Made with Love: Home Made Smelly Things to Make You Feel Good – Part 3.
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“Relax, it’s Soy Wax!” Lavender and Geranium Aromatherapy Candle
Lavender & Geranium
I admit I cheated here and bought a kit. Lavender, as we know, kicks butt at making us chill out. Geranium is a floral scent which sooths tension, uplifts moods and reduces stress. I say mix them together for a sensory mood booster after the chaos of Christmas and New Year!
In my 10-candle kit from All Australian Candle Making I got:
♥ 10 little glass candle containers with lids
♥ 1kg soy wax
♥ Wick assemblies (wicks with a metal disc at the bottom)
♥ You’ll also need pegs from the washing line and essential oils
In a double boiler, or in a big metal or glass bowl over a pot of simmering water, melt the soy wax by stirring continuously. When it has all melted, add your essential oils. I kept adding my lavender and geranium until it was strong enough for me.
Tricky bit #1: Getting wax into containers, not all over kitchen bench. I ended up using a ladle to fill them to about 1.5cm from the top.
Now, let them sit for a little but keep your eye on them. You’ll notice the melted wax, which looks similar to egg whites, will start to solidify and turn white.
Tricky bit #2: Setting the wicks. When the bottoms of the containers have about 1cm of white wax, carefully place a wick in the middle and squash the metal disc into the “muddy” wax at the bottom. You can use a wooden skewer to help push the metal disc down, and if you do so it’s easy to see the wax encasing the disc. Once you’ve got the disc in the solid wax, peg the wick so that the peg rests on the edges of the container, keeping the wick straight.
If the wax solidifies at the bottom too much and the wick won’t set, pop the candle (without wick!) into the microwave for a quick blast, or dip it in some hot water.
When the candles are completely white, you can remove the pegs and cut the wicks.
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Make sure you pop a glass plate or coaster under the candle when you burn it. If the aromatherapy doesn’t relax you, surely a candle lit room will!
By Gemma Clark, an 8-hours-a-night sleeper with soft lips whose entire house smells like a lavender bush.
Be well,
xoxo