I absolutely love making candles using molds, so I thought I'd show you how to use silicone candle molds like a pro, they look so creative for little effort.
DISCLOSURE: SavvyHomemade.com is reader-supported. The ingredient and equipment links below are affiliate links, If you buy via the links we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you.
Learn more here..
Thread the needle with the wick. Making sure you have enough for the candle plus extra to wrap around the wick holder. Thread the needle and wick through the hole in the mold.If your mold doesn’t have a hole for the wick you will need to create one. Find the center of the mold and pierce a hole with the wick needle.
Pull the needle completely through the mold dragging the wick into place with it. You can thread from the outside or inside, whichever you feel more confident in doing.You may need to use a wick sealant or white tac, which should keep any of the wax from seeping out. I have found that the sealant doesn’t stick all that well to the silicon, but do the best you can.
Find a suitable container to suspend the mold in. I usually find a glass or a couple of books good for this. If your mold has slits running down the sides for easy removal, place a couple of elastic bands around it so that it fits back together nice and snug.Once your mold is stable, straighten and fix the wick in place by wrapping it around Wick holder or as in my case a piece of bamboo. You may need to secure it with some sticky tape.
Place your wax into a double boiler, if you don’t have a double boiler put a pan half-filled with water to boil on the stove.You will need to estimate the amount of wax depending on the size of your mold, but if in doubt go with more rather than less. Once the water is boiling, turn down the heat so it is only simmering and place a metal or heatproof glass bowl on the rim of the pan so that the base is only just touching the water.
When your wax has melted and totally transparent, remove it from the heat, add your color. If you compare the amount of dye I have added here to the picture below, you can see that a small bit of dye can go a long way. Try to be conservative with your dye. You can always add more but you can never take back what you’ve already added.
Then, add your fragrance. You can use either an essential oil or a fragrance oil. I prefer to use a fragrance oil in my candles, as essential oils are more expensive and better used in skincare products. I’m using a lovely jasmine fragrance oil for my candle today, I use around 5% of the weight of my wax
To reduce any air bubbles forming pour your wax slowly into the mold, then set aside until solid. As your wax hardens you may notice it begin to sink. Don’t worry if this happens as it’s completely normal.
An hour or two after pouring the wax (this would depend on the size of the mold and the amount of wax used. Re-melt any leftover wax and top up any sinkholes that have formed in the candle.
Once the wax has cooled and hardened it’s time to remove it from the wax. If your mold already has slits running down the sides of the mold you should be able to easily remove the candle.If not you will have to carefully make the cuts yourself with a sharp craft knife or razor blade. You will need to cut about halfway up the mold and all the way through to the candle until it can be eased out. I do about 3 or 4 cuts around the mold.
The mold is still usable after being cut, just place a couple of rubber bands around it so that it fits back together nice and snug and you are good to go.
I like to leave a candle 24 hours after I've removed it from the mold. This just makes sure the wax is completely settled.