My Candle Making Afternoon

My mom got me a candle making kit, and I made four candles with it!
The candles are 100% soy wax, so they are really nice!
These are the three scents I usd for my candles. The kit came with a vanilla scent, but I prefer these.
The Ostara oil is from Sacred Mists and the Mexican Coaco and the Eucalyptus are from The Body Shop.



So, this is our improvised water bath. I'm getting a cheap double boiler so I can make more candles. Double boilers work better.














The blue one is my mom's Ostara candle, the red is my eucalpytus candle, and the purple are my Mexican chocolate candles.

12 Days of Yule: Day Six

These are some great crafts for kids and adults alike.

Solstice Dream Pillow
Materials
- ¼ ounce of the following: dried chamolmile, mugwort, catnip, hops, lavender
- Whole oranges and lemons
- Cinnamon sticks
- Allspice berries
- Myrrh or frankincense resin lumps
- 4 by 7 inch pieces of lightweight fabric (two per bag)
- Bits of ribbon, embroidery floss, scraps of lace, beads, ect for embellishment

This is a craft to do while you stay up all night on the Solstice.

Take the first five dried herbs and mix them in whatever proportion s you desire/have on hand. Mugwort is the dreamer’s herb, so the more of that you use, the more psychic your dreaming will be. Hops will lead to a sounder sleep for insomniacs. Catnip will make your cat go nuts and sleep on your face.

As the night passes, eat the oranges and drink lemon tea. You may retain the peels if you desire and dry them in an oven, but you do not have to.

Crumble everything up small, and put them into the bags. You can pre-make the bags, leaving one side open. It’s easier if you want to embroider or embellish the bag. Be sure the bag isn’t too hard, as you will want to sleep on it.

When you do eventually go to bed, put one of these into your pillowcase.

Yule Cinnamon Ornaments
These are not for eating but for decoration

- ¾ cup applesauce
- White glue
- 1 ounce cinnamon
- 1 ounce ground cloves
- 1 ounce ground nutmeg
- 1 ounce dried ginger
- Cookie cutters
- Dough

In a medium bowl, stir together the cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg and ginger Mix in the applesauce and glue. Work the mixture with your hands 2-3 minutes to from a ball. If the mixture is too wet, add more cinnamon, too dry; add more applesauce.
Lightly dust a clean surface with cinnamon. Roll out the dough to ¼ inch thickness. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters, and use a toothpick to make a hole at the top for hanging with a ribbon.

Dry in a slow oven 200 degrees F (100 degrees C) for several hours, or air dry in a sunny spot for 4 or 5 days. When dry, decorate with gingham and/ or ribbon.

Twelve Herb Yule Sachet
- 7 parts jupier
- 4 parts cinnamon
- 4 parts allspice
- 4 parts ginger
- 4 parts caraway
- 2 parts nutmeg
- 2 parts rosemary
- 2 parts lemon
- 2 parts orange
- 1 part clove
- 1 part bay
- 2 pinches orris
Tie up in a small square of green, red, or Yule print cloth and give as gifts or scent the house for Yule.

How-To...Form An Incense Cone

So, I'm feeling a little more crafty today, and I want to post something that was more hands-on.
This is a basic instruction set for how to form an incense cone. You can buy cones at some places, but most stores sell stick forms. I've never personally used incense cones (I'm a stick girl myself), but a lot of people like the cones. These cones are extra personal, because you'll have made them.


1. Dissolve gum Arabica in water, approximately one part powder to two parts water
2. Allow the material to soak for approximately three hours
3. In the meantime, pulverize the herbal material to be used until it is finely powdered (using a mortar or pestle or other grinding tool)
4. Mix this powder into the liquid until it can be shaped into small cones
5. Allow to dry completely in a warm area