Candle making is a trendy hobby! You get to test out different scents, methods, and colors. Many people enjoy making candles in their free time and feel more relaxed when doing it. Candle making is a very creative hobby that everyone can enjoy!
You can make candles for fun or as a side business. Candles even make thoughtful gifts, so many people craft them for their loved ones. With some basic kitchen tools, you can easily create your candles too.
Overall, there’s plenty for you to love about this hobby! It’s a fun and rewarding activity. Plus, you can build many valuable skills. If you’re interested, you should try it out soon!
Is Candle Making an Expensive Hobby?
Candle making isn’t an expensive hobby. Many people often have some of the essential supplies to get started already at their homes. It does cost more when you first start since you’ll need to buy some additional items, including the wax and containers.
However, it’s much cheaper to make your candles than to buy them! It usually costs between three and five dollars to make your candle. It can cost more than $10 per candle easily, depending on where you buy them.
Plus, you’ll also have more control over what the candle looks and smells like! Many people prefer to make their candles because of this. So, if you enjoy burning a lot of candles at home, you’re sure to benefit from learning how to make them. You can also save on the cost of buying store-brand candles while you’re at it!
What Do You Need to Start Candle Making?
You need many supplies to start candle-making, but you probably already have some of them at your house. First, you’ll need to choose the type of wax you want. You can use a special wax, or you can even create your blend of waxes.
You can find plenty of different waxes online. The most popular types of candle waxes include:
- Soy wax
- Coconut wax
- Beeswax
Next, you’ll need to choose your fragrances. There are so many different candle scents out there! You can find plenty of options online, so don’t hesitate to explore and see what you can find. It’s always essential that you create a test candle to see how strong the fragrance ends up being first.
As for the final basic items, you will need containers and wicks. Mason jars are a common container choice because they are heat-safe and solid. However, you can use any tin, glass, or ceramic container. That said, you should never use plastic! Plastic melting is toxic to breathe in.
For the best candle making experience possible, we recommend using a candle making kit like this one. It has everything you need to get started in candle making and is perfect for beginners and veterans alike.
Required Tools
Once you have your wax, containers, fragrances, and wicks, you need basic tools to prepare the candles. It’s likely that you already have some candle making items like these in your kitchen:
- Thermometer
- Double boiler
- Kitchen scale
- Silicone or wooden spoon
- Chopsticks or straws
- Scissors
- Parchment paper or newspaper
- Paper towels
- Spray bottle with isopropyl alcohol
Once you have all these required items ready, you can get started! Money candle makers use tools that candy makers also use. You also don’t need expensive tools to start with! You can buy higher-quality items once you know if you enjoy this hobby or not.
Can You Make a Living off of Making Candles?
It is possible to make a living off of making candles. Plenty of people sell their Creations online, on sites such as Etsy. The amount of money you make will depend on how many candles you create, how many you sell, and how much it costs to make the candle.
You should strive for a profit margin of 50% or more per candle that you sell. That way, you receive money for the ingredients and money for your time and effort. You never want to sell yourself short, or you’ll lose cash per candle that you craft.
You need to also work on understanding how to market your small business. The process can take a long time, but it is very worth it. Overall, you need to be willing to put in a lot of hard work. Creating a brand social media page is a great place to start with marketing. From there, you’ll need to find things that work for you.
How to Price Your Candles
Essential that you know how to properly price your candles. Start by writing down how much you spent on the materials, how much it costs to fulfill an order and your profit margin goal. It’s also a good plan to research the competition- how much are they charging for a candle of the same size? You can base some of the prices on that.
Make sure you take the time to calculate the cost of your ingredients. You will lose money if you don’t charge more than the cost of materials used in making the candle! Keep in mind that sites like Etsy also have listing fees. You’ll need to account for that expense as well.
Once you know how much it costs for you to make the candles, make sure you add in your labor cost. From there, you have the price of your candle. There are calculators you can use online to help you get a more accurate number. Often, you should charge twice as much as the ingredients’ cost, as a general rule.
Final Thoughts
To summarize, candle-making is a hobby that many people enjoy. If you’re interested, you can start quickly at home today. There is plenty of candle-making content and resources online, so you can get a better idea of how to make your candle.
You could even turn a candle creation hobby into a small business opportunity. You can sell your candles online or in your local community. Overall, candle-making can provide you with some extra cash, but you don’t need to turn it into a side hustle to enjoy it.
Finally, you’re sure to feel more relaxed and creative while creating your candles. You can experiment with the scents and designs. Anyone looking for a new hobby should give candle-making a try!