When I was doing a lot of beeswax candle making with school kids,
I faced the same problem of wicks either burning out or raging
too large and melting the candle into a misshapen blob.  The
price of 'proper' candle wicking was prohibitive, so I found I
could use braided cotton pajama cord.  These cords consist of a
large number of strands to make a cord about 8 mm diameter.  It's
very reasonably priced and available at any sewing shop.
 
I was mostly making the rolled up foundation type candles, and
just had to experiment to determine what diameter candles needed
4 strands and which ones (fat) needed more.  The same principles
applied to moulded candles, but generally speaking, more
strands/unit of diameter.
 
I'll attach the text of the handout I gave the kids to accompany
the session.
 
Finally a question:  Which will burn longer, a candle 1" in
diameter and 6" long, or a candle 2" in diameter and 3" long?
 
Answer:  Neither.  They will both burn shorter...
 
 
 
MAKING CANDLES FROM BEESWAX
 
Bees gather NECTAR and POLLEN from flowers.
        - Pollen to feed young bees
        - Nectar to make honey and wax
 
Beekeepers collect wax by melting down the cappings cut from the
combs of honey during the extraction process, by collecting
scrapings of wax from inside the hive and by melting down old
combs.  Much of this wax is made into FOUNDATION to put into new
frames to put back into the hive.
 
The type of candle we'll be making is made from these sheets of
foundation, rolled tightly around the wick.  The other type of
candle is a moulded candle, made by pouring melted beeswax into a
container with the wick suspended down through the middle.
Finally, there are dipped candles.  They are made by repeatedly
dipping the wick into melted beeswax and allowing the layers to
cool between dippings.
 
BE CAREFUL WHEN MAKING CANDLES BECAUSE BEESWAX CAN CATCH FIRE
VERY EASILY !
 
Use a 'double boiler' so that you are not heating the wax
directly.
 
      \                                    /
        \     \                    /     /
         |     3                  3 ... |
         | ... 3                  3 ... |
         | ... 3 * m e l t i n g  | ... |
         | ... 3 **   w a x   *** 3 ... |
         | ... 3 **************** 3 ... |
         | ... \__________________/.... |
         | ............................ |
         |  Water in outside container  |
         \______________________________/
                        \|/
                       H E A T
 
 
For dipping the wicks into molten wax, I use an *old* (never to
be used for anything else again, believe me) electric frypan.
You MUST put 10-15 mm of water into it along with the wax - if
you heat beeswax directly, it is likely to RAPIDLY boil over
and/or catch fire.
 
Foundation comes in different sizes and thicknesses.  We will
be using FULL DEPTH MEDIUM BROOD foundation.
 
You can also buy special WICKS for making candles.  We will be
using BRAIDED COTTON PAJAMA CORD that you can get from a sewing
shop.  We will use only 4 of the strands.  If you use too many,
the candle will burn too fast.  If you don't use enough, it
will go out and not burn cleanly.
 
1.  Cut the wick LONGER than the candle you want to make.
 
2.  Pick out 4 strands and DIP them into melted beeswax.  Lay
    them down so that they will dry STRAIGHT.
 
3.  CUT the sheet of foundation into two pieces.
 
4.  Lay the wick across the wax.
 
5.  Roll the wax TIGHTLY around the wick.
 
6.  Use an old PAINT BRUSH to brush on melted wax to finish the
    candle.
 
7.  CUT the wick neatly at the bottom of the candle and leave
    about 10 mm at the top.
 
 
-------------------------------------
          Nick Wallingford
      Bay of Plenty Polytechnic
 (East coast, N Island, New Zealand)
     Internet [log in to unmask]
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