I’m all about making our little Clockhouse as cosy and inviting as possible and given that it’s now dark by 5pm, what better antidote than switching on the tree lights, pouring a glass of wine and lighting a few fresh new candles? (Nothing, I tell you.) Making your own candles is easy, satisfying, you save some dosh (I can get through fancy aka expensive candles like no one else, it’s a sickness, really.) and bonus Christmas points, they make great gifts! So, in the spirit of the fast-approaching festive season, I decided to create some homemade gingerbread soy candles and share the process and results with you guys.

HOMEMADE GINGERBREAD SOY CANDLES

WHAT YOU’LL NEED;

• Wax. I used NatureWax 100% Soy but you can use whatever you like… I think I’ll try beeswax next time, just to switch things up. I have a few more kg’s of soy to get through though, first!
• Wicks & sustainers. I have a mixture of eco wicks and some fancy wood wicks that make the best crackling sound, almost like a real fire! You can buy them HERE and HERE.
• Fragrance oil or pure essential oils. For these candles, I used a gingerbread fragrance oil (HERE) but I have a collection of essential oils ready for my next batch. (Anyone got any tips on how to recreate Diptyque’s Feu de Bois?! Or Le Labo’s Santal 29? Anyone?)
• Coconut oil. You just need a spoonful (or so) of this, I’ve heard that it helps the wax burn more evenly – Can’t hurt, right?!
• Jars. This is a great way to recycle any old glass jars or candle holders that you have laying around. I really wanted dark amber glass jars for this little project so I bought a few HERE. They have a great selection and are really reasonably priced if you’re only making a few at a time. (If you want to start an online shop or similar then I would definitely look into wholesale options.)
• Labels. Non-essential but a cute touch if you’re giving them as gifts. You can get labels printed up pretty cheaply but I have a label maker so I just used that and I love the way it looks. (You can get one HERE for about a tenner.)
• Thermometer. I’ve made candles before without them but you will get better results if you had the fragrance or oils at a certain temperature and also if you pour the candles at a certain temperature. I picked one up HERE.
• Wick holders. Definitely not necessary but will make your life a bit easier. I used chopsticks, knives and those little clips you get from IKEA… Worked but was definitely extra faff!

THE PROCESS;

First, you need to do a teeny bit of maths… before you roll your eyes, I know, it’s not up to me! Apparently, the candles will crash and (not) burn if you skip this part and just throw things in willy-nilly.

Confession time – I didn’t measure anything the first time around and whilst it didn’t go horribly wrong, you couldn’t actually smell anything so… It’s probably worth it.

1. Look at your jars and figure out how much wax you’ll need… Say you have 6 jars that each hold 120ml (or 4fl oz)…

6 jars x 4oz = 24oz

24 / 20 = 1.2

So, you’ll need 1.2 lbs of wax.

Now, work out the fragrance load. You want to stick around the 10 to 12% mark, any more and it won’t burn properly.

So, 1.2 lbs is roughly 18fl oz…

18 / 100 x 12 = 2.16fl oz of fragrance.

2. Grab your wicks and sustainers and fix to the centre of your jars, using sticky dots, or a bit of folded up sellotape. If you’re using a double wick make sure you place them at least an inch apart.

3. Heat the wax to 180 – 185 degrees.

4. Add a spoonful of coconut oil and stir through.

5. Now add your fragrance oils and stir continuously for 90 to 120 seconds.

6. Allow the wax to cool to 120 – 140 degrees before pouring into your containers.

7. Make sure your wicks are positioned in the centre of the candle, allow to cool…

… et voila! Homemade Gingerbread Soy Candles!

Make sure they’re fully set before you light them.

Has anyone made their own candles before? If so, any tips for using essential oils? It’s a fairly expensive experiment so I want to get it right!

I hope this was helpful? Let me know if you do recreate these at home!

We’re hosting Christmas this year so I’m going to add some name tags and use them as festive placeholders for the dinner table.