Lighthaus : Anatomy of a Candle

Who doesn’t love decorating their living spaces with beautiful candles? As they add light and warmth to any space while making it cozy and comfy. But have you ever wondered why candle making is called an art? Probably not, but here we will tell you about all the key elements behind a perfectly crafted scented candle.

Choosing the Right Types of Wax

Paraffin Wax

Paraffin wax is one among the most versatile, it comes with a variable melting point and is appropriate for making different types of candles including pillars, tapers, and container candles.  Paraffin wax is the by-product of crude oil refinement process and some people often say that it’s toxic just because it’s associated with petroleum. In a way, the leftover of oil refining process is getting reused that might have actually be dunked into wastage.

Soy Wax

Soy wax is a natural wax, which is made from the oil of soybean, it is eco-friendly and expensive as compared to other waxes, just like paraffin this also comes with a variable melting point that depends on the variety of soy blends. There are two types of soy candles you will find in the market, one would be completely soy and the other would be a blend (containing 50% soy and other wax blends). Since soy wax is soft and has a low melting point, it is widely preferred for container candles like jars and tins. Soy candles burn cleaner and do not produce any soot, they also come with extended burning hours.

Palm Wax

Palm wax is just like soy wax as it is made from natural palm oil, it is renewable and environmentally friendly. Palm wax makes one of the most excellent candles as it does not melt in hot summers and can be easily molded into any shape or size. Palm wax has just the right density and easily blends with colors, stabilizers and fragrance oils. Sometimes palm wax is mixed with other wax blends for meeting specific requirements of a candle. It’s widely chosen for creating pillar candles, tarts, and jar candles.

Beeswax

Beeswax is another natural wax, it is one of the best and oldest waxes in the market. Beeswax is produced by honeybees and is the byproduct of honey making process. The wax is excreted by bees in “combs” since beeswax is infused with honey when it's created, it naturally attains a sweet fragrance depending upon the flowers and plants. It is used for creating all types of candles including tapers, containers, pillars, and votives.

 Picking The Perfect Wick Amongst A Thousand Kinds

Most premium quality wicks are made from knitted plaited or braided fibers that encourage a consistent burning in any candle. Generally twisted wicks come with lower quality as compared to knitted or braided wicks. Twisted wicks burn faster, this is because of their loose construction as it pumps more fuel to quickly reach the flame. They’re only useful for certain applications like birthday candles.

Flat Braid Wick

Square Braid Wick

Cored Wicks - Cotton Core Wicks, Paper Core Wicks, Metal or Zinc Core Wicks

Specialty Wicks

Wood Wicks

Choosing Just The Right Fragrance With A Strong Scent Throw Without Making It Too Overpowering For Your Nose

Usually, there are two types of oils used for making scented candles:

Essential Oils

Essential oils are the oils that are derived from natural plants and flowers. Plants are harvested and fruits, roots or bark are pressed to obtain concentrated oils. Essential oils come with aromatherapy benefits and are widely used for aromatherapy candles that are made with natural waxes as they blend well with essential oils and give a strong scent throw.

Fragrance Oils

Fragrance oils are the second type of oils used for candle making, they are made of synthetic odors that cannot be naturally derived, just like the ones you get from your luxurious perfumes. A number of fragrance oils are mixed together for making one unique fragrance, though these scents do not come with any healing properties they do linger in the air for longer durations. Just because they’re synthetically derived does not mean that these fragrance oils are cheap.

 Blending The Perfect Colors and Stabilizers So Your Candles Don’t Fade Over Years

There are majorly three types of candle dyes used for coloring candles:

Dye Chips – Dye chips work well for lighter colors, they’re preferred for light to medium colors in paraffin and pastels in soy.

Dye Blocks – Dye blocks are selected for producing candles with dark and intense color, probably for vibrant colors like green, red, blue and black in both soy and paraffin.

Liquid Dyes – Liquid dyes are used for creating custom colors, they give light pastel shades to soy wax and medium to dark shades in case of paraffin.

What makes our candles different from others?

Our 25 years of expert experience reflects in our products as we continue to master the art of candle making. We are partnered up with global market leaders that provide us with the finest quality of raw materials. This includes paraffin waxes, micro waxes, additives and fragrance oils created by prominent perfumers from globally acknowledged fragrance houses, and European cotton wicks that are selected from thousand types of wicks. Wicks play an important role while crafting candles, this is why we always select the perfect wick for each type of candle and best quality burns.

 It’s not just the premium grade raw materials that lead to faultless scented candles but the right combination of wax, wax additives, stabilizers, fragrance oils, and wicks. The process is performed by our expert team, who specialize in their niche of blending the wax with fragrance oils and hand-pouring creating the piece of artworks in shape of candles with a strong scent throw and longer burning hours.

We don’t create just candles, we create moments!

Just in case if you thought that candle making is as easy as just pouring wax, fragrance oils and a wick together, you could not be further away from the truth.  At Lighthaus, we believe that candle making is an art and hence, we strive to create every candle with utmost precision and perfection.