The pouring method is used to make many different types of candles. In fact, pouring is the most versatile way to make candles. Molded candles are poured candles; cast candles are poured candles; many novelty candles are made by pouring; and pouring is possibly the easiest method of making quantities of candles in different shapes and sizes. It's also an excellent method for making decorated and fancy candles. Poured candles lend themselves to many effects. Subsequent chapters will provide specific details on the various candles you can make with the pouring method.

Pouring oil and wax into containers to make rudimentary lamps is a technique as old as history. Most of these used some sort of liquid fuel, such as oil, or animal fat that would harden at room temperature, especially in cold climates. There are two types of poured candles: those made in molds, to be removed and used as freestanding candles, and those poured into containers in which they will be burned. The first type, poured in a mold and released, like a gelatin dessert or a fancy cake baked in a Bundt or other shaped pan, is a bit trickier to handle. The second type is the easiest poured candle you can make.

Molded candles are not a modern invention. They have been made ever since the fifteenth century. Originally made in wooden molds, often carved to give an embossed effect, these molds were tricky for the candlemaker to work with because, at that time, candles were made of beeswax, which is sticky and hard to remove from a mold without modern additives (such as stearic acid).

Today's candlemakers are fortunate in that additives make it possible to use just about anything that will hold hot wax as a mold.

You can make a candle that is designed to burn itself into a shell, in which you can then place a votive or tealight. To burn a candle down the middle and use it as a holder, it is important that your burn it so that the well is created correctly. Light the candle and allow it to burn until the wax has melted to a diameter of about l¾″. When the wax collected in the pool around the wick reaches a depth of about ⅛″, extinguish the candle and pour out the melted wax. (Save if you like.) Trim the wick and light the candle again. Repeat these steps until you have melted the center of the candle sufficiently to allow the insertion of a smaller candle.