How to Make Beeswax Tapers by hand:
I have been making beeswax candles for well over 8 years, I ran a candle making business during this time, and beeswax candles were by far the most popular kind sold. They are straight-forward to make, you can use beeswax straight from the Bee-keeper, the superb glow of beeswax candles is divine, and it smell delicious!
Firstly, if getting beeswax from the hive, pop it in a double boiler, then refine the wax, the way to do this is to let heat for quite a while, until it is clear, all sediment from leftover honey production of the bees will settle at the bottom and then you can start to "dip" your wicks! (It sounds a little sexy doesn't it? Thats because it is!)
Details and Instructions for my special recipe that I use is below, its recommended that you have at least 2 KG of wax for this, and you can make dozens of candles with it:
1.) Using a deep pan and saucepan make a double boiler and put the wax in the deep pan then put that into the saucepan on top of the stove
2.) Melt Wax, when wax is melted to the point that it is clear then it is ready for Wick Dipping.
3.) Cut cotton wick to equal lengths and fold in half to dip, i recommend a 65-70cm length to make 30cm length tapers
4.) To prepare wicks tie a weight to the bottom of each taper, i use wick tabs, but you can also use tap washers or little pebbles.
5.) The first dip – lower the wick into the wax and watch the air bubbles, once the air bubbles have disappeared pull out the wick. This is called “priming” the wick
6.) Make sure you have a place to hang your tapers ready for example a rod like i use in the pic above. Please put newspaper on the ground unless you want wax all over the floor!
7.) Wick Dipping – Shaping the Candle – Rounds of Dipping 3-4 times each of the following rounds:
1st – Dip 4 times 3/4 of the way up the wick
2nd -Dip 4 times 1/2 way up the wick
3rd – Dip 4 times 1/4 way up the wick
4th – Dip 4 times 2/3 way up the wick
5th – Dip 4 times 1/3 way up the wick
8.) if sheeting occurs (which is a ripple instead of smooth edge up the side of the candle) then slow down your dips
9.) Dip the candles the whole way for a fourth 6 dips, then cut off the washer/tabs
10.) Dip the candle a further 6 times or until desired thickness is reached
11.) After final dip dunk the tapers immediately into cold water, this helps to set the wax and shines the wax so it is golden.
12.) Using a knife or stanley blade cut and smooth the bottoms of the tapers so they will stand up
13.) roll the tapers in wax / baking paper to polish and then hang overnight to set.
Enjoy your candles, the beautiful golden glow of Beeswax candles are hard to beat.
What do you like to make with beeswax? Let us know in the comments:
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lilly (Wednesday, 26 August 2020 07:41)
Hi there. Thanks for this! What size wick do you recommend? Thank you
Red Dirt Blog (Sunday, 11 October 2020 20:56)
Hi there Lilly, thanks for your reply. I don't know where you are situated, but here I use lead-free, cotton wick, made in Australia.I would recommend a small roll of square wick - extra small or small size. I source them from here:https://candlemaking.com.au/collections/square-cotton-wick-for-beeswax
Hope that helps, thanks and all the best, Eimear