Date: 2006-08-15 12:32 Subject: On Making Candles Security: Public Tags: candles, making stuff

I recently read a post on someone's blog or forum that described a beginning candlemaker's frustration at how long it takes. I don't know what kind of candles they were making, but as I made three micro-batches of soy containers yesterday, I had to admit it: he/she was right.

Making candles does take a long time, and you know what? I like it! This is my hobby, the thing I do with my hands to free my creativity. Hobbies are labors of love - if I wanted to save time, I'd just buy candles. But I enjoy the whole process: blending the scents, placing the individual wicks, waiting for them to cool, labelling the tins.

For me, it's not an exercise in patience; it's an excuse to participate in a kind of meditation. The entire process of candlemaking is a sensory experience that fires my creativity for writing like nothing else.

Sometimes, I end up watching the creamy wax melt, letting my mind wander through both good and bad ideas for my assignments. The sound of the water in the double-boiler is meditative, and the fragrances always evoke strong memory and emotional responses that I hope are transmitted to the end user of the candle whether I sell them or give them as gifts.

I make them to please myself first - both to do something with my hands, and to burn during writing sprees. I think if it were more of a commercial exercise, my patience would be tested; for now, it's a labor of love!