Top 3 tips for burning a candle

March 5, 2022

Getting a candle to burn properly isn’t a fine art but it does make the difference of potentially having a candle that tunnels with lot of candle wax stuck on the sides and one that burns cleanly to the end. Choosing a quality candle in the first place ensures that the maker has selected the correct size wick for the wick, wax, scent combination. You can have the best candle scent in the world but if the wick is too small (in diameter) not in length it will never burn properly.

Choose the time you light the candle carefully – Making sure you have enough time on those first couple of burns is really important. Light your candle the first time for at least 2+ hours. The temperature of the room, time of the year can affect the time. If it is a hot summer day and the wax is warm it will be quicker to reach the full burn pool at the top of the candle. If you light the candle the first time for around 20 minutes then find you have to put it out because you are going out you will be left with a tunnelled candle in which you are left with huge amounts of wax around the edges.

2.Extinguishing the candle by dipping the wick -When it comes to putting the candle out I recommend using a wick dipper. You can gently push the wick over into the warm wax and hook it back up. This leaves the room smoke free and coats the wick in fragranced wax ready for the next light. I don’t recommend blowing out a candle which can potentially put hot wax over yourself or the surrounding area. I don’t recommend snuffing a candle out as I feel that this saturates the wick in smoke.

3. Trim your candle wick – Using wick trimmers gently trim the top part of the wick before re lighting. Trim the top, the part that can sometimes look like a praying mantis head. At this point be careful not to trim it too short. This prevents the candle becoming too hot and burning faster than it should. It also reduces sooting in our soy wax candles so they are virtually soot free.

Any questions please get in touch with me i’d be delighted to answer any further questions. jo@jomacfarlane.com