How To Make A Pillar Candle

Pillar candles are a staple of modern home decorating. We love all the sizes you can get, all the colors, and all the scents. But a stylish pillar candle can cost a pretty penny! So we learned to make our own. And we’ll show you how. (And we’ll share the tips and tricks we learned along the way!)

We love making pillar candles. They look so professional! (Here’s a secret…the mold does most of the magic!) If you have any questions while you’re working on your candle, just leave us a message and we’ll reply. We’re here to help!

Disclosure: This post has some affiliate links for products we think you’ll like. Even if you don’t want to buy the items online, we think it’s helpful to see what they look like, so you can buy them at your local craft store. If you make a purchase from one of these links, we’ll make a small commission. There is no additional cost to you at all, but it helps us a little so we can pay for our web hosting and the tools and materials we use in these videos and blog posts. All opinions are our own from our own personal experience.

Materials

Pillar mold 3″x6½”
Premium wax for pillars
Large bleached square braid wicking
Mold sealer
French vanilla liquid candle scent
Blue dye block

Tools

Cutting board
Chisel
Hammer
Double boiler
Candle making thermometer
Chopstick
Potato peeler
Pencil
Scissors
White index card
Scale
Tablespoon
Paper towels
Masking tape

Steps

1. Preparing The Mold And The Wick

Cover the top edge of the mold with small pieces of masking tape. (It’s sharp!) Feed the wicking through the hole at bottom of mold leaving about one inch of wick sticking out of the bottom of the mold. Coil this one-inch piece of wick. Roll the mold sealer into a ball and press it over the coiled wick to seal the bottom of the mold. Tie other end of the wick to a pencil and prop it across the top of the mold. Let excess wicking hang outside of the mold.
Here’s a video we made showing how to wick the mold.

We created a video course on candle making (ten candles!) on Curious.com. All you have to do is sign up with your email. (It’s a really fun site so it’s worth it.) Here’s a link to our course.

2. Weighing the Wax

Cut the wax into small chunks using the chisel, hammer, and cutting board. Weigh out the wax for the volume of the mold you are using, then add 4 ounces for spillage and shrinkage. (Our 3” x 6.5” mold holds 1.5 pounds of wax.) You can use this mold to make pillar candles at different heights, just melt and pour less wax.

3. Melting The Wax

Melt the wax in a double boiler to 200-220°F. Keep an eye on the wax as it is melting and watch the temperature. Wax is flammable and should never get above 300°F. In the case of this pillar candle it does not need to get hotter than 220°F.

To get the color you want, shave a few carrot curls of color off the dye block onto the index card using the potato peeler. Add the shavings to the melted wax and stir. Test the color by dripping a few drops onto an index card. Add more color if desired. To scent your pillar candle, add one tablespoon of liquid candle scent to the wax and stir.

4. Pouring The Wax

Pour the wax into the mold and recenter the wick. Let the candle cool for one hour. A divot or well will form near the wick as the wax cools and shrinks. Use the skewer to poke four or five holes in the candle near the wick all the way to the bottom of the mold. Reheat the wax and refill the candle up to — but not over — the original fill line. Let the candle cool and repeat if another well forms.

5. Unmolding And Trimming The Wick

Let the candle cool completely overnight. Remove the masking tape from the mold edge. Remove the pencil and turn the mold over. Remove the mold sealer. Let the candle slide out of the mold. (If it doesn’t slide out easily, place it in the refrigerator for ten minutes and try again.) Turn the candle over – the bottom is the top! (Doesn’t it look great!?) Trim the bottom wick flush and trim the top wick to 1/4″.

We love getting Pinned!