Tallow Candles

[Ginger Aneshansel]

Good day candle making friends. I hope this New Year 2019 brings good health and much love. I just recently (Dec 20th) made my first candles. I used 100% tallow that I rendered myself. I gifted them to family in the soap boxes for Christmas. I asked for feedback so that I may add these to my product line. My husbands receptionist loved the throw , on first burn it was awesome, on the 2nd burn she felt as though it was not as fragrant, but still a good throw. I made 2 more 1/2 pint jars yesterday and I added more EOs and FOs, they smell lovely. I thought about using beeswax that I have but I wanted to go with pure tallow, they are very solid and today I will burn one for myself, this is the first time that I have been home alone for 3 days, (hubby in Chicago), I will be making soaps, lotion bars and more candles. I hope to perfect the scent throw and be the only tallow candle maker in my rural area. Does anyone have a recommendation for how much scent ppo? Have a Blessed day

 

[lenarenee]

As someone who has dabbled in candles I have to warn you that there is so much more to candle making than you could ever imagine. The likelihood of sticking a wick into a jar of wax/tallow and getting a safe candle, let alone one that is consistent through all burns is virtually zero.


It would be wise to not give out any more candles until you’ve thoroughly learned the craft, especially when you haven’t tested them. (There’s more to testing than just burning a candle and liking the throw)

I’ll also point out that with tallow, every single batch will behave differently simply because every batch of tallow will be different. Sone tallow will be a mix of different fat sources, some may even include suet or kidney fat. The next batch may not. So already, we know your fuel source won’t be consistent. Therefore, candles won’t be consistent. To what degree I don’t know as I’ve never tried tallow. (But you have me intrigued)

And here is a good place to start: craftserver.com. There are some really skilled people there, although I don’t know how many use tallow. I bet talltayl will be able to get you started however.

Good luck to you, and don’t give up! Candles are not for the weak, I’d love to hear how things progress for you.

 

[shunt2011]

As someone who has dabbled in candles I have to warn you that there is so much more to candle making than you could ever imagine. The likelihood of sticking a wick into a jar of wax/tallow and getting a safe candle, let alone one that is consistent through all burns is virtually zero.


It would be wise to not give out any more candles until you’ve thoroughly learned the craft, especially when you haven’t tested them. (There’s more to testing than just burning a candle and liking the throw)

I’ll also point out that with tallow, every single batch will behave differently simply because every batch of tallow will be different. Sone tallow will be a mix of different fat sources, some may even include suet or kidney fat. The next batch may not. So already, we know your fuel source won’t be consistent. Therefore, candles won’t be consistent. To what degree I don’t know as I’ve never tried tallow. (But you have me intrigued)

And here is a good place to start: craftserver.com. There are some really skilled people there, although I don’t know how many use tallow. I bet talltayl will be able to get you started however.

Good luck to you, and don’t give up! Candles are not for the weak, I’d love to hear how things progress for you.

Might be a dumb question but wouldn't tallow or lard go bad/rancid if it just sits around? Never thought to see if a candle could be made...I don't make them to begin with.

 

[Ginger Aneshansel]

As someone who has dabbled in candles I have to warn you that there is so much more to candle making than you could ever imagine. The likelihood of sticking a wick into a jar of wax/tallow and getting a safe candle, let alone one that is consistent through all burns is virtually zero.


It would be wise to not give out any more candles until you’ve thoroughly learned the craft, especially when you haven’t tested them. (There’s more to testing than just burning a candle and liking the throw)

I’ll also point out that with tallow, every single batch will behave differently simply because every batch of tallow will be different. Sone tallow will be a mix of different fat sources, some may even include suet or kidney fat. The next batch may not. So already, we know your fuel source won’t be consistent. Therefore, candles won’t be consistent. To what degree I don’t know as I’ve never tried tallow. (But you have me intrigued)

And here is a good place to start: craftserver.com. There are some really skilled people there, although I don’t know how many use tallow. I bet talltayl will be able to get you started however.

Good luck to you, and don’t give up! Candles are not for the weak, I’d love to hear how things progress for you.

God evening, Thank you for your reply, I am aware that different tallow will perform differently, I do render my own tallow and only use leaf fat, even with that said I know from experience that every bovine is different. I have been watching a ton of you tubes and I am anxious to check out craftserver.com and see what they can offer. I have been in some homesteading groups and have some info I collected from them before attempting. I'll let you know how things progress.

 

[Ginger Aneshansel]

Might be a dumb question but wouldn't tallow or lard go bad/rancid if it just sits around? Never thought to see if a candle could be made...I don't make them to begin with.

Thank you for your interest, From what I have read tallow candles were used hundreds of years ago, They have a clean burn, and depending on size will last for many hours. I guess if the tallow is not rendered properly it could go rancid, I have never had that happen yet, I keep my tallow in a cool dark place with my other oils.. I have my candles in there as well. I live in Southern Ohio and love my tallow products. It is really a great oil to keep on hand, I also make Tallow solid lotion bars and face cream. It is the best oil to make french fries with. OMG, I hope you stay interested and look into.

 

[Ginger Aneshansel]

Might be a dumb question but wouldn't tallow or lard go bad/rancid if it just sits around? Never thought to see if a candle could be made...I don't make them to begin with.

Hres a great article that got my attention, I hope it is ok to post here
https://thehomesteadinghippy.com/using-tallow-to-make-candles
By making tallow candles, you are able to use up all the fat of the cow, the beef tallow, like our prairie dwelling ancestors did. You can also add essential oils to the candles to make aromatherapy candles, or mosquito reducing candles.

 

[jens7lil1s]

Hres a great article that got my attention, I hope it is ok to post here
https://thehomesteadinghippy.com/using-tallow-to-make-candles
By making tallow candles, you are able to use up all the fat of the cow, the beef tallow, like our prairie dwelling ancestors did. You can also add essential oils to the candles to make aromatherapy candles, or mosquito reducing candles.

Make sure you google that each essential oil is safe to burn. Some essential oils become toxic with a flame and some are toxic to animals as well.

 

[Ginger Aneshansel]

Make sure you google that each essential oil is safe to burn. Some essential oils become toxic with a flame and some are toxic to animals as well.

Thank you Jen, I have carefully reviewed the EO's , I now am leaning at adding my rendered beeswax as I love the sweet earthy smell of it alone, I am just tweaking the ratio to keep the candles on the sweeter side, I am pleased with what I have accomplished, Today I am gifting one to dear friends whom are renewing their wedding vows after 25 years, I'll ask for them to review for me

 

[Ginger Aneshansel]

Today I rendered out my bees wax and added to some tallow and made candles. I can't wait for a burn