With so many different candles on the market today, it is hard to determine what they are made of. Are your candles blended or do you know what they made of?
Candles that are made using waxes such as bayberry, beeswax, palm wax, and soy wax. Bayberry, palm, and soy wax are considered a vegetable wax and is produced from plants. Beeswax is produced from bees.
Your candle should be made using either 100% of one of these natural waxes or a blended combination of them.
Eco-friendly products are becoming more important as families are becoming more aware of ways to use renewable, healthier resources within their lives. Candles that are made from 100% natural wax are considered to be an eco-friendly addition to any house hold.
Many natural waxes that are used in candle making today are also used in common, editable foods. Such items include:
- Palm Oil for cooking
- Soy is used for a variety of foods such as crackers, salad dressings and tofu
- Beeswax is used for coating cheese and other common house hold items
Are they really natural wax?
Just because you purchase a candle that states it is natural wax does not mean that it is 100 percent natural wax.
Candles are made from many products with paraffin being the top candle wax used within today’s candle market. Be cautious and know what your candle is made from when you purchase it. Here are some questions to ask yourself when you purchase your next natural wax candle.
- Is the wax blended?
- What type of blended candle are your purchasing?
- What type of wick is being used?
Is the wax blended?
Many candles that are on the market as natural wax, are actually blended with paraffin. In order for a candle to be sold with the term, made with natural wax, it only has to contain a portion of natural wax.
What type of blended candle are your purchasing?
Blended candles can be made from blending paraffin wax and beeswax, paraffin and soy, and paraffin and palm.
What type of wick is being used?
Believe it or not, your candle wick plays a very important part with your natural wax candle. You most certainly do not want a candle that is made from pure natural wax and then have a zinc core candle wick.
- Commonly used natural wicks:
- Cotton
- Hemp
- Paper cored
At one point in time, lead wicks were widely used for candles. They have been outlawed within the U.S. candle industry since 2003. Many small candle company’s proudly display on their web site that their candle wicks are lead free. Check their web site just to make sure.
In today’s ever changing market place it is more important than ever to be knowledgeable about the products you are purchasing. By educating yourself on the common terms of natural wax candles that are on the market today, you will know what your candle is made from.
