Homemade beeswax tealight candles are easy to make. You do not need any special equipment. It takes about half an hour and they add such a beautiful glow to the table or room. We have a few tealight candle holders around our living room and dining room. Lighting them makes any time feel special and it does not even have to be a special occassion.
The first time I made tealight beeswax candles my daughter said that it was so easy we should tell everyone. So to get you started, here I am sharing what we did and it really was almost too easy.
How to make homemade beeswax tealight candles
Beeswax
First, take some beeswax and put it in a wide mouthed jar. I use the beeswax from my beehive or I order it from Beequip https://beequip.nz/products/raw-beeswax-1kg?_pos=1&_sid=08358f793&_ss=r .
The beeswax I order comes in a one kilogram block and I just chip pieces off with a large chopping knife until I have about 200grams. I have tried a few different ways of breaking up the block and a sharp kitchen knife worked the best. You can look on my post about birthday candles too for more information about using beeswax https://mynaturalcottage.com/2021/11/01/how-to-make-birthday-candles-from-beeswax/
I find there are lots of uses for beeswax and wicks whether for lip balm https://mynaturalcottage.com/2023/10/02/natural-lip-balm-with-beeswax/ or birthday candles.
Melting the beeswax
Second, place the jar with the beeswax in a saucepan of half full of water to create a double boiler. Slowly heat the water. The water does not need to boil as the beeswax melts at around 63C. You may have to adjust the depth of the water depending on how much beeswax you are melting so that the jar sits up in the water.
Wicks for the tealight candles
I used a non stick mini muffin baking tray. I did not need to do anything to prepare the tray.
While you are melting the beeswax, you can put the wicks into the mini muffin trays. You can buy wicks with bases attached and these are often long and can be cut up. The small pieces make great tealight wicks and small drop of wax is all you need to hold the wick in place. The wick doesn’t need to be perfect as you can hold it in place or adjust it as you pour the wax.
Alternatively, I have tried hemp string for wicks and this was fine too.
Pouring the tealight candles
Thirdly, pick up the jar of melted beeswax, you may need to use a cloth or glove to pick up the jar if it is too hot to hold. Pour the melted beeswax into mini muffin trays. You can adjust the wicks as you pour each candle.
If the beeswax in the jar starts to set as you work, just put the jar back in the warm water to melt it again.
Lastly, I wait until the candles have set before removing them from the muffin trays. As the wax cools, it shrinks slightly and the candles just pop out easily with no cleaning required.
Using your homemade beeswax tealight candles
Now the cooled candles can go straight into the tealight holders and you can light them as soon as you want to use them.
As an aside, I usually make some extra tealight candles while I have everything set up and store these in a jar. When we all have dinner together then it feels like enough of a reason to light some little candles. Or when we are playing a game, sitting around by the fire, watching a film, then the candles add a warm atmosphere.
You will need:
- mini muffin tray, I used the Chelsea Winter one, any non stick mini muffin tray will work;
- 200 gram block of beeswax;
- 12 wicks or pieces of wick;
- A small saucepan;
- A glass jar.
In addition I have also used small jars to make candles and the method is the same. I just don’t remove the candles from the jars and these make cute gifts too.
Have fun making these candles and just find any excuse to light some and enjoy. Let me know what you think and any good ways you used the little candles.
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