Among candle varieties, beeswax taper candles hold a special allure for their elegantly upright form dancing with flawless flames. Yet not all waxes translate into quality tapers worthy of fine dining ambiance. For time-honored golden glows plus warm, honey-kissed scents, pure beeswax reigns as the premium medium for handcrafting heirloom-worthy tapers.
Historically sculpted into illumination tools prized for purity and flexibility, beeswax carries on those sculpting traditions today. With the right ingredients, techniques, and care, beeswax’s malleable nature lends to making tailored tapers beyond factory constraints. This comprehensive DIY guide lifts the veil on how to harness beeswax’s aesthetic gifts through environmentally customed tapers handmade from start to finish.
Learn insider tricks from choosing wicks to avoiding pitfalls for your own signature set of elegant beeswax tapers gracing special occasion tables, windowsills, and personalized gifts.
WHAT ARE TAPER CANDLES?
Taper candles are long, slim candles with a tapered shape that are generally made from wax. Unlike pillar candles which burn flat across the top surface, taper candles are designed to burn along the exposed vertical edges as wax melts downwards through capillary action. This makes for a controlled burn with less risk of uneven melting compared to other candle varieties.
Beeswax has traditionally been a preferred wax for elegant and sophisticated taper candles. Handcrafted beeswax tapers emit a sweet, golden glow plus a subtle honeyed scent from the comb when lit. Their flexible nature also makes beeswax perfect for shaping taper candles in unique ways other waxes can’t match. Read on to discover everything needed for making decorative and distinct beeswax taper candles right at home.
What kind of beeswax should I use?
Not all beeswax performs equally well for candle making. Opt for 100% natural yellow beeswax rather than cheaper paraffin blended waxes for best results. Yellow beeswax offers a beautifully warm glow color compared to brighter white wax varieties. Cosmetic-grade beeswax intended for products like lotions often gets bleached or mixed with additives that interfere with burning properties. Verify candles or crafts as the wax’s primary usage before purchasing.
The highest quality bee wax comes from honeycombs harvested in spring or summer when pollen sources create optimal nutrition levels for hive activity. Cold press filtering methods also help preserve delicate scents and texture integrity compared to hot processed commercial wax. Support local beekeepers by sourcing wax from small batch harvests for singular beeswax taper qualities.
What You Need to Make Tapered Beeswax Candles
Part of the appeal of handmade beeswax tapers comes from experimenting with unique shapes, colors, and decorative touches. Embark on taper-making equipped with:
- Beeswax sheets, pastilles, or bulk wax chunks
- Wick sustainer tabs
- Cotton braided wicks
- Double boiler pot with tight-fitting lid
- Glass or metal pour pitcher
- Candle thermometer
- A metal mold of the desired taper shape
- Dye blocks, powder or oil-based liquid colors (optional)
- Decorative elements like dried flowers or glitter (optional)
- Paper towels
The Best Beeswax for Candles
Not all beeswax grades equal top-notch candle potential. Even within food-grade waxes, factors like wax sourcing, filtration methods, and hive harvest seasons significantly impact end performance.
Here’s what to look for when selecting beeswax well-suited for taper candles:
Spring/Summer Harvest
Honeybee colonies harvest the most wax during warmer months when abundant flower pollen stocks their hives. Well-fed bees produce the highest wax quantities with fewer impurities compared to nutritionally deficient colonies trying to eke out the wax in winter. This huge seasonal variability makes spring/summer wax exceptional for crystal clarity and clean burn properties.
Filtration Method
Commercial filtering often uses pressure and heat to expedite wax processing in mass volumes. However, aggressive high-temperature filtration alters the delicate natural honey and almond-like scent notes specific to beeswax. Gentler cold pressing filtration preserves those beloved beeswax aromatics that perfume handmade candles when lit.
Source Purity
A large batch of commercial beeswax gets blended from numerous apiaries into homogenized batches with generalized properties. Sourcing wax locally from small-scale beekeepers allows you to understand the exact extraction and harvest methods for that batch. This insight ensures alignment with eco standards and enables nuanced regional beeswax traits.
Pliable Texture
Beeswax reaches a supple, moldable texture when warmed that holds taper forms without cracking upon cooling. If your beeswax remains too brittle at workable temperatures or gets gummy when warm, imperfect textures will translate into taper candles prone to slumping or morphing while in use. Ensuring the wax is pliable for shaping eliminates frustrating issues.
Aromatic Scent
One beeswax perk comes from the lightly intoxicating scent when lit. Traces of honey, tree resins, and flower nectars should greet nasal passages as the candle glows. Pungent or chemical undertones suggest lower purity processing. Finding beeswax redolent with pollen and nature ensures an authentic sensory experience.
Using wax naturally primed for success skips shortcomings that extra steps attempt to correct. why not start on the right foot?
Benefits of Beeswax
Beyond the nostalgic appeal of using an ancient ingredient, beeswax offers contemporary advantages for modern candle makers including:
Sustainability
As a 100% natural product harvested by honeybees as part of their normal colony functions, beeswax exemplifies sustainability. No players or species suffer disruptions in typical life cycles or ecological roles during raw wax production. Bees often get supplemented with sugar feeds encouraging even more abundant wax generation. Reusing beeswax preserves finite resources.
