What Makes Candles Scented?

A scented candle adds an inviting atmosphere to any room.

Scented candles provide ambiance. Any given fragrance can remind us, for instance, of a tropical island or Grandma's gingerbread cookies, favorite places and fond memories. Candles come in many scents. The fragrance you smell is achieved by the evaporation of the oils as the wax pools around the burning wick. The fragrance must be oil-based, never alcohol based. Cologne is made of alcohol and is never recommended for candle making.

Fragrance From Oils

Oils add scents to candles.

One approach to adding scent to a candle is to use the commercial scented oils. These are added to the hot wax before it's poured into its mold. Oils can be natural fragrance, artificially processed or both. They must be properly balanced with the wax for the candle to burn properly.

Fresh flowers

Your garden might provide the floral aroma for your next candle.

Another way of scenting a candle is to add fresh flowers while the wax is hot. The wax absorbs the scent of the flowers. You'll smell your flowers during the evaporation process while the candle burns. Blossoms used are roses and magnolias. Herbs can also provide an aroma.

Potpourri

Create your own potpourri for an unusual candle.

Potpourri Is another way to add fragrance to wax. A common ingredient within potpourri is cinnamon. Dried oranges and apples, nutmeg and cloves may also be used. In addition to adding a scent, the potpourri offers the artistic touch with ingredients being suspended in the wax.

Beeswax Candles

A sweet, natural scent is released from beeswax candles.

The natural scent of a 100 percent beeswax candle is soft, sweet and honeylike, It is hypoallergenic, unlike the oils used in paraffin-based candles. The wax drips very little. It's clean burning if it has a pure cotton wick with no metal core. The nontoxic wax is harvested from bees and is a renewable resource.

References

• Pioneer Thinking: How to Make Scented Candles from Your Own Kitchen
• National Candle Association: Elements of a Candle
• My Arts and Crafts: How to Make Your Homemade Candles Scented
• University of Delaware Cooperative Extension: Beeswax