Best Scented Homemade Candles Recipe – Using Essential Oils

 Ever wanted to make your own scented candles? Candles make great gifts for any occasion. Personalizing them and creating your own scents can be a lot of fun too! Here is the best homemade candles recipe that I love to use!

As an Amazon associate this post contains some affiliate links for which I may be compensated a small portion at no extra cost to you if you choose to click and purchase from them.

Pick Your Jar 

You will want a jar that is sturdy and quite heat resistant. Clean the jar well and dry it out afterwards.  

Once you have a clean jar you can begin preheating the jar. Do this by placing your jar on a baking sheet and setting your oven to a keep warm setting. Your goal is to get your jar above room temperature.

Pick Your Wick 

There are multiple kinds of wicks on the market. Around 300 types to be exact. You have wooden wicks, cotton wicks, paper core wicks, and even zinc wicks.

The key to any good wick is one that has a consistent flame size, wax pool, minimal carbon buildup, and a moderate temperature to keep your container from overheating. 

Get the best wick for this project from Amazon right now!

Attach Your Wick

Attach your wick to the base of your heated jar. Simply place the collar of your wick down into some melted wax flakes. Be gentle! Not clumsy like me. 🙂 Let it dry before you move on to the next steps. You will want your wick nice and secure. 

(Use caution as your jar may still be hot!) 

Picking Your Wax 

You can choose from a variety of waxes. Most waxes are made from soy or paraffin. There are also combination waxes out there that are a mixture of soy and paraffin. Soy is known to last longer than paraffin and is often used as a natural alternative.

Get natural soy wax for this project right now from Amazon!

Measure The Wax 

Make note of how many ounces your jar holds. This is very important. You are going to want 2x’s the amount of wax flakes in your jar compared to the ounces that your jar will hold.

(Example: An 8 ounce jar will hold 16 ounces of wax flakes.

Measure out your wax in a heat resistant glass measuring cup with a handle.

Heating Your Wax Up 

For this you are going to want to use a medium sized pot. Sit the pot on an oven burner. Do not turn on your burner at this point. Take your measuring container with the calculated amount of wax in it and set it into the middle of the pot. Make sure it fits well and is not too big or too small. Fill your pot with water being extra careful not to get water into your wax.  

Slowly adjust the heat of your burner to low-medium. You are going to want the water to slowly boil. Stir your wax gently until it is thoroughly melted.  

Using a thermometer be sure to check the temperature of your wax. You are going to want the wax to be between 150-180 degrees Fahrenheit.

Coloring Your Candles 

There are multiple ways to color your candles. Personally, I like to use bits of non-toxic Crayola crayons for my candle projects. You could also purchase liquid candle dye.

Once you have successfully colored your wax you can remove the wax from the stove and let it start to cool.

Scenting Your Candle To Perfection

When your wax cools down to somewhere around 125 degrees Fahrenheit you can start to add your scent. I prefer essential oils. You can use any kind of fragrant oil or essential oil that you’d like.

scented oils

My favorite combination is vanilla and lavender, but you can experiment with scents all you’d like. I love trying to come up with new fragrances.

Here are some fragrance combinations that work well.

  • Mint – Eucalyptus 
  • Vanilla – Lavender (My favorite.)
  • Lemongrass – Rosemary
  • Lemon – Lime
  • Cinnamon – Ginger

Time To Put Your Wax In The Jar 

While your wax is still liquified and hopefully successfully colored and scented you may now pour it into your jar. Do this step carefully to avoid getting bubbles or cracks in your candle wax. (Or a giant mess!) 

Keep a space at the top of your candle jar. When your wax begins to burn it will melt and pool up. Trim your wick as needed. 

Allow your candle to sit and harden before use. Once everything is set up you may light your candle and enjoy the lovely fragrance you’ve just created!

Start earning money for your crafts right now! Check out these other great posts!

20 Resin Art Crafts To Make And Sell

10 Best Trending Crafts To Sell Online For Money

20 Crafts To Make And Sell With A Cricut Machine

16 thoughts on “Best Scented Homemade Candles Recipe – Using Essential Oils”

  1. I had no idea how to make a candle, but now I do! I wouldn’t use this for decoration, I would most likely do it from a business aspect, but it is an informative guide nonetheless. Thank you for this!

