Creating homemade candles with essential oils is a wonderful way to infuse your space with soothing scents and personalize your decor. Plus, they make for delightful gifts!

When it comes to gifting, you can’t go wrong with candles. They’re a useful and beautiful gift that people don’t always splurge on for themselves. Plus, they’re somewhat of a one-size-fits-all gift for hosts, Secret Santas, co-workers, etc.

And that’s why I, Erin always have these super cute essential oils DIY Rosemary Grapefruit Candles as my gift go-to’s. Because nothing says one of a kind more than a homemade gift?

Handcrafted with love, these DIY creations not only provide a soothing ambiance but also offer various therapeutic benefits. Making candles at home is a such an easy process! So discover the art of making your own candles below.

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Table of Contents

Materials Needed

Soy wax flakes

Candle wicks — We prefer using lead free cotton wicks since they’re cheaper and easier to maintain.

Metal wick tabs — Or purchase pre-cut wicks that include tabs.

Essential oils of your choice — We used grapefruit and rosemary oils for our DIY candles.

Containers or molds — Ours are 16-ounce stainless steel gold brushed stemless wine glasses that we found at a local store. You can find similar ones here and here. Mason jars also make for great vessels.

Choosing the Right Wax for Your Homemade Candles

After years of candle making, we’ve discovered that we prefer soy wax melts. Not only is soy wax non-toxic, it is also water soluble, making it a SNAP to clean up.

A good rule of thumb figuring how much wax you need is to double the volume of each candle vessel.

Pure beeswax is also a non-toxic option, but it’s a nightmare to remove from kitchen surfaces, in case of any wayward drops.

Paraffin wax is another common wax candle. It is cheaper than soy and beeswax. However, we prefer soy wax for its natural ingredients and slower burn time.

Some candles also call for a half beeswax and half coconut oil mix. But we found it simply easier to use one type.

Selecting Essential Oils for Scented Candles

Using essential oils is a more natural way to scent your candles versus synthetic fragrance oils. The recommended essential oil to soy wax ratio is 1 ounce to every pound of wax.

Selecting the right essential oils for scented candles is crucial in achieving the desired fragrance and ambiance. Choose high quality undiluted pure essential oils to get the strongest scent.

Then, determine the mood or purpose you want to achieve with your scented candle. Some popular essential oil benefits include:

Grapefruit: Citrus oils invigorate the senses, boosts mood, and increases alertness.
Rosemary: Enhances memory and concentration for focus and clarity.
Eucalyptus: Clears the mind and promotes mental clarity.
Lavender: Promotes relaxation and eases stress.
Neroli: Elevates mood, reduces feelings of anxiety, and instills a sense of positivity.
Sweet orange: Sets a cheerful mood and also repesl insects such as mosquitoes, ants, and flies.
Vanilla: Creates a warm and comforting atmosphere.

If you have any leftover essential oils, make your own homemade diffuser!

Tools Needed for Making Homemade Candles

Most DIY candle making recipes call for a double boiler so that you avoid contaminating your kitchen with wax.

But if you don’t already own a double boiler, forget the need for it! You’ll save yourself time with the set up and money from investing in an overpriced candle making pour pot.

Here’s all the equipment that you’ll need:

Pencils, wood dowels or chopsticks — To hold wicks in place.

Parchment or wax paper — Before you begin, prep your workspace by laying parchment or wax paper down next to your stove. You’re bound to get some spillage, and soy wax is easy to clean. However, wax paper eliminates the need for any scrubbing.

Dedicated saucepan — We thrifted a saucepan that’s dedicated to candlemaking only and melted the wax directly in the pan on low heat.

With this method, you’ll want to stir pretty frequently, and remove the pan from heat as soon as the chips are melted. However, it’s less set up/clean up and less expensive than buying a double boiler.

How to Make Candles with Essential Oils

1 — Set your wick in place by centering it inside your container. (If you did not purchase wicks with tabs or plates, make sure to connect them beforehand.) Make sure that the wick plate touches the bottom. Then, wrap any extra wick around a pencil. Use the pencil to keep the wick centered and upright.

2 — In the saucepan on low heat, pour in the wax and stir frequently. Once the wax is melted, remove it from heat and let it cool slightly.

3 — Add and stir in the essential oils of your choice, about 20-30 drops per candle. Adjust according to your preference for scent strength.

4 — Carefully pour the scented wax into your prepared containers. Leave a bit of space at the top to prevent spillage. Allow the candles to cool to a solid state. Avoid moving them while they’re setting.

5 — Once the candles have fully cooled, trim the wick to about 1/2-inch above the wax surface.

How to Creatively Gift Wrap a Candle

If you’re gifting your essential oils candle, here’s how to creatively wrap it!

First, wrap the candles top to bottom with ribbon and secure with a piece of tape on the bottom of the container. Then, garnish with rosemary sprigs.

More Easy Candle & Aromatherapy DIY’s

Whether you are looking to relax and unwind after a long day or create a cozy atmosphere for a special occasion, these candles can effortlessly transform your home.

And once you’ve got this essential oil candle recipe down, have fun and start experimenting! Incorporating dried flowers or herbs into the candles. Or even try dying the wax.

In case you’re looking for a few other candle and aromatherapy DIY ideas, here are some of our favorites from the archives —