A few months back I decided it would be fun to make all natural eco friendly candles. There are so many options out there it took me all of those months to figure out what materials I was going to use, what materials were really environmentally friendly and what was truly not detrimental to a person‘s health.
The hardest component to decide upon was the wicks. I was glamoured by the wood wicks that are out now. I loved the crackly sound they make and how they added a nice spicy smell to the candle. I had done several inquiries to see if any of the companies would elaborate on the “clean burning patented agent” they used to treat the wood wicks with. No one responded.
I bought treated wood wicks, untreated wood wicks and natural hemp core wicks. This helped me make my decision on the wood wicks once and for all. Untreated wood wicks do not stay lit. They do not make a good pool, are messy and emit a black smoke that is not good to breathe. The treated wood wicks did not emit the smoke. They added a smell to the candle that could over power the essential oils I was using. They also left the soy wax a brownish color. This did not set off any alarms for me untill I tried the natural hemp core wicks.
The hemp core wicks left the wax crystal clear all the way to the end of the candle. They did not contribute any smells that would alter the essential oil scents. They did emit a black smoke if I used too thick of a wick. Hemp wicks burn nice and slow so using too thick of a wick can make the wick not burn as fast as the soy leaving a smoking tip that mushrooms. If trimmed lower during long burn periods it is not a big deal but I totally solved the problem by going down to a medium sized wick. The small wick does not have the support I like to hold up while the candle is being pored.
The emissions from the treated wood candle may be slight but the brownish tint it leaves in the wax as well as the extra scent it puts off made me feel that it was giving off something that may or may not be disclosed later as being unhealthy. Candles are awesome and very relaxing but we have to breath in enough junk with out voluntarily bringing it into our homes.
The hardest component to decide upon was the wicks. I was glamoured by the wood wicks that are out now. I loved the crackly sound they make and how they added a nice spicy smell to the candle. I had done several inquiries to see if any of the companies would elaborate on the “clean burning patented agent” they used to treat the wood wicks with. No one responded.
I bought treated wood wicks, untreated wood wicks and natural hemp core wicks. This helped me make my decision on the wood wicks once and for all. Untreated wood wicks do not stay lit. They do not make a good pool, are messy and emit a black smoke that is not good to breathe. The treated wood wicks did not emit the smoke. They added a smell to the candle that could over power the essential oils I was using. They also left the soy wax a brownish color. This did not set off any alarms for me untill I tried the natural hemp core wicks.
The hemp core wicks left the wax crystal clear all the way to the end of the candle. They did not contribute any smells that would alter the essential oil scents. They did emit a black smoke if I used too thick of a wick. Hemp wicks burn nice and slow so using too thick of a wick can make the wick not burn as fast as the soy leaving a smoking tip that mushrooms. If trimmed lower during long burn periods it is not a big deal but I totally solved the problem by going down to a medium sized wick. The small wick does not have the support I like to hold up while the candle is being pored.
The emissions from the treated wood candle may be slight but the brownish tint it leaves in the wax as well as the extra scent it puts off made me feel that it was giving off something that may or may not be disclosed later as being unhealthy. Candles are awesome and very relaxing but we have to breath in enough junk with out voluntarily bringing it into our homes.
This lady's site really helped me out on becoming informed about candles. I highly recommend it.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.peacefulhealingjourney.com/