TUTORIAL - Teacup Candles out of 'Used Up' Candles

My mum is pretty darn clever when it comes to getting the most from just about everything. Turning old dresses into bags or quilts, going mental baking and freezing when the apple and plum trees have a good year and my personal favourite - using the 'ends' of 'used up' candles to make brand new (and better looking) ones. Here's how!

YOU WILL NEED

Used up candle or two

Teacup or some other kind of  heat proof container

Knife

Wick

Super glue

Clean metal tin

Pan

Wax dye tarts (optional)

Fragrance oil (optional)

1) Pick your cup. Don't go for something super dinky; a regular sized one will do the job nicely. You can buy pretty teacups in a lot of charity shops for just a couple of quid, otherwise antiques stores, eBay, car boot sales...

2. Break up your candle using a knife. Soy wax is the easiest to break up and also to clean up afterwards. If you're using a dye tart, just grate it and fling it in with the candle wax.

 3. Boil some water and pour it into the bottom of a pan placed over a low heat. Tip your wax and dye into your metal container, place it into the pan and stir until melted. You can also add fragrance oils at this point.

4. Super glue a wick into the bottom of the cup, leave it to dry (30 seconds) and carefully pour the wax in. Your metal tin will obviously be hot, so use a towel or oven mitt to handle it.

 5. Leave your candles to set (an hour minimum), trim the wicks and enjoy! As you can see, the wicks on these haven't been trimmed yet.

Some of my mum's tips:
* Make scented candles go further by topping them up with plain, soy wax chips when you melt them. This was you can get a few delicately scented candles from one used up candle.
* When using essential oils for fragrance, you will need to use A LOT to notice any scent.
* Mix dye tarts to make your own custom shades.
* Hold the metal tin in place with a fork while stirring to stop it sliding all over the pan.
* Soy wax is the easiest and most enjoyable wax to work with.
* Use plain, short glasses or jars (think jars of dip, posh compote jars etc) if you want something a bit more neutral than teacups.
So, there you have it! Pretty, fuss free candles made with those you were about to throw out! I think these would look amazing in a tea room or café and they make beautiful gifts, too. You can buy wicks, dye tarts, oils and soy wax chips/ flakes on eBay for a decent price.
What do you think to teacup candles? Do you melt your old candles down too, or just throw them out?
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