I decided one day I wanted to make my candle making more fun by adding glitter. Now that I know how to successfully use glitter in my candle making, I want to share my knowledge with you all in hopes that you, too, will have fun making glittery candles!
Glitter can be a great way to add another dimension to your candles. When using glitter, though, you have to be careful about what kind of glitter you are using.
Fine glitter is the best option for your candle making. When using large or chunky glitters, you pose the risk of creating a fire hazard. Large glitter can also clog the wick, which affects the way your candle burns.
If you are looking for a way to make your candle making more fun, glitter can be a great addition. There are many different kinds of glitter but the best kind to use in your candle is fine glitter.
Glitter in Candle Making
When making a candle, you want to make sure you are making a product that is safe. You do not want your candle to pose a threat to anyone’s safety. While glitter can be a fun addition to your candle, you need to make sure you are creating a safe product.
To successfully and safely make a glittery candle, you need to choose the right type of glitter. Chunky or large glitters will definitely make your candle look pretty but you will pose a risk of clogging the wick or potentially having a fire hazard.
The best type of glitter to use in your candle is glitter that is fine. By using a fine glitter, you are preventing your wick from clogging, allowing your candle to have a healthier burn.
To make a glittery candle, start by pouring the melted wax into the container you want the candle to set in. After that, sprinkle as much glitter as you want onto the top of the wax.
The glitter is lighter than the wax so it sits on top but as it settles it will blend down into the wax. If you want the glitter to mix into the wax more, carefully swirl the wax around in the container. This will also help the glitter reach the edges of the container if they have not done so naturally.
Another way to use glitter for candles is to coat the sides of your dry candle with it. While this glitter is not actually going into the candle, it will still be a factor in how well your candle functions.
When you burn a candle with glitter on the sides, the glitter starts to mix with the wax as it melts. Because of this, you will still want to choose a fine glitter.
To make this, take a solid candle and paint a decoupage glue along the side. Once the glue dries, apply another layer and immediately pour the glitter onto the glue.
Make sure when you are picking a decoupage glue, you are choosing one that is non-flammable. Similarly, you want to use a glitter that is not flammable.
When you burn your candle, the glitter will mix in with the wax. You want to ensure that your glitter is non-flammable because when it mixes with the wax, it will be close to the flame.
Creating a Safe Candle
When you create a candle, you want it to be safe to use. You want to make sure your candle is not going to pose more of a fire risk than a candle without glitter does. There are several ways to make sure you are making safe candles.
When choosing a glitter, you need to keep the ingredients in mind. What is the glitter you are using made of? Chances are, the glitter could be made of paper products.
To ensure you are using safe glitter, avoid buying products that do not say what the glitter is made of. The glitter you want to use will be made out of non-flamable ingredients. Some types of glitter are made from glass, metal, or crystals. You can safely use these in your candles because your candle will not pose the threat of a fire hazard.
You also want to keep this in mind when covering the outside of candles in glitter. When you burn your candle, the glitter will mix in with the melted wax. If you use a glitter made of paper products, this can create a fire hazard. To prevent this, choose a glitter made from non-flammable materials.
Fine glitter is the best choice for coating the sides of your candle, too. By choosing a fine glitter, you are assuring that your wick will not get clogged.
Why Not Use Large Glitter?
There are countless different glitters sold in stores so trying to find the right glitter may be a little overwhelming. While it may be tempting to buy glitter with larger pieces, it may make the quality of your candle worse.
A few reasons not to use large glitter are:
- The glitter can clog the wick.
- Having large glitter poses a fire hazard.
- Your glitter will sink to the bottom of the candle.
Larger glitter can clog the wick of a candle. When a candle burns, the fragrance and wax is pushed from the bottom of the wick to the top. This allows the flame to continue to burn. The large glitter can prevent the wax to move through the wick and will stop the candle from burning properly.
Large pieces of glitter can be a fire hazard for your candle. I know, it sounds silly because the point of a candle is to burn it. When you burn your candle, you only want to wick to burn. Glitter is often made out of paper. When you put this kind of glitter in your candle, you risk burning more than just the wick.
When you pour large glitter onto your melted wax, you will notice that most of the glitter will sink to the bottom. The glitter is more dense than the wax, so when it is pushed into the wax, it will sink right to the bottom.
Mica Powder instead of Glitter
If you want to avoid using glitter to ensure a safe candle, you can use a product called mica powder. Mica is a stone mineral. When mica is ground finely, it creates a shimmery powder.
You can use mica powder in place of glitter and still achieve the shimmery product. Along with adding a shimmer to your candle, the mica powder also colors your wax. So instead of having to color your candle before adding glitter, you can do so while adding shimmer at the same time.
Mica powder is safer than glitter because it is not flammable. The powder will also not clog your candle’s wick. This means that your candle has more chance of having a healthy flame.
Using mica powder is very easy to do. A small amount goes a long way so start by adding a small amount and stir it in completely before adding more. You will not get the same glitter effect with mica as you do with fine glitter, but you will get a shimmery product.
With the glitter, you can create a layer on top of your candle but with mica the shimmer goes throughout the whole candle. If you are looking for that layer of glitter, then mica would not be the best option for you. If you want a glittery effect throughout the whole candle, though, mica will be a great addition to your candle.
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