Cleaning & Reusing Candle Jars
When we opened Crowsbone, we had to make a number of decisions about the branding and packing of the items that shipped from our workshop. One of the choices that we made early on was that we wanted to take an ecofriendly approach to shop owning by working to ensure that our packaging was easy to recycle and practical to reuse. Our candle jars and tins are a good example of this. They are planned and designed to be resuable, but first you have to know how to clean them out. You can use this method to clean and repurpose any candle bowl, jar or tin.
Burn your candle down as much as possible and then leave the wax residue and vessel to cool.
Carefully remove the wick stub and wick stabilizer.
Fill a pot with water and bring it to a bowl. Once the water is hot enough, carefully place the jar, bowl or tin into the water. If the vessel is glass, be sure to lower it into the water in such a way that there is water in both the inside and outside, as glass by break if it becomes hot too quickly or if the air inside it is cooler than the liquid outside if it. Let the vessel sit until the wax has softened.
Carefully, use tongs to remove the vessel from the water and wipe the waxy areas with an old rag or paper towels. Repeat this process until there is little visible wax on the vessel. Dispose of the pan of water outside. If there is any wax residue in the water, it may not be visible, but it could clog your drain.
If the item still feels waxy, use a rag or paper towel to apply a small amount of olive oil to its surface.
Wash the vessel with warm water and soap, with a scouring pad if necessary.
If there is only a small amount of wax, if the candle is made of soy wax, and if the vessel is not metal, you may be able to soften the wax in the microwave instead of in a hot water bath. Do not use microwaves to heat large amounts of wax, however, as the heat necessary to melt more resilient waxes (like beeswax) may shatter the container it’s in.
If there is a residual smell in the vessel, try cleaning it with white vinegar and then washing it as normal.
Note: It is not recommended that our candle jars be used to hold any food or drink due to the fact that our candles are scented with essential oils, which should not be consumed even in trace amounts.
Disclaimer: Each of the Crowsbone writers and guest bloggers has their own magical background, beliefs, traditions and practices. These post represent the opinions, research and beliefs of the individual writers. We do not believe that they represent beliefs and rules associated with all magical practice or witchcraft; nor do they represent the beliefs and opinions of all of the Crowsbone community.