate from the mould, flip it over and carefully remove the votive wick pin by gently tapping the top of the wick pin until it releases. Be careful not to chip away at any of the edges or the base of the wax as this will effect the final appearance of the votive candle.

Once having removed the wick pin, carefully insert the CDN 7 Wick assembly into the candle.

You can now place your candles into your favourite choice of votive candle glassware. It is a great idea to add  a warning label on the bottom of the votive glass.

Voila! You have now created a votive candle!