How to Make a Container Candle, Step by Step

A container candle is wax, a weighed amount of fragrance oil and a wick, poured into a jar made for candles. The steps are simple. The risk is hot wax, so melt it in a double boiler, never walk away from it, and keep water away from a wax fire. Every temperature differs by wax, so use the numbers on your own wax maker's sheet, and test the finished candle in your own jar with your own wick before you sell it.

What are the steps?

1. Set up the workspace. Clear anything flammable, tie back long hair, keep kids and pets out, and keep a fire extinguisher close. NorthWood's safety page says to use a double boiler, because wax melted that way "won't get too hot", and never to leave melting wax unattended. Run a fan or open a window for air.
2. Clean the jar. CandleScience wipes each jar with a little isopropyl alcohol and a clean paper towel. Use only jars sold for candles (see our guide on safe containers).
3. Center the wick. Press a wick sticker or glue dot onto the wick tab and set it dead center on the bottom of the jar. Check the wick size against your supplier's chart first (see our wick guide).
4. Weigh the wax. Tare the pouring pitcher on the scale and weigh the wax. Weigh, do not measure by volume.
5. Melt it. Use a double boiler or a hot plate with a thermometer. Keep the pitcher off direct flame.
6. Weigh the fragrance oil. Work it out as a percent of the wax weight (see our fragrance load guide). Read the oil's safety data sheet for its flash point and keep your wax well below it.
7. Stir in the oil. CandleScience, using its Coconut Apricot wax, adds oil at 185 degrees F (85 C) and stirs gently for 2 minutes. Lone Star, for paraffin, adds it at 180 degrees F (82 C) and also stirs for two full minutes. These are two waxes, not a rule. Use your wax's own number.
8. Add dye if you use it. Stir it in until it is fully mixed.
9. Let it cool to the pour temperature. CandleScience pours its coconut wax at 170 degrees F (77 C). Soy and other waxes list different ranges, so read your sheet.
10. Pour slowly. Lone Star says to fill no higher than the jar's widest point and to pour slowly, since fast pouring splashes and traps air bubbles. Keep a little wax back if your wax needs a second pour.
11. Hold the wick and let it cool. Rest a wick bar across the jar mouth. Leave the candle alone, away from fans and vents, so it cools slowly.
12. Trim, label, cure. Take off the wick bar, trim the wick to 1/4 inch (6 mm), and put the warning label on. CandleScience cures its candles for 1 to 2 days. Lone Star says about a week. Soy and blended waxes often want longer, so see our cure guide.

Worked example: a small batch

Say you pour three jars, and each jar takes 6 oz (170 g) of wax. You want an 8 percent fragrance load, as a percent of the wax. All numbers are examples.

• Wax: 3 x 6 oz = 18 oz (510 g)
• Oil per jar: 6 x 0.08 = 0.48 oz (14 g)
• Oil for the batch: 18 x 0.08 = 1.44 oz (41 g)
• Check: 0.48 x 3 = 1.44 oz
• Total in the pitcher: 18 + 1.44 = 19.44 oz (551 g)

Pour a few percent extra if the pitcher leaves wax behind, and note what you really use.

What about lead wicks and labels?

The CPSC says the metal core of a metal-cored wick must not contain more than 0.06 percent lead by weight (16 CFR 1500.17(a)(13)), so buy wicks from a supplier that says they conform. CPSC also lists ASTM F2058, the voluntary standard for candle fire safety labeling, and CandleScience puts a warning label on the base of each candle it makes. See our label guide. I am not a lawyer, so ask your insurer what they require.

Common mistakes

• Walking away from melting wax, even in a double boiler.
• Putting water on a wax fire. NorthWood says it can make hot wax splatter.
• Pouring into a cold jar and getting jump lines or cracks. Lone Star warms its jars for this reason.
• Using a jar not made for candles.
• Measuring fragrance oil by volume.
• Skipping the cure and the test burn.

Questions

Do I have to warm the jars first?

Lone Star warms its jars in an oven at 150 to 170 degrees F (65 to 77 C) to help avoid jump lines and cracks, and CandleScience does not. It depends on your wax and jar, so test both ways.

How long until I can burn it?

CandleScience says to wait at least 24 hours before a burn test, then follow your wax's cure advice. Always trim to 1/4 inch before lighting, and never leave it burning out of sight.

How hot should the wax get?

Not hotter than your wax sheet allows. I cannot give a single safe number for every wax and oil, and the flash point of your fragrance oil is on its safety data sheet.