As Christmas is drawing ever nearer (dare we say it) it is that time of year where I feel so excited to be thinking of what gifts I am going to be arranging for all my loved ones. The giving is my favourite part of the season and I enjoy it even more when I get the the gift right. That is why at the moment I am super excited with this gift idea of producing teacup candles. I really love vintage pieces whether that be clothes or interior pieces and I also love a good scented candle. The two together are a great idea and incredibly easy and quick to make, not to mention fun. I got quite carried away making these and decided to give everyone one for a birthday and Christmas gift. See my step by step guide on how to make your own below.
What you will need:
An old saucepan
Wax chips
Wax colouring
Candle scent
Kebab sticks
Sticky tape
Wicks
Glue/round sticky pads
Tea cups
Step one:
Firstly begin by buying a teacup of your choice. You can purchase them from a thrift shop/charity shop or a flea market. You would be surprised how easy and inexpensive they are to buy. Once you have your cup, take a wick, which will have a circular metal disk attached to the bottom and your round sticky pads or glue. I brought the wicks and pads from Amazon but you can also find them available on eBay or craft shops. You need to place the sticky pad or glue on the disk and firmly press on to the bottom centre of the cup.
Step two:
Take two kebab sticks or something similar and stick the top and bottom ends together. Try to leave some room for the wick to slot between the middle but they are quite flexible.
You also want it to be tight because this will hold you wick in the middle and support it when you pour you wax in. This will stop the wick falling over.
Step three:
With your wick in place, take your old saucepan. I measure about two mugs of wax chips/flakes to add to the pan, which usually seems to be enough. This of course, depends on the size of the teacup but you can always add more to the pan as you go. On a low heat, slowly add your wax chips to the pan and wait for them to melt.
Step four:
Now add the wax colouring, should you chose to want coloured candles. I chose a pale pink for mine. The more colouring you add, the more intense the colour. Stir in with an old spoon or another kebab stick, to save ruining anything precious.
Step five:
With your wax melted, add a couple of drops of scented candle oil to your pan and stir in. This can be brought from Amazon, Ebay or a craft shop.
Step six:
With your sticks in place, supporting your candle wick in the cup. Very slowly pour the melted wax mixture into the cup and leave an inch gap from the top of the cup.
Step seven:
Leave your candle to set for one hour. After this time you will notice that around the wick will be a dip. This is because the wick has expanded in the heat. You will need to melt and make up some more wax chips, with the same amount of wax colouring and candle scent as before. With this done, slowly pour this into the teacup and leave a centre metre and a half or up until you want your candle to go in the cup.
Step Eight:
Leave you candle to set for twenty four hours.
Step nine:
With your candle set, you can now take off the supporting kebab sticks and cut down the wick to your desired height. Make sure you leave enough length for it to burn down properly.
Now you can enjoy your candle or gift it to someone you love. They are very easy, incredibly pretty and original. I hope you like making these as much as I do!!
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