Customization
The porous structure of beeswax readily absorbs liquid and oil-based dyes for vibrant color infusions. Essential oils also permeate microscopic wax pores encapsulating to slowly release ambrosial aromas when interacting with warmth and flame. Mix colors, layer hues and concoct custom aromatherapy blends through simple beeswax additions.
Biodegradability
Comprised solely of plant and insect-derived organic substances like esters, fatty acids, and vitamins, beeswax breaks down through natural environmental decay processes without harming ecosystems. Animal fat byproducts and petrochemicals common to commercial waxes linger as disruptive pollutants. Beeswax remains innocuous whether composted or dispersed.
Complex Aroma
Far from a flat, one-note scent, beeswax emits gorgeously intricate bouquets with dynamic depth. Whiffs of fruit and cinnamon mingle with sun-filled meadow honey and then transcend into an enveloping richness echoing bees’ diverse and nuanced floral diets. When enjoyed slowly, beeswax scents feel akin to fine wines with evolving character.
Crystal Formation
Beeswax candles award built-in visual sophistication through crystalline structures surfacing as candles burn. Microscopic monocrystals are initially immersed while molten rearrange into distinctive visible latticework on cooling. Candle flame light glints and dances off crystal facets creating hypnotic light effects enhancing mood.
Workability
The exceptional plasticity of warm beeswax empowers makers to shape candles freehand into pillars or sculptural artistic forms impossible with harder paraffin. Draping, molding, and hand modeling techniques thrive with beeswax as a responsive medium exhibiting fluid movement vocabulary until cooling transforms it into fixed status.
When well-vetted for sustainable harvesting and quality traits, beeswax delivers a dream medium for eco-conscious candle crafters through innate virtues impossible to imitate artificially.
Mistakes to Avoid When Making Beeswax Taper Candles
Beeswax may allow more hands-on creativity than other mediums, but that doesn’t mean beginners won’t face pitfalls. Steer clear of these common beeswax taper mistakes:
Mixing With Other Waxes: Blending compromises beeswax benefits. Stick to pure formulas.
Overheating Wax: High temperatures kill aromatic qualities and alter textures making beeswax gummy and opaque.
Water Contamination: Moisture triggers unattractive frosting blooms on the beeswax surface once cooled. Keep pouring supplies bone dry.
Rushing Cool Stages: Still molten wax hides where wicks float displaced until too late. Give ample setting time for adjustments.
Draft Exposure: Beeswax shrinks considerably as it solidifies. Protect cooling candles from fluctuating air currents and temperatures.
Insufficient Wick: The pliable nature of beeswax calls for thicker wicks to stand up to bending. Beef up wick width for better performance.
Perfection Pitfalls: Handmade candles embrace a one-of-a-kind personality. Don’t fret over flaws but rather feature them.
Making mistakes just comes with the learning curve for candle making. Simply use errors as growth lessons for next-level beeswax taper achievements.
Frequently Asked Questions About Beeswax Taper Candles
Commonly encountered questions for beginner beeswax candle makers include:
Does beeswax burn longer than regular candles?
Yes! Hotter burning beeswax with its higher melt point sustains taper candles nearly twice as long as ones formulated from paraffin wax. Long taper bodies leverage extended burn potential.
Can you reuse beeswax from old candles?
Absolutely! As long as melted remnants are strained from debris, beeswax enjoys outstanding reusable potential thanks to its ability to retain properties and performance time and again.
Why are my candles not burning properly?
Waxy build-up, poor-quality wicks, and drafts all commonly disrupt candle fires. Address issues with routine maintenance like wick trimming and shielding from air current interference.
How do I make dipped beeswax candles?
Dipped tapers start by coating wicks around frames with wax fully submerging wicks first. Cool completely between multiple wax dips until achieving the desired thickness from built-up layers.
Can I scent or color homemade beeswax candles?
Yes, beeswax imparts beautiful results from candle dye or essential oil additions. Both integrate exceptionally thanks to porous wax crystals locking in vibrant hues and fragrant oils.
What Can You Do With Your Tapered Beeswax Candles?
The elegance of tapered beeswax candles means they feel right at home dressed up for special events like intimate dinners or styled as part of holiday table capes. Group multiples into eye-catching displays along stair banisters, bookshelves, or corner accent tables.
Plain beeswax also provides the perfect foundation for creative hand-stamped patterns using rubber stamp sets. Add modern graphic imprints along candles in coordinating metallic waxes. Give monochromatic candles colorful depth-burning multicolored striped beeswax sheets. Finish creamy natural tapers with a glossy sealing coat for upscale sophistication.
Final decorative frontiers blend beeswax with unexpected organic elements like dried botanicals or butterfly wings to infuse dimensional textures and whimsical details suited for eclectic homes.
The possibilities for innovation remain as boundless as beeswax itself. These starter how-to’s aim to open up candlemaking potential limited only by imagination itself. Now that you’re equipped with fundamental methods for crafting bee wax into illuminated art, let those once elusive taper dreams come alive!