votives are a specialty candle, they are a free standing pillar candle when you purchase them, but they are specifically designed and formulated to be ONLY used in a tight fiting container. Do NOT burn a votive without being in an appropriate container. they will 'pool' and make a mess.
and some idiot I know started a fire with one by setting it in and burning it a plastic cool whip bowl
candles are horribly expensive now because parafin has doubled DOUBLED in price in the last year and so has soy wax and palm wax.
candles coming out of china in the last couple of years are basically worth less. Family members buy them and then realize they don't burn properly and end up giving them to me to use for firestarters.
look at the grocery store for those 'novena candles'. they used to be 79 cents forever, now they are $1.49 at the cheap store. they don't fill them to the top anymore, the last bunch I saw in my last shopping trip were only filled about 60%
however, the containers are usually strong and even though most of them use the china poopy wax, they will burn fairly well. even though they aren't filling the containers, you can still get a good 50-60 hours of burn time out of them if you burn them this way: burn for 2-5 hours, extinguish flame, burn again for a few hours the next day. it will last you a week to 10 days that way.
I've got a few suppliers that I use on occasion on ebay that I get smaller batches for my store, Mostly lots of one ounce bars for easier repackaging for sale in smaller lots. And yes, it is pricey but worth it IMO. At roughly .50 cents an ounce I can afford it on occasion.
But I have little use for 25 pounds of it at one shot.
I have a small pot of softened bee's wax I use for polishing and protecting some of my knife handles and stuff after I finish them. It took me a long time to get the mineral oil to wax ratio right. LOL Originally I read it was 1:1 but found that it was still too stiff and had to up it to 2:1 (2 parts oil to 1 part wax).
And there is something I read on a survival forum you both might be interested in if you don't already know about it....
A little item named a "Tuna Candle", as the name implies it is a home made candle in a tuna can but I figure any small can will do. Just set four or five wicks in the can and pour your wax into the can and let it cool. It provides not only light and heat but it also offers an easily portable candle in it's own container.
I have a buttload of candles myself. We got caught during an icestorm one year and that was the last time I was ever going to be caught without enough of the little buggers. I bought some tea candles (a big pack of 50) a few years ago to sell in my stores but decided to hang onto them instead.
sorry for the long post, I'm rambling on today it seems....
What, were you expecting something witty or insightful? Click here! Una Salus Victus
I always try to keep a case of wax in storage because if need be, I can melt the wax on top of the woodstove and still make votives when the power goes out.
I do give many away, but if necessary, they will make a good barter item
just a hint: Before you use that for wicking, melt some wax, soak the twine in the melted wax for several minutes, take it out, lay it on some waxed paper, let it prime or sit for a few days, then cut it into the length you need for your wick and you will have a better burn. Us old candle makers call that priming the wick. I do it with all my wicking.
wicking is basically various forms of twine, some with added zinc cores
just let me add, leave that twine soaking in the melted wax (and keep a heat source under the wax) for a good 10-15 minutes so that it will soak up a good deal of the wax. and let it sit for a few days or longer before you use it as wicking.
and let your candles 'set' for at least three days before you use them. I let mine 'cure' as we call it, for weeks or months, if I have a good stash saved up and don't need to use them right away.
also, store candles in a cardboard box. people often put them in baggies or plastic containers and then wonder why their baggies and containers smell wonderful but the candles have no scent left... the only plastic that will NOT absorb the fragrance is polyprophelene.
I use the dollar store shoe boxes for storage. They do not absorb the scent. I can get 48 votives in each box. I think they have a number 5 on them.
hemp wicks are extremely tight weaves. wicking needs a tight weave
do you have any craft stores or fabric stores around? Some of them will sell good candle wicking by the yard or they might have small amounts like 20 yards or so and some might even have it by the pound (wicking on rolls is usually measured by the pound)
good, proper wicking for the candle you are trying to make will give you a better burn all around
votives are a specialty candle, they are a free standing pillar candle when you purchase them, but they are specifically designed and formulated to be ONLY used in a tight fiting container. Do NOT burn a votive without being in an appropriate container. they will 'pool' and make a mess.
and some idiot I know started a fire with one by setting it in and burning it a plastic cool whip bowl
i have the wax in the fridge in the lettuce drawer because i remember our Christmas candles ( you know, the ones made in the shape of mr and mrs santa clause melting one year in the summer heat .
I have some little voltive candle containers kicking around too and some shrimp cocktail cups i burn them in.
