Different types of candle wax
With the various types of candle wax on the market today, it is difficult to determine which candle wax is best suited for your candle making projects.
The most used candle waxes are:
Based on natural vegetables
Bayberry
Bayberry, also known as Myrtle Wax or Candle Berry is a rare and expensive natural wax made from Bayberry bushes. The wax is made by boiling the berries of the bushes. The wax then floats to the top and is collected and processed to make candles. Cranberry wax has a natural greenish color and a fresh scent. With a melting point of 118 degrees, this wax is very hard and brittle.
Candles that are made from Bayberry wax are more commonly known as the Christmas Candle. The tradition is that a candle made of cranberry wax that burns to the base will bring “food to the pantry and gold to the pockets.”
Bee wax
Beeswax has its own unique fragrance. Used fragrance-free, studies have shown that beeswax actually helps purify the air. Beeswax can be naturally filtered, resulting in a natural white or yellow beeswax. Filtered beeswax is naturally filtered without the use of chemicals. White beeswax is highly refined by the Dilco Refining process, a reliable method of naturally filtering and whitening beeswax. Not all beeswax suppliers naturally filter their wax. It is important to know if your wax is chemically bleached. Beeswax has a melting point of approximately 146 degrees.
Pure beeswax is known to burn longer and cleaner with minimal dripping. Candles made from beeswax are considered an expensive and very high quality candle.
Candelilla
Candelilla wax is a vegetable wax found in large quantities in northwestern Mexico. The candelilla is extracted from the bush called Euphorbia Cerifera. Like Bayberry, wax is made by boiling the bush and removing the resulting wax. Then the raw material is refined to a light yellow color.
Carnauba
Carnauba is a vegetable wax that is grown only in Brazil and comes from the leaves of the Brazilian “tree of life”. The carnauba palm grows in the northern and northeastern part of Brazil, where the soil is dark and fertile. The quality and color vary with the age of the leaves; younger leaves provide the main yellow color and older leaves the darkest color.
Palm
Palm Wax is 100% natural wax made from palm oil. It is a hard wax with a melting point of approximately 140 degrees. It usually appears in the form of scales. It can be used directly or as an additive to other natural or synthetic waxes. The natural characteristics of a palm wax candle is the beautiful glass effect it produces.
The pillars made of Palm Wax naturally tunnel which gives your sail a beautiful hurricane effect.
Soy
Soy wax, also commonly called soy wax, is a renewable and environmentally preferable alternative to paraffin wax. Soy wax is considered a safe and non-toxic vegetable candle wax. Some of the great characteristics of soy wax is that it can be easily removed from glass, tin, and other materials for efficient recycling and easy cleaning.
The green movement has made soy wax candles one of the most sought after candles on the market today.
Paraffin-based waxes
Gel
Gel Wax is a polymer type wax that produces beautiful candles in clear containers.
Granule
Granular Wax is a paraffin-based particulate wax. It is used to make candle art such as sand art and is easy to use with children.
Jelly candle wax
Jelly Wax is a pre-made wax that comes in a tube. Like granulated wax, it is generally used for crafts with children.
Microcrystalline wax type I
Microcrystalline wax is used to help harden other candle waxes such as paraffin. Due to its durability, Microcrystalline is becoming a popular candle wax used by itself. The fragrance load within Microcrystalline is higher than most waxes due to its ability to bind with oil, allowing for a highly scented candle.
NOTE: This is an additive generally used to add stiffness to tapered candles, help wax adhere to the walls of a container, and reduce or eliminate mottling on pillars. Mottling can be a beautiful visual effect for candles giving you a unique finished product.
Paraffin
Paraffin wax is a refined petroleum-based product.
Paraffin Beeswax Mix
This paraffin mixture generally consists of 50 percent paraffin and 50 percent beeswax.
Paraffin and soy mixture
As with Pariffin Beeswax Blend, soy paraffin is also blended with 50 percent pariffin and 50 percent soy.
Today, there are many types of candle wax on the market. Each has its own characteristics and performance. The use of a particular candle wax is a choice that is individual to the candle maker.