ohmygoodness, these are perfect for gifts!
i’ve been overwhelmed knotting bracelets lately – i think i’ll have to go out and find me some soy wax.
:)
i’m excited! although i personally don’t need any more candles, haha. i’ve way too many in my room… it’s set off the fire alarm. oy vey.

I’m with you on the superiority of soy candles. I think they’re less sooty, and the last time I had a pleasantly scented soy candle, I would sometimes use the (relatively cool) wax of a recently extinguished candle to seal and moisturize my chapped knuckles.

What a cute idea! I love how simple these are to make- I need to do this!

I love it! Thanks for sharing… Just came across you blog, I’m loving it!

OOOH I like this method. Last year, using all of those same supplies, I made them using the double-boiler method. It was messy and difficult to pour the wax from the pot into the candle holders. This seems much cleaner and easier. Do you know if this would work with wax from old candles as well?

This is so clever! My friend loves vintage/funky glasses, and I’ve been scouring antique shops for her Christmas gift. Now I think I might make her a vintage glass candle collection. Thanks for the idea! I’m also new to your blog, and love it :)

I loveloveLOVE this idea. I have a collection of shot glasses that never see the light of day and some essential oils I’ve been wanting to use, so all I need is the wax and wicks! Brilliant!

Thank you for inspiring me. I truly want to be more crafty (I threaded popcorn and cranberries and plan to try the applesauce/cinnamon ornaments this week…that’s a start) and this is just easy enough to continue a trend. :o)

I love it! About all we can afford to do is bake for Christmas gifts this year, but this might actually be cheaper – ha!

I may have to do that for next year’s presents. This year between the wedding and the upcoming Honeymoon, we don’t have a lot of time. But, I did get Feed 100 bags from Whole Foods to serve as gift bags for my family members. I feel a bit better putting new and probably Disney World things in them. :)

Ooooo Candlemaking is fun to do! When I read the title I thought, “Wax in the crockpot!? My mother would kill me if she saw me doing something like that!” and than I finished the entry. Thanks for the fun idea Sayward. I may just make my own candles as part of my favors for my wedding now! :-)

Wait, I just realized you said “this years gift projects.” Projects… as in plural. You have more?!!?? Yay!!

Speaking of gifts I see you have an amazon.com wish list…which includes a book I’m reading. Don’t get the kingsolver book ;-)

@ Kathryn – Yes, take a break from knotting! =D Or, get these set up and going and you can bracelet-make while they’re going. Multitask, ha!

@ akeeyu – Totally less sooty. And that’s a great idea to use them on chappies – I never would have thought of that.

@ Crystal – Yeah, so cute and SO simple!

@ Amanda Mae – Yay, and welcome to the site!

@ Jackie – All the pouring would totally freak out the OCD inside of me. What if I spilled?!! This is much easier, and so much gentler on the nerves, haha.

@ Stella – Hey, I’m glad to share. Welcome to the blog!

@ Kelly – I know, I always want to craft so much more than I actually get to. Hooray for stringing popcorn and cranberries though, that’s just about the most adorable thing ever. =)

@ sarah – Nothing wrong with baking – who doesn’t love delicious winter treats?!

@ Courtney – Oh CONGRATULATIONS! So exciting!

@ Salekdarling – What a great idea! These would make such special, customized wedding favors. =) (and CONGRATS!)

@ sarah – Oh yes, stay tuned . . .

@ Kate – Really? Why not? Do share!

Because I will gift it to you for chrismahaunakwanzaka, that’s why!

Hi there, this will be great to try out for the Christmas period, I love canbdles, thank you for shaaring this info, jo

@ Kate – Ack! *blushing fiercely*

I totally read that wrong – I read it as “Don’t get that book, it’s not worth the read.” Sorry! I am tacky and embarrassed now!

@ canvas art – You’re welcome. =)

it is gross what are in candles. many have petroleum bases. soy is the way to go. as a suffer of headaches soy candles are all I can burn. I swear there is a link between candle burning buy product and triggering of headaches. I will try you method to make my own soothing lavender non-headache inducing candles thank you!

@ Sleepy Bird – Lavender would be so lovely. Good luck with the candle-making. I hope they’re easier on your allergies!

