Candle making has been something that I have been wanting to try for a while. I was a little intimidated to give it a go because it looked really messy or I would do something horribly wrong and burn my house down. Well, I am here today to tell you I did it! Oh…and I did not burn my house down or make a huge mess! With Mother’s day right around the corner this is the perfect craft to try and to give to that special mom in your life. Follow along with me as I walk you through the steps on how you can make your own mason jar DIY candle!
Supplies needed to make your own DIY candle for Mother’s Day:
- 16 oz Mason Jars with Lids
- Wax Slab
- Fragrance Oil ( I used Vanilla and Relaxation)
- Wicks
- Soap Dyes or Color Blocks (optional)
- Stove and Pots
- Twine
- Paper Cups (optional)
- Mother’s Day DIY Candle Printable < click to print
I used a 10lb slab of wax. It’s a huge block of wax that you can use to make a lot of these candles. For three 16 oz. mason jar candles I only used about 1/8th of the slab. To get the wax in chunks I just took a hammer to it. I smashed the wax until it was in sizes that would fit into my pot.
I purchased and used a candle making pitcher. I just used one of my pots and filled it about 1/4th of water. I let that reach a boil and I placed my pitcher in to create a double boiler. If you do not want to get a pitcher, I have seen this done online using another pot or even an old can. I placed my chunks of wax into my pitcher and waited for the wax to melt. I did not measure out my wax chunks so I can’t give you an exact amount I used. For any wax I had left over, I poured into small paper cups.
I used premade wicks, but Amy has a great tutorial here on how you can make your own wicks. The color blocks were used to give my DIY candle some color. You simply just cut it with a knife. The more color you add the darker the color your candle will be.
While my wax was melting I prepped my mason jars. I placed them in oven for about 15 minutes at 175 degrees to warm them up. Once my wax was just about melted I pulled them out of the oven. I dipped the end of my wicks into the wax and placed them in the middle of my mason jar. You want your wick to be secured to the bottom of your jar before you pour in the wax. I’ve also read on some forums, that you can use hot glue to secure your wick. I found the wicks dipped in wax worked pretty well.
Once my wax was melted I added in the fragrance oil. I used the Abbey and Sullivan vanilla oil for my pink candles and Relaxation for my purple candle. I added about 20 drops to my wax to give it a nice strong scent.
Once my fragrance oil was added I put in my color blocks. The blocks melted it very fast and I gave it a good stir to mix everything together.
I poured the wax into my mason jar and secured the wick with two pencils. Then, you just let the wax cool. I did have a small amount of wax leftover. I poured this wax into small paper cups and let that cool. When the candle wax is dry you might notice some of your wax around the wick has welled. Just reheat the wax you saved in paper cups to give the candle a nice flat surface.
You can see in this picture I had some welling with my candle. Just reheat that saved wax and pour it into that hole. It will smooth out the DIY candle so you will have a nice flat surface!
While your wax cools prepare your mason jar tops. You can download these mason jar tops I designed here: Mother’s Day DIY candle Printable.
I just secured the tops with a little glue.
Add a little twine and cute tag to your DIY candle! That’s it! I hope I made the steps for candle making easy for you to follow! I found it to be not as scary or messy as I had thought!
I hope all you Moms have a wonderful Mother’s Day!!
More Project Ideas
Tori is the writer and crafter at Lil’ Mrs. Tori. She is a wife and mother to two young boys. Lil’ Mrs. Tori is her creative outlet where she shares her latest craft projects and inspirations.
[…] can add fun charms that fit the personality or lifestyle of the person you want to gift it to. This DIY Mason Jar Candle is so adorable and who doesn’t love candles! Another fun gift idea is this DIY Butterfly […]