Pretty Gel Candles!

This month I decided I needed a kick away from winter. I am thinking sunshine and summer here! It's a long way away yet but these candles are pretty and remind me of the warmer months that will come again in the spring! Gel candles are not as common as they once were, but they are so pretty and when made correctly burn beautifully and smell terrific! 

This months project are very basic to make but really look like a million bucks and smell terrific! Wax Embed Gel Candles!

Supplies:

Presto Kitchen Kettle to melt the gel
Digital Scale
Metal Spoons
Pyrex Measure Cup
Liquid Candle Dye (optional)
Wax Embeds
**(Embeds can also be made using
IGI 1260 wax and our Embed Molds)
Low Density Candle Gel
GelWix Candle Wicks
**Gel Aroma Fragrance Oils
(Gel Fragrances MUST BE GEL SAFE!!! Please see
Safety info regarding how to check this by clicking here)
1/2 Pint Square Mason Jars
Lids


Instructions for making wax

1. Pre-wick your jars using the wick stickums or high temp hot glue on the bottom of the round metal wick tabs. Stick them down in the center of your jars and make sure they are secure.
2. Melt the gel. We recommend using a Presto Kitchen Kettle for this
3.  Use the thermometer to keep track of temperature. Once temp reaches about 210, add your liquid dye (optional). Very little is needed to tint the gel, but this will depend on how faint or dark you want the tint. We recommend using a toothpick to dab a tiny bit of dye on the tip, then swirl it into the gel. Add more as needed.
4. Next add your scent. Penreco recommends using no more than 3% (1/2 oz per pound) in Low Density gel. We recommend using a digital scale for accuracy.
5. Stir well and check temperature with thermometer. Once gel is approx. 200 degrees it is ready to pour. The cooler you pour, the more bubbles your gel will have. To minimize the bubbles, you can pour a little hotter at around 220, but we do not recommend any higher temp.
6. Pour from your Pyrex cup into your jars slowly and steadily. Pour it about 1/2 full. Wait about five minutes and using a hemostat or a long tweezers place the embeds.
7. Set in your embeds where desired.
8. Re-heat the remainder of the gel to about 180 and pour the remainder of the gel candle slowly and steadily. Keep wicks as straight and centered as possible.
9. Gel does not shrink, therefore your finished candles will require no re-pour and will be ready to burn in just a couple of hours!

I will be revisiting some more gel projects in the coming month! This months project is simple and will certainly look different than the rest! :)

Happy Candle Making!
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Easy Travel Soaps!

Every year I go on vacation and I detest using hotel/resort soaps. They are usually the cheapest soaps out there and they do nothing by dry my skin and make my skin feel gross.

I figured out a solution! Make the soaps in clamshell molds! Take it out, break off a piece and use it while you are there. Such an easy solution for a problem that has plagued me for years!

 

Supplies Needed:
Melt and Pour Soap Base *I used Goats Milk
FD&C Dye *I used Blue
Cosmetic Glitter or Mica Optional
Clamshell Molds
Fragrance *I used Angel Type
Thermometer
Digital Scale
Pyrex Measure Cup

Melting the Soap Base:

• Microwave Method: Cut the Melt and Pour Base on the score lines and place it in a microwave safe dish. (Pyrex measuring cups work nicely) Place the dish in your microwave. Using full power, heat the base for one minute at a time until it begins to melt. Once it has started to melt, decrease this to 30 second intervals until it is fully melted stirring often. OR
• Stove Top Method: Cut the Melt and Pour Base on the score lines and place it in a sauce pan. Turn the heat on Medium and stirring constantly, allow the soap to melt fully. Be sure to stir constantly to avoid scorching!

*The melted soap should be between 145-160 F.

Adding the Dye:

• FD&C Liquid Bath and Body Dye is the appropriate dye type for Melt and Pour Soap. Once your soap is melted, just add the dye a drop at a time, stirring after each until you reach your desired shade. The amount used will vary.

Adding the Fragrance:

• For Melt and Pour, it is safe to use up to, but no more than ½ Weight Ounce of fragrance per pound of
  
  soap base. Each block of Melt and Pour Base is Two pounds. For one full block of soap, you would use up to 1 ounce of fragrance. Stir well after adding the fragrance oil to the melted & colored soap base. Be sure that on the IFRA declaration for each fragrance it is at least 3% safe to use 1/2 oz. per lb of base.

Pouring into Molds:

• Pour your scented and colored soap base into the molds. Use a fine mist spray bottle filled with Rubbing Alcohol to lightly mist the tops of each of the just poured soaps to remove any bubbles.Try pouring into the clamshells at 150*, pouring much hotter can cause them to melt!

*You can place the mold in the freezer for a few minutes if removal is difficult but I typically suggest waiting longer instead before resorting to this method.

Make and market these to local hotel gift shops, to campers etc. This is the easiest way to bring soap with and not have to tote back a mess!

Happy Soap Making!
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