Floating Candles
For the amateur or intermediate candlemaker, floaters are a good place to begin making novelty candles. Candles floating in a bowl or basin of water — or on a pool or pond — are extremely attractive. As the water under the candles undulates, the candle flames flicker like fireflies on the wing.
You can also place floating candles in a large bowl and use it as a centerpiece for a dinner party. A friend I know floats candles in the sink of the guest bathroom when she gives a party. (Since guests can't wash their hands, she puts out a pack of premoistened wipe towels.)
Floating candles are different and unusual; luckily, they are relatively easy to make. As with other candles, you can color floaters to complement the color scheme of your décor for that special dinner occasion, or any other event. Floating candles also make lovely gifts.
Simple Floating CandlesBy their nature, most floating candles are small, even tiny. They are enchanting when grouped together in a large bowl where they have the drawing power of a candy shop. Small floaters can be made in metal petit four tins or other small cups. A madeline pan — in which the French shell-shaped cookies are baked — makes an ideal mold for floating candles.
The petit four tins come in attractive fluted shapes, which give the candles a scalloped edge and a flowery look.
The rule for using tin baking pans with small cups is that the pan must have a smooth surface and the cups must be wider at the top than at the base. Otherwise, the candles won't release from the molds easily.
Other molds for small floating candles that feature patterned or embossed details that will transfer to the candles' surface can be discovered if you keep your eyes open.
Here's How …To make small floating candles in cup molds:
Set up your double-boiler system and melt the stearin.
Add color with a dye chip and stir until well blended.
Add paraffin and heat to l80° Fahrenheit.
Pour the wax carefully into the molds. After the wax is poured, gently tap the sides of the pan with the edge of a knife to eliminate any air bubbles.
Put the mold in a shallow tray of cool water to help the wax solidify. If you are using individual cups (such as fluted aluminum muffin-pan liners), you may have to weight them down so they don't float in the water bath prematurely!
Once the wax has begun to set, make a small well in the center of each candle with a chopstick or pencil. Add a bit more melted wax to fill in the depression.
When the wax has hardened to the firm-but-still-soft stage, push a length of primed wick into the center of each candle
Allow the wicked candles to cool completely. As they cool and the wax shrinks, you can then easily pop them out of their molds.
Walnut shell halves make lovely floating candles. Fill them with wax and tiny cored wicks. You can then float them in a bowl of water, or the bathroom sink if you are giving a party, or even in a punch bowl (remove prior to serving). These tiny floaters can even light up a pond or swimming pool.