I made four candles last night, but with beeswax from a local beekeeper. The wax cracked as it cooled, so they don’t look as spectacular as I imagined, but sometimes that’s how homemade goes, right? Also, I used long wicks which wouldn’t stand up straight, so I had to prop them up between a couple of knives balanced across the tops of the jars. I have several other jars that are too tall for the crockpot so tonight I think I’ll try using a hot water bath!

For coloring the candles-do you use regular food coloring??

I never would have thought to use a crock pot to heat the wax. I just purchased a kit on amazon that had a pouring pot and palm wax etc. fantastic! I used it with soy wax, fragrance, and color I got for free off freecycle and I used empty cleaned gravy jars and covered the lids with fabric circles (Like for gifts from a jar)

for Salekdarling: for your wedding shot glass candles get some glass etching stuff and you can put the bride and grooms names and the wedding date on them for your favors.

Oh my hunny just said baby food jars would work great for this and you could do fabric on the lids too. Also if you use an old chopstick to poke the wick into the wax to put the flame out you will have no smoke from “blowing” it out just be sure to pull it back up before the wax hardens

Thanks for such a great idea. I think I will be doing this for gifts. Also, thanks on the tip about pushing the wick into the wax to put it out, the main reason I didn’t burn before was the after effects.

Just saw this on tipnut.com. This is really clever, inexpensive, and I might be able to do this with out making a big mess. Good idea. I liked Nadine’s idea of using baby food jars. I used to have a lot of those, but my youngest is 21 and my grandsons are 11, 10, and 7. Good idea about the smoke. Thanks alot

This is a wonderful idea! Now I’m going to have to get a crock pot. Thanks for all your great posts.

I just came upon your blog, and I’m so glad that I did! Such amazing ideas–thank you! After bookmarking 5 of your posts, I decided it was better to just become a regular follower… :)

This is awesome! Unfortunately I gave away most of my candle making materials on craigslist due my disdain of the conventional way of candle making. Craft store here I come again. I have a crockpot thats been unopened for 2 years. Now I have a great reason to break it open!

No water in the crockpot?

I notice you’re using microwavable wax. Why is the crock pot an improvement over using the microwave? Not being snarky… I’m honestly curious.

Looks like the kids and I have something to do over the holiday break.I went to the local craft store this evening and bought all the stuff we need to do this.

Thanks so much for all the input and feedback guys! Just to answer a few questions:

@ Shelly R – You cannot use food coloring because it won’t distribute evenly. You have to buy candle coloring, but it’s really cheap at the craft store.

@ Heather – Nope, no water necessary. =)

@ Jooky – Haha, it’s a great question. I guess mostly because the majority of people wouldn’t be using microwavable wax, and this technique should work with all waxes.

But for me, I just hate the microwave and avoid using it at all costs. I much prefer the slow heat of this method and would worry about things getting to hot and splattering in the microwave. But I freely admit my prejudice. =)

Thanks again everyone! I’m so glad so many of you will be trying it out!

I’m a manly man but sometimes I like to smell like a different man..I’m joking. But I want to buy all this stuff for My lady friend and make it with her as a gift , May I ask for someone more savvy than myself to suggest a shopping list for this project? Thanks.

That’s exactly what I wanted to do! Too bad here in Brazil things are so complicated or expensive… when not both. Very nice and simple article and I loved your assistant!

My husband found your site over the weekend (especially this blog about the candles) and we went straight out and bought the very same items. I have to say I LOVE how easy & FUN (cannot state enough the amount of fun, making things are) this is to do! We have made candles for our class instructors and classmates and now family for Xmas later this week. This is something I will continue to do throughout the year as everyone loves candles that are specially created for them. :) Thank you so much for your ideas, and I am a newly devoted follower.

Just found your blog via Lifehacker. I love this idea and will subscribe to see what other great ideas you have!

lol , This is a really popular article , You’ve inspired allot of women and men. gratz and thanks.

I found this little piece of awesome via Lifehacker and had to try it! Michael’s (Where I got my supplies) didn’t have a great variety of containers, but it worked.

Just a note of warning: If you happen to get any containers with a spout (a miniature watering, lets say), then put a small piece of aluminum foil over the mouth of the spout to prevent the wax from leaking out.

Anyway, I found some cool miniature coke-cola bottles at a thrift store. They make awesome candles.

Thanks for the tip, my family is sure to love them!

Question: I have a ton of old his cologne and her perfume laying around, could I use drops of old cologne/perfume to scent the candles? Idea: I also inherited a ton of shot glasses from different states that would be perfect for this!

