Saturday, March 27, 2010

Votive Candles


Ranunculus blossoms in votive candle glasses
I have a weakness for candles. As a result I have a collection of burnt out votive candles gathering dust on a shelf. I have ruled out scraping the residual wax with knives because of the possible scar marks on the glass. One day, I come across a how-to guide on Martha's blog on cleaning votive candles.
I cannot believe the solution is this simple. Pop the candle in the freezer for a few hours. The rationale being the wax will contract in the cold and it can then be removed without any scraping.
I am pretty sure the glass will crack under the cold temperature but I decide to try it out anyhow, so I put two candles inside the freezer. After four hours I take the frozen votive out. I then use a knife to tease the wax around the glass, all the while remaining highly skeptical of my little experiment. Then I hear a tiny pop sound. I realize that air has been sucked in, meaning a vacuum is created between the wax and the glass.
This is the moment of truth. I turn the glass upside down and give the bottom a few knocks. The wax plop out with a thud on the kitchen counter. The glass is clean and gleaming with no trail of wax whatsoever!! I stand rooted to the spot holding the frosted glass, until the numbing cold from my fingers wake me from my trance. It works!!
My freezer is crammed with a dozen candles now. This simple tip has taken care of a problem that has been irking me for a long time and I am looking forward to a variety of glass holders. Above are the two votive candles from the experiment and they make such perfect vases for solitaire blossoms.
What a great tip from Martha!!

2 comments:

pascale said...

Oh wow, now I know one more trick to make my day a little easier :) thanks!

bonnie said...

After this little experiment, I am hooked to Martha's how-to guides!!

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