Candle Mould - Wooden beehive

01 · YIELD

Four candles to the kilo

At 230 g a piece, a one-kilo block gives you four candles and no more. Worth allowing for when you plan a batch for a market, because it is one of the formats that eats the most wax per unit.

02 · POURING

230 grams take their time to set

Cut the wick longer than the mould, centre it and keep it taut with a stick laid across the top; close the mould with rubber bands. The wax must be fully melted, between 65 and 70 °C — its melting point is 61-65 — and poured slowly. As it cools the wax shrinks by about 10 %: it sinks around the wick, and you top it up with a second pour once the surface has set. When you release it, take the stick out and trim the wick to a centimetre.

03 · FIRST BURN

Give it a long hour the first time

This is a 230 g piece: the first time, let it burn one hour for every 2.5 cm of width across the base. The wax needs that long to melt right out to the edge: put it out sooner and the pool stays narrow, after which the flame sinks down the middle and leaves a wall of unburnt wax. That is tunnelling, and there is no fixing it later.

04 · BEFORE YOU BUY