By the way, a question and comment. First, cool photo of your dog. Is that Harley the Happy Dragon or Crash Bang Boom?

Question: Why use the oil scents? Why not use the wax scent bricks? I can see the multipurpose use for the oils (Baths, candle making, lots of stuff) and I can see why it would be cleaner; But is the oil more potent than the wax scents?

@ Dallas – This would be such a fun gift! You will need: Candle wax (I like soy wax), wicks of the correct length (depends on your container of choice), wick bases (will come with the wicks if you buy pre-cut, which I did), scent, and color. All of these are available in the same corner of any craft store, which makes it pretty easy. Then you need to get the containers of course. I used shot glasses, which you can get cheap at a thrift store. You can also find old wine goblets, tea cups, all sorts of stuff! Or you can just buy new candle containers, also available at the craft store. Luck!

@ Victor Westmann – Thanks! He is such a good helper. =)

@ Quinn – Yay, I’m so glad you’re getting so much use out of it! Have fun with all the holiday crafting and gifting!

@ boliyou & Dallas Wiebelhaus – Thanks!

@ Michael – Thanks for the tip, that’s good to know. And the coke bottles sound awesome!

That particular hound is Crash Bang Boom (Crash for short). As for scents, I use the oils because I already own them and it just means I have to buy less. There’s no difference that I know of, and I’m sure the candle-specific scents would be just as good.

@ Jim Cosby – I don’t have any experience, but I don’t see why that wouldn’t work. I say give it a try! How fun to have a Drakkar or CK1 scented candle, haha. If it doesn’t work, you can always just turn the crock pot back on and add more essential oil once they’re soft again. =)

Awesome! This looks so easy (and no mess – yay!). Thanks!

So I did this today with two old teacups I found at a thrift store. I got them all done and left them to set while we went to celebrate Christmas with my hubby’s family. When we got home, the candles have a little crater in them near the middle next to the wicks (off to one side, not around the wicks). Any ideas as to what might have caused this? The teacups aren’t very big but are obviously bigger than shot glasses. Is it because they’re wider?

If someone is concerned about making a mess of the crock pot, you can buy food grade liners. I happen to use EZPans, and I’ve seen some by Reynolds in the store. Works for food, or wax :)

As I thought about my trouble with this more last night, I realized that maybe heat got trapped in the airspace beneath the bottom lip of the teacups causing them to stay warmer in the middle and melt off wax as the rest was cooling?

@ Amy – You’re welcome!

@ Emily – Yes, craters are a problem with the wider candles. It just has to do with the way wax dries. Easy to fix though, you just need to heat up a bit more wax and then add it to the crater. It’ll cool seamlessly with the candle and cover up the hole. Luck!

@ Timothy – Thanks for the tip!

I just came across your blog because I was searching for an easy way to make candles. I want to make a personalized housewarming present for a friend of mine. I can’t wait to do this!! Thank you for posting this! And I love your blog :-)

@ Liz – Thanks, I’m so glad you like the blog. =)

Good luck with the candle making!

Awesome ideas. Love the candles they all look great

@Nadine, I’m a bit behind on your comment for me but that is a great idea! Thank you!

Great HINT for coloring. We use broken crayons. Just grate them and melt them in the wax.

So I finally tried making these candles! They came out awesome :) I made a couple for birthdays and I added sprinkles at the end for a birthday cake candle. I’m so excited to make more!

I’m late to the party, but I actually just used this method this morning. I’m a stay at home mom on a budget and this was GREAT because I didn’t have to hover over it constantly. I used smaller mason jars so I had to adjust the timing, but they turned out great! I actually had EVERYTHING I needed on hand and didn’t need to buy a single thing. Thank you SO MUCH for making one round of my holiday presents stress free :)

These little gems look fabulous to make and give as homemade gifts to my extended family members . One question though, I do not have a crock pot or microwave, any alternative suggestions on how to melt the soy wax, thinking maybe in a baking pan on a very low oven heat…????

@ Leslie – A double broiler on the stove top would definitely be your best bet. Luck! =)

Your Great! You should put a magazine out girl! Yes your that good…..I love reading all the replies,Your amazing!
Hugs momoffour@verizon.net

While this is a seemingly nice idea there are some serious safety issues with this. Using glass that is not intended for candles means you have candles in containers that can break from the heat of the candle flame. When that happens, hot wax flows everywhere. When using scenting oils, it’s critical to know the flashpoint of each oil and add it only when you know the temperature of the wax is below the flashpoint. If the wax is too hot, best case scenario is that the scent immediately burns off, worst case scenario is that the fragrance oil ignites. There are many sites out there with specific, safe instructions on making candles. Candles in shot glasses are just an accident waiting to happen.

