Happy Hour Candle

Happy Hour Candle

These candles are so festive and will look great at your summer parties. They work well to brighten up your spirits during the dead of winter too!

This is actually a chunk candle, so you will need some “ice cube” chunks. See below to learn how to make these chunks.

This project will make two “Fuzzy Navels” in hurricane glasses. Your imagination is the limit - try pink lemonade, margaritas, martinis, iced café mochas, or whatever you like. You can adjust the ingredients and amounts if you plan to make more than this or if you are using larger glasses.


Please read through the entire project before beginning.

Equipment and Supplies

• Double boiler for melting wax
• Pouring pot or metal can
• Candy thermometer
• 2 - 12 oz. hurricane glasses
• 1 lb. paraffin wax (it won’t take much since most of the candle is chunks)
• 2 handfuls of your “ice cube” wax chunks (fill glasses to the top)
• 2 tabbed wicks, taller than the glass (I used a wick for a 2.5” diameter container)
• Wick holder
• ½ oz. Georgia Peach fragrance oil
• ¼ oz. Fresh Orange Juice fragrance oils (Use the fragrances of your choice to match your “drink”)
• Glue dots or small amount of hot wax to adhere your wick to the bottom of the glass
• Small amount of orange (or red and yellow) candle dye
• Chopstick to guide your pouring (optional)
• 2 container candle warning labels (especially if giving away or selling)

Instructions

Adhere your wick in the center of your glass. You may want to use a chopstick or something long enough to easily reach and push the tab securely to the bottom. Hold your wick centered while you fill around it with your “ice cube” wax chunks. It looks nice if you have them up to the top of the glass so some bits of the cubes will show after you pour your lightly colored wax.

Secure your wick so it doesn’t move when you pour your wax. You can just prop it in the center with a pencil or chopstick going across the glass rim because the wick shouldn’t move too much since the “cubes” are holding it also.

Place your wax in your pouring pitcher or metal can and place it in a pan of water on your heat source. Insert your candy thermometer. Once your wax has just melted, keep the temperature low and add your dye until you’ve achieved the desired color. Remember, you don’t want it too dark since you want to be able to see through it somewhat. Test a few drops on a paper plate or freezer paper until you reach your desired color.

Stir in your fragrance at about 150 degrees F. Remove from heat and place pouring pitcher/can on an old towel so you don’t have any water on your pitcher that could drip into your wax while you are pouring. Stir and let cool to about 140 degrees F. If your wax is much hotter than that you could melt your chunks too much.

Carefully and slowly pour your wax into the glass. Leave about a ¾ inch before reaching the top. Make sure your wick is still centered.

Let cool. You shouldn’t have to poke relief holes or do a second pour because of the amount of chunks. Once your candle is completely cooled, trim your wick to about ¼ inch. Add appropriate candle warning label to bottom of glass when candle is completely cooled.

See below for optional embellishment ideas.

NOTE: Any leftover wax and chunks can be used to make cute matching chunk votives like this:
Make sure to use mold release, add your votive wick pins, surround pin with chunks, and pour wax same as above.

These candles are so fun and easy because you don’t have to worry about perfect pouring temperatures or mold temperatures. The unheated glass will make the poured wax look a bit frosty and that’s a good thing when trying to imitate an ice cold beverage!

Please make sure to keep these (and all candles) away from children since they do look very much like something to drink.

To make the “Ice Cubes” (chunks)

Supplies:

• Paraffin wax (1-2 lbs., depending on how many you will need for your particular projects)
• Citrus fragrance (optional)
• Baking pan with raised edges
• Knife to cut soft wax (I use a plastic lettuce knife so I don’t cut my pan)
• Waxed paper or paper plate to place chunks on for final cooling

Instructions:

Melt about 1 lb. of plain paraffin wax. This doesn’t have to reach any specific temperature; it just needs to be melted. Add a small amount of fragrance if desired. Pour this into a small cake pan or tray that you have sprayed with mold release. Keep in mind, you don’t want flat cubes. You want a relatively thick layer of wax to cut into cubes while warm. I use a 12”X12” square pan for one pound of wax and my cubes end up being ¾ inch deep. When I cut them, I try to cut at ¾ inch also to make a cube.

Let this wax cool until it’s just warm and slightly soft to the touch before cutting. The amount of time to cool will vary depending on the temperature of your room and the thickness of the wax, but will usually take about 10-20 minutes. Cut your cubes anywhere from a ½ to a 1 inch square. You may have to run your knife through the cuts a few times since the wax underneath may still be slightly liquid and could fuse your chunks back together. As pieces become cool and hard, separate and move to paper or plate to finish cooling and set.

These are now your “ice cube” chunks. You can use them in any sort of beverage or chunk type candle. If you choose not to add any fragrance you can use these cubes for any kind of “beverage” candle that wouldn’t work well with a hint of citrus, like “iced” coffees. You could also re-melt the unscented chunks to use in a completely new project. If you don’t mind lighter scented candles, and are more interested in the appearance, then go ahead and omit the fragrance. Saves money too!

Optional Embellishments

• Poke a little paper umbrella and a short piece of a drinking straw into the wax while warm (not hot). Make sure they don’t embed too far in so you can get them out later. Spinning them a little after the wax has hardened will help. Of course, these will have to be removed before burning your candle.
• Add a festive fringe around the top or middle of the glass after the candle has completely cooled. Use a little glue or glue dot(s) to adhere the fringe and you have a super-happy, happy hour candle!
• If you have a silicone citrus shaped ice cube tray, this can be filled with citrus scented wax and colored yellow, green, or orange if you want to have citrus wedges to embellish your happy hour candle. You should make these at the same time as your chunks so they are ready to use. I picked up a couple of these trays at a dollar store. If you’re going to add the citrus shaped wax chunks, do it immediately after pouring the wax so it will adhere.

A variation of the ice-cubed drinks would be to just whip your hot wax until it is slightly frothy and then pour into your wicked glass without the cubes. This makes a cute “daiquiri” or “slushy” looking drink!


This site needs an editor - click to learn more!



RSS
Related Articles
Editor's Picks Articles
Top Ten Articles
Previous Features
Site Map





Content copyright © 2023 by Angela Webster. All rights reserved.
This content was written by Angela Webster. If you wish to use this content in any manner, you need written permission. Contact BellaOnline Administration for details.