How to Embed Photos or Illustrations Inside of Candles

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Step 1. Prepare water bath.
Begin by preparing your mold for a water bath. A water bath will be needed in this project. In preparation for the water bath, attach weights to your mold. Also, prepare a water vessel with the appropriate amount of water.

Step 2. Melt wax.
We are using a high melting point wax. The melting point of the wax used here is about 163 degrees F.

Step 3. Pour wax into mold.
With the temperature of your wax at 185-190 degrees F, fill your mold.

Step 4. Submerge photo into wax.
Insert your photo into the wax-filled mold. Fully submerge your photo and allow it to sit for a moment or two. It will soak up wax and displace any air that is within the paper. If there are bubbles still sticking to the photo, try to move the photo around a bit to dislodge as many of the bubbles as possible (chopsticks are handy). Having no bubbles is ideal, but not always practical, so don’t waste too much time on this step. Also, lightly tap the sides of your mold with a blunt instrument to free up any bubbles that may be lurking there.

Step 5. Position Photo using a spoon and wet cloth.
Using the utensil of your choice, position your photo against the sidewall of the mold. A wooden spoon was used here that was pre-heated in the hot wax. If the spoon were cold, the photo would have stuck to it on contact. With the photo in place, take a wet washcloth, wet kitchen towel, or wet paper towels and apply it to the exterior of the mold at the location of the photo.

Step 6. Place mold in water bath.
Place the mold into the water bath. The entire interior will frost right away.
When your shell is as thick as you’d like it, remove the mold from the water bath. 3/8 to ½ of an inch is a good target thickness.

Step 7. Pour out inner wax.
With the mold removed from the water bath, wipe off any excess water from the exterior surface of your mold. If needed, slice open the top with a paring knife. Pour the core wax back into your pouring pitcher. Many times, the surface will not need to be sliced open, as no wax will have solidified on top.

Step 8. Level the top.
Once the shell is removed from the mold, place a cookie sheet on top of a pot of simmering water. The heated cookie sheet can then be used to melt away some of the wax on the top rim of the hurricane shell. Level the top to provide a clean appearance. If you have an electric griddle, you may wish to use that in a similar manner on low heat.

Step 9. Insert Votive
Insert a votive holder containing a votive candle inside your finished shell. Enjoy.

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