Candle Crafts

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Recycled Wax Fire Starters

Copyright © 2006-2009 Jane Lake

Collect all your wax candle scraps and mix with the wood chips to make wonderful fire starters.

These are easy bazaar crafts that sell very well at my local charity thrift store, or package a few as a nice homemade gift for Dad on Father's Day!

Recycled Wax Fire Starters

Supplies:

• cup cake papers or paper muffin cups meant for baking
  
  
• wax candle scraps, wax crayon stubs or left-over paraffin wax
  
  
• wood shavings
  
  
• muffin pan
  
  

Wax Fire Starters

Instructions:

1. You will need a safe method of melting candle or crayon scraps. I use a large coffee can, which I fill with wax chunks from leftover candles and crayons. You can melt the wax by heating the coffee can in a saucepan of boiling water, or maybe an old double boiler would work for you. I sometimes do this by placing the metal can close to a small, contained camp fire until the wax melts. Whatever method you use, please make absolutely sure it is safe for yourself and for everyone else - remember that wax is a highly flammable material and must be treated as such!

2. If you don't have a ready made supply of wood shavings, you can purchase bags of wood shavings in pet supply stores - it is sold as nesting material for small animals. Add wood shavings to the melted wax in the can until the wood shavings are completed coated.

3. Place the cup cake papers into a muffin tin. Fill each cup cake paper with the melted wax and wood shavings mixture, packing down with an old spoon until the paper cup is quite full. If you are making these to sell at a bazaar, you might want to press a few extra wood shavings into the top of each fire starter. This is not a necessity, but it does look nice.

4. Let the fire starters cool and solidify completely.

5. When you want to start a fire, put kindling in place and nestle the fire starter in the middle of the kindling. Set fire to the paper cup to make a small burn that will last about five minutes. By then, your fire should be going very well.

Caution: These fire starters are NOT recommended for interior wood stoves or fireplace inserts. Only you can determine whether these fire starters are safe for you to make, or whether they are safe to burn for the purpose that you have in mind. Please realize that you use the directions in this craft project entirely at your own risk. If you are making the fire starters to sell, then make sure you include appropriate safety warnings in the package.