Natural Beeswax Candle

[Sloan]

Hi all,

I hope you can help with some ideas for a little project of mine - a beeswax candle made in the woodland using only natural materials.

I am a big fan of beeswax because of all its various uses and applications. I want to make a candle, but in the woodland with nothing but a knife, saw, 6 feet of 550 and a block of beeswax. I can make a bow drill set to start a small fire and use a folded sheet of birch bark to hold the melted wax and form a nicely rounded shape whilst it is setting. The problem is though, what could I use to melt the wax in and what could I use for a natural wick?

Any creative suggestions would be really appreciated.

ATB

Calum

 

[Toddy]

Can you make string ? If you can, then there are several fibres available that will make your wick for you.
That said, a pine splint was much used in the past, and a peeled rush (leave one side with a strip of skin to support it) will work too.
Bog cotton, thistle down, fireweed down, these all spin up or roll up to make a wick. Nettle works, but it doesn't burn so well. The fibres you choose need to soak up the melted wax and 'wick'. Candlewick has been made from cotton because it works tidiest of the lot.

The easiest candle is simply in a bowl….so find a soft stone and hollow out, or dig up some clay soil and mould one. Or find some fallen birch bark and make a tube from it, fold in a base with the wick threaded through, and pour in a very little wax, let it set, and seal the tube and then pour in more bit by bit.

Old dried hogweed stems, cleaned out, would work for moulds too. They'll need peeled off though otherwise they'll burn and ruin the candle. Birch bark peels anyway.

M

 

[tombear]

The Romans used the peeled stems of the common/ soft rush, dried out after peeling of course. Dipped in wax they are much less fragile. There's certain plants with big hollow stems ( someone help me here ) that can be used as moulds and cut off when the wax had set, or prior to use if stored. If it's honey comb like a mates just given me you could just warm it up and carefull roll it around the wick.

You can make rushlights from beeswax it's a waste of what would have been considered a expensive resource compared with a animal fat. But it would be the easiest way to get light from beeswax in a woodland scenario, a stick with a notch I it would make a adequate holder.

cheers

tom

 

[Janne]

You can melt the wax by not melting it over a fire, but by melting it with hot stones. This way you can use your birch bark container, or a piece of leather.

 

[Janne]

Reading your post again:
The classic way to make a candle is by dipping the wick in melted wax over and over again, not using a form.
As you already have a block of wax, you can just drill a hole in the middle of it, insert the wick material and light it.

Wick material! Dried rush as suggested, sheeps wool string.
You can also use a straight carbonized twig.

 

[Tengu]

My beekeeper would freak to hear you suggesting burning such a valuable resource.

Cant you use fats or oils instead??

 

[Janne]

My beekeeper would freak to hear you suggesting burning such a valuable resource.

Cant you use fats or oils instead??

Beeswax has been used for millenia as a source if light. And it smells nice!