One of the latest and greatest trends in candles is lotion candles. The concept is simple, just light your candle until a wax melt pool forms, extinguish the flame and scoop out some of the melted wax. The melted wax will be warm but not hot enough to burn your skin. Then just massage it into any dry areas just as you would any other lotion. You will be amazed at how your skin feels after repeated use. The lotion candle can also be used as a solid body lotion balm without lighting the wick. Just scoop a bit of the candle lotion and massage it into the dry skin area.
Nutrition experts everywhre are raving about using soy milk in skin care products. The proteins, amino acids and lipids found in this high-powered bean will moisturize your skin quickly and provide rapid cell regeneration. For years soy bean factory workers who handled soy products from day to day had skin that was especially smooth and even-toned. Some studies have shown that soy oil will reduce the effects of scarring on your skin too!
With all of those great benefits – why not make lotion candles!?! This is however a skin care product and you should never use more than 2% fragrance oil in a soy lotion candle. Most soy lotion candles on the market contain way too much fragrance and should be sold as a highly scented candle instead of a skin care product! I do not recommend using color in lotion candles for skin irritation and possibly even dying of the skin’s color could occur. Also never add any herbs or botanicals because they could catch on fire as the candle burns.
Lotion candles start out with a cosmetic grade 100% soy wax. From there, other skin friendly oils are melted and added to the soy and blended with 2% fragrance. Below are some of the oils and butters that can be used in lotion candles. These are basic recommendations, feel free to experiment and create your own recipes!
Basic Recipes:
50% Soy Wax and 50% Medium Oil
OR
50% Soy Wax, 25% Light Oil and 25% Butters
Oil Details
Light Oils – any oil that is completely liquid. Liquid oils will soften the soy wax and too much will make a candle that appears already melted. Some light oils are hempseed oil, jojoba oil and extra virgin olive oil.
Medium Oils – Use up to 50%. Any oil that has a similar consistency to the soy wax. Can example would be 76 degree coconut oil.
Hard Oils/Butters – any oil that is harder than the consistency of the soy wax. Hard oils work together with light oils to make your massage candle blend stiffer and hold up better in heat. Some examples would be cocoa butter, mango butter, palm kernal oil and shea butter.
Materials Needed:
- Wide tin or jar
- Pre-tabbed wick
- Fragrance
- Soy wax
- Oils and/or butters
- Scale
- Spoon
Instructions:
- Measure wax, oils and butters accurately and place in jar.
- Place jar in microwave and heat until almost melted and just a few chunks are visible.
- Add 2% fragrance and stir continuously until all oils are melted.
- Place a pre-tabbed wick in center of jar and secure in the center with a wick clip or craft stick.
Instructions are copyright of Candles and Supplies/Cindy Novack