How to Cut Honeycomb Beeswax Sheets for Candlemaking

Template for rolling two 12-inch tapers and one small candle

It is a lot of fun to roll your own beeswax candles. It also gets boring to make the same shape and thickness every time. Here are the ideas and tools you need to make a variety of shapes and sizes of hand-rolled beeswax candles.

Things You'll Need

• Cardboard
• Permanent Marker
• Sharp craft knife
• Thick candle wick

Instructions

1. Take an 8-by-16 inch piece of cardboard, and copy the blue and yellow sections of the template onto the cardboard with a permanent marker. (Almost all beeswax sheets available for sale measure 8 by 16 inches.)

2. Lay down a cutting mat or large cutting board on your work surface. Place the cardboard template on the cutting board, and place one sheet of beeswax onto the cardboard template.

3. Gently hold the beeswax in place with one hand and carefully cut along the lines in the template with a sharp craft knife. When finished, you should have four pieces of beeswax sheet. The two blue pieces in the template each make one 12-inch taper candle. The two smaller, yellow pieces will also be used.

4. Cut a length of wick and gently but firmly press it into the strait side of one larger piece of wax. Gently roll all of the wax around the wick. Repeat with the other larger piece of wax and you have two 12-inch taper candles!

Tips & Warnings

• You can make two birthday, Hanukkah or very small candles with the yellow pieces. You may also press the edges of the two smaller pieces together, and roll them around a wick to make a thicker, 4-inch-tall candle. Xacto knives are lightweight and work well for cutting beeswax sheets. Hand-rolled beeswax candles burn best with the thickest candle wick available. A heat gun or even a hair dryer may be aimed at the beeswax for a quick moment to soften it before rolling. Once you get the hang of it, get creative and make your own templates for hand-rolled beeswax candles.

• Protect surfaces. Working on cutting mats or large cutting boards prevents damage to tables and counters. The craft knife must be very sharp; a dull knife will rip and tear the beeswax sheet.

Resources

• Candlewic Beeswax Sheets
• Knorr Beeswax Sheets