I didn’t know candle making could be so “easy”. Your tutorial is very well written and easy to follow. Love the pics and the commentary. Thanks for sharing!

I didn’t have any wooden skewers but I ended up using a straw to mix it all up with. I really enjoyed this article :)

brilliant thanks for sharing

I made these last night, haven’t burned one yet, but they came out great! I had so much fun doing it. Thank you so much for the how to! I’m gonna make them for Christmas gifts for sure. I used sweet orange, peppermint and sweet orange/peppermint and they smell great.

I think these are great! I think I might do them for Christmas gifts, doing all the guys candles in coffee mugs, and the ladies candles in tea cups!

[...] Up Some Candles. Yep, you can make your own candles in a crock pot! I love this tutorial because it isn’t messy like one would think. These would be perfect for [...]

this is awesome! i will definitely be doing this for christmas this yr! :) thanks for sharing

have you ever thought to use crayola to give color? cheaper than dye colors.

What a great idea. I will have to try this for Christmas this year. What a fun project and a great way to make gifts.

I’m totally doing this with my kids this year! Thank you!!

Flashpoints? Now I’m scared to try this. I was so excited:(

Crayons work great, yes!

About how many shotglass sized candles can you make from that 4 lbs of soy candle wax? I just wonder how many wicks/glasses you ‘d need. It’s a really cool idea and super simple!

Oh man, so many! A few dozen at least. That wax goes a long way!

Is your dog vegan too?

I’ve experimented with it but no, right now they’re not veg*n.

what a great idea. i’ll have to see if my assistant will help me.

Just take a Lighter to the Candle and Wave it back and Fourth Untill you see no cracks.You have to turn the candle upside down and try not to hit the glass or it makes black marks on the glass and have to wait untill completly cooled before you wipe it off,One of them Gril starter Lighters would work the best,Good Luck.I am sure it will work on the top,Try to smooth with finger then redo it again,It should get rid og the Cracks.

I forgot ot say don’t get it so hot that the candle is going to drip out,Just hit it a little on all sides where it’s cracked,Hope this helps you

I ran across this and am a tad intimidated because I don’t have 1 artful bone in my body. lol But I’m going to try it. Can I use perfume/cologne for the scents. Also, as far as using crayons for the coloring, how exactly do I do that? I’m guessing melt them and put the crayon wax in the candle wax, but how much? Thank you.

I would worry about using perfume for fear of it being flammable.

As for crayons, I have no idea! I know it can be done but I haven’t tried it myself – sorry!

Christmas presents done! Thanks to you!

They have very cheap glasses at IKEA if anyone lives around one that would be great for this idea! They had 8 ounce drinking glasses for ONLY 59 cents a few days ago when I was there!!!!

It is safe to an extent. My sister and I used to get candle making kits as children. We used everything in the house to make candles. We always burned them and NEVER set fire to anything from them no matter what we put the candle materials in.

I’ve been wanting to make these and finally did yesterday. They turned out great! Thanks for one of the easiest, most satisfying craft projects ever. I’m burning one of my new candles now…

You have to worry about flashpoints with a higher heat source like a stove top method. Your crockpot isnt going to get the wax hot enough to worry aboutan oil flashing. I wouldnt use perfume because of alcohol content unless you are making them wickless, and even then some of the alcohol will evaporate and change the scent.
Also, unless its pyrex which wont tolerate the flame once it gets low or really thin glass, like a wine goblet, the glass should be fine. You really should never burn a candle down to the wick holder because it exposes the glass to higher heat (and because its usually aluminum and shouldnt be burned itself).

I like soy candles because they burn cleaner and longer than petroleum based candles.

My mom makes soy wax candles all the time. She buys juice glasses and other containers at thrift stores for her candles. She gives them to me as gifts, I burn them and have NEVER had a flash point issue. I return the empty juice glass (one of my fav containers from her), she remakes the candle, I burn it without issue. Rinse repeat.

My mom melts her soy wax in a glass measuring cup in the microwave. I want to try your method. Do you put water in your crockpot before adding the shot glasses with the soy wax?