Happy December! Nothing like the scent of gingerbread to get you in the holiday mood! A good scented candle can certainly do the job. Unfortunately, artificial scents are not very desirable for your health or the environment.

Most of the chemicals in synthetic fragrances are derived from petroleum. The chemicals  range from causing allergic reactions to being hormone disruptors to potential carcinogens. Did you ever get a headache from an artificial fragrance? I know I have.

Luckily, you can still get yummy scents without the negative effects! Enter, essential oils!

Essential oils are extracted from plants. They are essentially concentrated aroma compounds, so they have a strong scent. Essential oils are also used for other purposes, as some are anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, anti fungal, etc. This gingerbread candle is scented entirely with essential oils, and it smells just like the real thing.

If you do decide to buy a scented candle from the store that claims to be natural, look out for it saying it is 100% scented with essential oils. Any other claims can still contain artificial fragrances.

So let’s get to the candle making!

What you’ll need:

• Candle wax (I use soy)
• Wicks
• Cinnamon (optional)
• Ginger root essential oil
• Vanilla absolute oil
• Cinnamon essential oil
• Nutmeg or Clove essential oil
• A double boiler or makeshift double boiler
• Glass jars

Trust me, it’s easy!

Step One. Prepare Wicks

Tape your wicks to the bottom of the glass jars. I use masking tape but other types of tape should work fine.

Optional Pre-Step Two. Heat jars

Heat your jars in the oven on the lowest setting. This helps make sure the wax hardens evenly because the jars will be closer to the temperature of the wax. You can skip this if you are lazy, like I was when I made these.

Step Two. Melt Wax

In your double boiler, or a pot placed over a boiling pot of water, melt your wax. 1 cup of wax should make about one 4 ounce candle (like the 4 ounce jelly jars I love to use)

Step Three. Add Scents

When the wax is completely melted, turn the heat off but leave the pot on the double boiler. Now is time to add your essential oils. I added about 20 drops of ginger oil, 15 vanilla, 10 cinnamon, and 5 nutmeg into 2 cups of wax. I also added some sprinkles of cinnamon. It gave the candles a speckled look, which I like.

Step Four. Pour into jars

Pour the wax into the jars and let them cool! If your wicks won’t stay in the middle, just use a toothpick to keep them in place.

And don’t forget Step 5…

Burn your candles and enjoy the smell! I love the scent of these.

You can play around with the ratios of oils until you get a scent that smells right to you. I was happy with this combination, but I could have even gone with more for a stronger candle. Either way, they’re great.

Let me know how making homemade all natural gingerbread candles goes for you!

supplies used in this post

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The fourth of July is approaching soon. For me, when I think of the fourth of July, one of my strongest memories is of the scent of citronella candles. Every time we went to the fireworks, we always had a few of them. The scent is nostalgic for me.

Well not only does it bring out my positive patriotic memories, citronella oil is plenty useful. It is a strong anti-fungal and an effective insect repellent. Especially for those pesky mosquitoes. Citronella oil comes from the lemongrass plant.

The problem with buying citronella candles from the store is much of the time you get an artificially produced citronella scent. The artificial scent smells like citronella to our human noses, but it doesn’t do much good for repelling insects. You need to use the real oil derived from the lemongrass to get the full effect. So, why not make your own? It’s way easier than you think.

Supplies:

All the supplies you need are:

• Candle wax (I used soy)
• Citronella oil (I get mine here or you can find it on amazon)
• Candle wicks
• Empty glass jars
• Tape
• A double boiler or a pot placed on top of a pot of boiling water
• Toothpicks (optional)

Step One: Secure wicks

The first thing you need to do is secure your wick to the bottom of the jar. You can do this with a piece of tape.

Step Two: Heat jars

In order to make sure the wax dries and hardens evenly, you should place the glass jars in the oven at your oven’s lowest setting. This just keeps the jars closer to the temperature of the melted wax.

Step Three: Melt wax

Melt your wax in the double boiler. It will reduce to about half its size when melted, so keep that in mind. Stir occasionally as it is melting. Once it is completely melted, it will resemble the color of olive oil.

Step Four: Add citronella oil

Once the wax is completely melted, mix in the citronella oil. I added 4 drops of oil per cup of wax, but I found my candles were not quite as strong as I would like, so I would recommend 5 drops per cup of wax.

Step Five: Pour wax

Pour your wax into the jars. If the wick is leaning to far to either side, you can just use a toothpick to prop it up to ensure it stays in the middle until the wax hardens.

Step Six: Let wax harden

Let the wax harden in the jars. This may take several hours depending on what type of wax you use, how warm the room is, and how large your candles are.

Step Seven: Trim wicks

 Trim your wicks to the appropriate length, cutting at a downward angle.

Step Eight: Burn your candles!

And admire!

Mmmm… smell that citronella! Can’t think of a better way to keep away bugs. Plus candles are romantic. And they provide light. Multi-purpose!

You can even make colored candles by adding in some crayons when you melt the wax. I love how the white looks, but I might have to play around with colors. Wouldn’t red white and blue candles be fun for the fourth?Try making your own citronella candles, and let me know how it goes!

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