Hello Garden Gang!
Those of us who enjoy burning jar candles, to perfume the air of our beloved homes with their lovely scent, are well aware that there tends to be a great deal of left over wax in the jar, after the wick burns down completely. What do we do with that wax? Well, one day, I found myself staring at several candle jars, that have either burned down completely or were no longer able to burn, holding left over wax, (one of which was very attractive, so I wanted to keep it for decoration) thinking, "Now, how can I remove this wax without getting it under my fingernails, or ruining a utensil or two, and making a complete mess with wax bits, all over?", when a light bulb moment hit like lightening, and I realized that I could turn them into scented sachets for the linen closet, or even dresser drawers!!
After all, those candles were burned because I enjoyed the scent, right? So why not stretch out the time to enjoy the scent a little while longer?
So how did I accomplish this, you ask? Simple, my friends! Heat water, in a sauce pan, that isn't as deep as the jar is tall, and place the jar in the heated water to allow the wax to melt. Then, using a tongs, remove the jar from the pan and, holding the jar with a hot mitt or pad, pour the liquid wax in to each of, tin foil-lined cups of a cupcake or muffin tin and allow to cool! Once completely cool and hardened, remove the chunk of wax from the tin, peel off the tin foil, and then completely wrap in saran wrap. You can stick a label, of some sort, on the bottom to hold the saran wrap in place, and write the name and brand of the candle that the wax came from, so you can buy another one, if you liked it well enough!!
Then just place the wrapped wax chunks wherever you like, to keep things smelling fresh! Linen closet shelves, dresser drawers, closets, etc! You can use the same scent in one place, or mix them up, in a linen closet to get that retail store mixed scent experience! The saran wrap keeps the wax off of the linens and clothing!
They keep the contents smelling lightly fresh, until they are needed!
No more sachets to buy! Amazingly, the fragrance lasts about 6 months, and once the fragrance diminishes, simply discard it, and replace with a fresh one!
If you have more than you need, simply keep them in that same, clean jar with the lid in place, in order to preserve the fragrance, until they are needed!
Note, If you don't burn candles often enough to keep a ready supply, perhaps you know someone who does, and may be willing to donate their burned-down candle jars to you (although, once they learn why you want them, they just might not be so charitable!)
Cupcake or Muffin Tin Version:
Variation using an empty, clean tin can: Simply pour the liquid wax in to the can (Be sure to hold the can with a hot mitt or pad, as well! Boy, did I learn that one the hard way!!
) I then write the candle scent on the can (Of course, it's a good idea to write the brand of candle on there, too, which I forgot, in this case!
) This variation works well on the shelves of your linen closet! There's no need to cover it with saran wrap, but it's a matter of preference, of course, depending on how or where it's used!
Happy Homemaking (and Gardening), My Friends!!
Dana
