How to Make Ear Cleaning Candles
Ear candles are believed by some to be a natural remedy for removing excess ear wax, relieving headaches and sinus congestion, and even alleviating symptoms of vertigo by balancing the fluids inside of the ear. They are used by placing the wide end of the candle over the opening of the ear and lighting the narrow end. Advocates of the ear candle maintain that while the candle burns, the updraft draws out blockages and other unwanted material from the ear. While ear candles are not terribly expensive, they are not as widely used as they once were and for that reason can be difficult to find. By making ear candles at home you can always be assured of having them on hand when they are needed.
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Things You'll Need
- Wooden dowel
- Sharp knife
- Light grit sandpaper
- Vegetable oil
- Paraffin wax
- Double boiler
- Cotton sheeting
- Kitchen gloves
- Scissors
- Tongs
- Bowl of ice water
Instructions
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How to Make Ear Cleaning Candles
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1
Prepare your dowel by cutting approximately 18 inches off of an old broom handle or purchasing a similarly sized dowel. One end must be shaved down so that the dowel resembles a long, thin cone. Do this with a sharp knife as though you are sharpening a pencil by hand. Lightly sand the whittled end if necessary. Use a small amount of vegetable oil to oil the dowel. Oiling prevents the candle from sticking to the dowel and will need to be repeated between candles.
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2
Place water in the bottom of your double boiler and eight ounces of paraffin wax in the top. The level of water in the lower section of the boiler should be one inch below the bottom of the top section of the boiler. Bring the water to a boil.
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3
While the wax is melting, cut as many 8 inch by 2 inch strips of cotton sheeting as candles you wish to make.
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4
When the wax is thoroughly melted, put on the kitchen gloves and rub a thin layer of vegetable oil onto them. Use the tongs to lower a rectangle of sheeting into the wax, letting is become completely saturated. Use your protected hands to quickly wrap the sheeting around the dowel by placing the short end of the strip along the tapered end of the dowel and winding the strip around and around in a clockwise motion. Wrap snugly, making sure there are no gaps in the sheeting. When this is completed, give the candle a counter-clockwise twist to loosen it from the dowel. Your first ear cleaning candle is complete.
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5
Make more candles by repeating the steps and melting more wax as needed.
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Tips & Warnings
Paraffin wax can be safely reheated many times so you can stop and start this project at your convenience. If you have dedicated a double boiler specifically for this use, simply store any unused, melted wax in the appliance.
Once wax has been melted in a pan it can be extremely difficult to get it completely clean again. For this reason, you may want to search the thrift store for an old double boiler that you will only use for the purpose of melting wax. Working with hot wax always presents the possibility of a burn. As a safety precaution, keep a bowl of ice water ready to submerge your hands in if needed and keep pets and small children out of the workspace.
