MaryJanesFarm | Simply MJ

January 8, 2004

Wax, Wick, and Wavering Light

   

Candles have been used for thousands of years, but never have we needed them more. Not so much for light these days, but balance. A lit candle somehow brings calm into our hectic lives, much like staring into the flickering flames of a campfire. As a backdrop to deskwork you’re dreading or a dinner you need to fix when you’re low on energy, a business meeting needing focus or a family gathering needing warmth, light a candle to handle it, a candelabrum for equilibrium.

Early candles were made from tallow, which was extracted from cattle and sheep. Through the ages, people from around the world have skimmed wax by boiling all kinds of things from insects to cinnamon. Native Americans burned oily fish wedged into a forked stick.

American pioneer women discovered that boiling the grayish green berries of bayberry bushes produced a sweet-smelling wax that burned clean. It takes 1 1/2 quarts of bayberries to make an 8-inch taper candle.

In 1995, innovators developed soybean wax that could be made into candles to replace paraffin. They wanted to replace the paraffin wax that is refined from crude oil and emits toluene, benzene, formaldehyde and soot when burned. They invented a wax made from a renewable soybean oil resource in plentiful supply from the farms of America. It is a wax that does not emit the harmful aromatic hydrocarbons of paraffin and produces very little soot.

Organic soy candles are now available on the market. A company called Lumia makes soy candles that are naturally scented with plant-derived essential oils. These soy wax candles are biodegradable and non-toxic. They also use cotton wicks for your health and safety. (No lead or other toxic metals in your air.) Lumia can be reached at <www.lumia.us>, (303) 440-1295. There are many luscious aromatherapy options available through Lumia including lavender, sweet orange, and evergreen.

Of course, honeybees have been making wax long before anyone else. Most locales have a beekeeper. I know of a very impressive young man, age 12, from Nebraska who has had his own successful beekeeping business since he was in the first grade! Locate your local beekeeper and start talking wax. Beeswax candles smell wonderful and burn slowly. Even though they may seem more expensive, they aren’t if you compare burn rates.

Like so many other things in your home, candles can be recycled. First, clean the candles as much as you can by removing any labels, cutting the burnt part of the wicks off and removing any exterior decorations.

It is safest to melt a batch of used candles made from the same formula. However, you can melt candles with an unknown candle wax formula. When my children were little, we liked to toss in the occasional broken crayon for surprise coloring. Use extra caution when melting used candles. Melt the whole candle, wick and all into the melting pot. My melting pot is an old stainless steel saucepan with a pour spout. I don’t use it for anything else, so I never have to figure out how to get it entirely clean again. I store it under my kitchen sink and toss in the remains of candles until I have enough to start all over again. As the candles melt, remove the wicking and any noticeable dirt from the wax with a fork or skewer. Let the wax settle and then pour it directly into a mould.

Many items around the home can be used as moulds for candles including canning jars, milk cartons, waxed covered frozen fruit juice cans, baby food jars, small paper cups, yogurt containers, galvanized buckets and corrugated cardboard.

To find out more information on recycling candles as well as information on how to make new candles, contact <www.waxedout.com>.

Alternatively, Waxed Out Candles accepts used or unwanted candles and candle wax at their studio. Mail them to: Waxed Out Candles, 682 Industrial Drive, Tallahassee, Florida 32310, <waxedout@railroadsquare.com>

Another way to support candle recycling is to support the companies that produce fire starters from used candles. For example, the Natural Living Stores sell fire starters made from recycled church candles contributed by various denominations. The package that I bought was labeled 30% Lutheran, 30% Catholic, and 40% other — a truly ecumenical blend! Holy Smokes fire starters can be found at <www.naturallivingstore.com>, (614) 267-7270. They are made using a base of sawdust impregnated with recycled wax.

At St. Gertrude’s monastery in Cottonwood, Idaho, the sisters make their own candles and offer them for sale. One sister said that she finds candle making energizing because it is a way to spread light. Check <www.stgertrudes.org>, (208) 962-3224. The candles bear inspirational messages like “Listen with the ear of your heart.”

Send your questions to MaryJane Butters, c/o MaryJanesFarm, 1000 Wild Iris Lane, Moscow, Idaho, 83843. Questions may also be e-mailed to maryjane@maryjanesfarm.org. Please include your name and daytime telephone number. For more information, visit www.maryjanesfarm.org


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