We do our best to not use any artificial fragrances around the house. When I want to add a nice scent I just grab my Homemade Room Spray made with essential oils, and just spray a bit in each room. Well, this last weekend when I was doing some spring cleaning I came upon my jars stash, you know…all those glass containers you just can’t throw away? I’m not the only one who does that right? Right? Anyways, I was looking at all those lovely jars and had an idea…candles, but not just any candles.. oil candles. That’s right, no beeswax to melt down, no mess and so easy. The best part is I can use herbs and botanicals I have around the house to not only add a natural scent, but they are beautiful as well.
What You Will Need
• Cotton twine (for wick)
• Wire (to wrap wick)
• Glass container
• Flowers/Herbs/Citrus of your choice (ideas below)
• A Natural Oil
I use coconut oil in my candle because it is something I purchase in bulk and therefore I always have it on hand, and with bulk pricing it makes it the most cost effective choice for me personally. Any oil will work in this though - olive oil, grapeseed oil, avocado oil or whatever oil you happen to have on hand will work just as well.
The Botanical options are really interchangeable as well. I happen to have lavender on hand which is a very fragrant herb, so I combined that with some lemon slices and dried oregano flowers for aesthetics. I also did a smaller candle with basil that I have growing in my window and lemon slices, both versions smell amazing. You could also do pine needles and citrus or cranberries, clove with orange and vanilla extract, cucumbers with lime... the possibilities are endless here.
Putting It Together
First thing you will need to do is make your wick. The wire that we used was some we removed from the inside of an old telephone cord. We simply used a razor blade to peel off the insulation and removed the copper wire inside. Any thin wire you have laying around would work just as well.
We then used simple cotton twine and braided it tightly. For the small container we just used a single wick that we then spiraled to keep it upright in the jar. For the larger candle we knew we would need something a bit more stable. So, we took five pieces of the cotton twine and tied them together, tying a knot in the middle. Cutting one of the halves off to leave us with nine strings. We then divided the twine into thirds and braided them tightly, tying a knot at the end. Then simply wrapped our copper wire around each section and cut off any excess. To form the base we just used a mason jar lid to mold the wired wick into place..and there you have it, homemade wicks.
Now we just place our wicks into our jars, arrange the citrus and herbs around the edges, then pour the oil over them. Because coconut oil is solid at room temperature I did melt it before hand.
You could also add your favorite essential oils if you want an additional fragrance. As your candle burns the oil will decrease, you then have two options. 1). You can simply cut the wick as needed, or 2). You could just add additional oil as needed. We personally just add oil, therefore using less wicks and always having a full candle. And there you have it, homemade oil candles.
We hope you have found this post useful!
Thank You For Reading.
Happy Homesteading,
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That is pretty cool. I am not much into scented candles and stuff but even from a prepping perspective this is very useful. As long as you have oil and something for a wick you have candles!
Definitely!
You can use all kinds of things for wicks in a prep sitch too. Strips of old denim or shirts can work well in a pinch. I had seen a really cool blog post about people who lit crayons for light in an emergency, too.
Definitely not as lovely as what @llfarms has shown us here, but great to know if one ever needed some light or heat!
Hahaha Thank you @intuitivejakob! I also agree that in an emergency situation just oil and some sort of cloth would work perfectly. The pretty elements are just a nice touch, but not necessary.
Yes, definitely true for utility purposes only! For lovely fragrant spoils, I definitely like your way best.
By the way, it is @intuitivejakob - with a K, but fortunately I was checking my replies.
I'm sorry! I fixed it...I should have known that, I've seen you over on MSP.
And thank you ❤
Yes exactly! The cotton twine is extremely inexpensive and you could use any type of oil...even something like bacon fat in an emergency or other situation. Easy to store, simple to assemble. Perfect.
Thank you!
Thank you so much for such an informative post. I do love making candles however beeswax is getting very expensive. This is something I could really make.
Thank you! Yes, this is a extremely cost effective way to make candles and really easy for those who dread the mess of all that beeswax (me 😂).
Agreed. I will be making these for sure.
Thanks a bunch. :)
Wow it's amazing.....thanks for sharing the process....it's really great that you use all the natural things and essential oils.....I can imagine how good it will smell.
Thank you! Yes, it does smell amazing haha
Haha yes! Essential oils are always a nice addition and I find that since they sit on top of the oil you only need a drop or two. Thank you so much for your kind words and support ❤
That looks awesome. It'll look great on painted jars too. I may have to try that I love such DIY hacks :D
Rydhi
xox
Thank you!
I love this! I love candles but the thought of burning wax is bothersome. I can't wait to make this. Thank you! Resteeming for future reference!
Thank you! I bet you have some beautiful flowers and herbs you can add where you are...I'm excited to see what you do. I have really been enjoyig your photos lately 😉
You have such beautiful photography and great ideas:)
You're so sweet ❤, thank you so much !
Beautiful idea! I love this so much!
Yay, Thank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.
LOVE making things at home and can't wait to try this out. Chceked out your blog and I think it's wonderful what you have going on your farm. Looking forward to more!
Wow...that seems easy and even with my solar system I occasionally lije to burn candles.
So easy! And yes great light source to save on the solar energy. It is really customizable as well which is nice. Thank you!