Tag Archives: Candles

New Life for Old Candles

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I have quite a few old, half burned candles packed away in a closet, with little intention of using again. I knew that there had to be a way to get new life out of the candles, but what? And how easy would it be to do? I’ve never melted wax before!

Turns out it’s super easy to melt down an old candle. Simply put the candle(s) in a pot, turn the burner on medium and the wax will melt. I would recommend buying an old pot from Goodwill/Salvation Army because you will ruin the pot.

For the containers, I found inspiration online – use old tea cups from Goodwill or Salvation Army.  I decided to expand the idea and use old Mason jars too.

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Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Candles
  • Tea cups and/or Mason jars
  • Candle wicks
  • Wick stablizers
  • Candle scent (optional)
  • Hot glue gun
  • Pencils or kabab sticks

Instructions:

  • Clean the tea cups and jars thoroughly and dry completely.
  • Place candles in the pot and put the pot on a stove with the burner on medium. If candle is already in a glass container, simply place the glass container into a pot of water on your stove burner. Water should reach no more than halfway up the glass sides. Heat the glass container in the water over a medium flame until the was is pourable.

  • While you are waiting for wax to melt, cut candle wicks. The candle wick should be 1-2″ longer than the depth of the cup/jar. Attach one end of the wick to a wick stabilizer (I didn’t use them, but wish I had).
  • Place your wick in the center of your cup/jar and glue the base down with a dab of hot glue. Let dry.

  • When wax has melted, pour into the cup/jar. You can gently adjust the wick to make sure it is straight after you poor the wax in. You may need to hold the wick in place with pencils or with kabob sticks.

  • Let sit until the wax is cool and solid.
  • Trim wick down to 1/4″.

I have a few final FYI’s:

  • Be cognizant of what colors you are melting together.
  • Wax is very hard to clean up from counters. In order to help with cleanup, cover your work space in newspaper. wish I had done that.
  • Wax’s flash point is 300 degrees F, don’t let it’s temperature exceed 250 degrees.
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