    1. Candle making can be very lucrative and fun as well. I hope if you try out candlemaking that it turns out well for you! Thanks for reading!

  2. Great tips here. I always find scented candles calming and some create a romantic mood for dates. Just a quick question. Is paraffin harmful to humans? I was afraid of letting anything toxic out in the house.

    1. Paraffin is derived from pretroleum. It is often used in preservatives in such things as apples for the shiny protective coating. Food grade paraffin is not suspected to be harmful however, paraffin is known to clog pores and cause skin problems. It is also true that the burning of paraffin in something such as a candle can produce chemicals which are on the known carcinogens list. I highly recommend doing research on the wax you decide to use, but remember you can always stick to soy wax which is a completely natural alternative to traditional paraffin wax.

  3. I would have never felt comfortable even attempting to make a candle until now. Your step by step guide was so easy to follow.

    I am betting I could get very good at this. I have seen some pretty expensive candles in stores. This could be a great hobby or actually even a business opportunity.

    Thanks for sharing. Great DIY guide.

    1. Thank you for reading my post! I am glad you found the this guide easy to read and understand. I hope you do give candlemaking a try and that it turns out well for you if you do! Good luck!

  4. Great post! I have always wanted to make candles. Actually I did attempt to do one before but unfortunately it doesn’t turn out the way it should. I think it could be due to the fact that I might had used the wrong wick and I used food coloring. I can’t believe I actually made two mistakes which was mentioned in the post! After reading this post, I am seriously considering trying again. I am more confident this time as the instructions given are so detailed!

    1. Thank you for reading! As for any DIY craft there can be a bit of trial and error. There are quite a few factors into making a candle that can make or break the project, but if you follow my steps I am sure you can do this successfully in the future. Best of luck!

  5. Hi Dovey,
    Thank you for your comment. In my experience glass jars such as Ball or Mason canning jars are not exactly perfect for candles although they can work. The most common reason I have found is because of an improperly placed wick that is too close to the sides or not using a collar at the bottom to protect the base of the jar when the flame gets too low. If you use a well centered wick that does not produce a large flame, but a reasonably controlled on and discontinue use of your candle when it is dangerously low on wax you should be just fine. Glass in general even if it is determined to be heat resistant can still break under the right circumstances. You will have to use your best judgement. You can use any thermometer that you wish. I personally use a metal thermometer with a traditional dial vs digital. Just make sure the thermometer is long enough and try to take a reading from the center of your candle and not so much the pot it is in. All temps are approximate so there is room for leeway. 🙂 I hope this answers your questions.

  6. In my experience most people love candles. Either for themselves or to buy for someone else. You really can’t go wrong if you can make them successfully. Someone will undoubtedly enjoy them!

  7. I enjoyed reading your article, it was easy to follow along. Who knew it was this easy to make scented candles. Would you recommend scented candles over house air fresheners? can you use both at the same time?

    1. Yes you can definitely use them both together. Just make sure the scents marry well or you might end up with a bit of a strange aroma. For instance if you make a lavender candle and have a vanilla house freshener they may go together well. Just be sure to get low carbon, low smoke wicks so you get the cleanest burn you can!

  8. Pingback: Top 10 Trending Craft Projects That Will Earn You Money - Sincere Mommy

  9. You can purchase a 10 pound bag of soy wax and wicks in a kit form for very little. Maybe even under 30 dollars. This would last you for many multiple candles so overall I think you get quite a bit of bang for your buck.

  10. Pingback: Fantastic Melissa and Doug Toys Will Spark Your Child's Imagination - Sincere Mommy

  11. Your recipe for the ‘Best Scented Homemade Candles Using Essential Oils’ is a fantastic resource for craft enthusiasts and those looking to add a personalized touch to their space. The step-by-step instructions and the use of essential oils for fragrances are particularly appealing. Creating homemade candles with soothing scents is a wonderful way to enhance the ambiance at home. Thanks for sharing this creative and aromatic DIY project.

Leave a Reply to Ronald Otochi Cancel Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Scroll to Top