Food coloring for candles?

18 years ago

If I choose to make candles again, since I sold my dyes with my glycerin soap-making supplies I had for a year or more & hardly touched them, can I use food coloring?

Before buying the dyes I used crayons for color.

Featured Answer

Cheri Whitfield

8 years ago

i have my own candle company.. i used to use crayons...then my customers where saying candles werent staying lit....i then found out crayons and color blocks are two different waxes and suffocates my wick,,,,is this the problem?

Comments (16)

sriston
18 years ago
No. The food coloring is water based and will not mix with the wax. (Like trying to get water and oil to mix.) The coloring has to be oil based.
Susan
LibbyLiz
Original Author
18 years ago
Gotcha! Thanks!

I planned on making candles someday along with soaps, but decided to just buy them & shower gels instead. Now I'm back to wanting to make candles again. But first I have to use up all my store-boughts. I guess I'll have to buy more colorants again then! Oh well. LOL
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sriston
18 years ago
Not necessarily. A crayon will work. Crayons are basically the same thing as the color blocks/chips that you buy to color candle wax with. If my mind had been functioning properly, I would have thought to tell you that in the last post! LOL.
Susan
LibbyLiz
Original Author
18 years ago
Well then I'll go back to using crayons! LOL They're cheaper anyhow & you get so many more colors to choose from, without mixing!
sriston
18 years ago
Yep, I love the color assortment! LOL. I have found that "cheap" crayons don't seem to have the color intensity that Crayola Crayons have, so I stick to Crayola, for both coloring :) and dying candles!
Susan
LibbyLiz
Original Author
18 years ago
I've also found out cheap (i.e., dollar store) crayons are harder & as such take much longer to melt, thus, more difficult to mix through the candle wax.
carol_mixon1317_att_net
16 years ago
How do you color pre made candles?
swilliamsdavies_hotmail_com
14 years ago
Hi there. I am "trying" to help out some ladies in Sri Lanka to color candles, resources are very limited. Do you melt the crayon and then add to the melted wax? They have been told if they can make cream coloured candles they will get quite a big order. Any suggestions on making cream coloured candles would be very much appreciated. Thank you
simplemary
14 years ago
Hi. You can melt both separately, then blend, but if you are doing a big batch you have to stir A LOT to ensure your color is uniform. Try instead melting the color into the wax as the wax melts until the right color is obtained. To test the color, drip a few drops on a bright white surface every now and then & let solidify. Test often. The new additions will melt quickly into the warm wax and can be stirred in easily. Hope this helps
Lynneol
10 years ago
I need some advice on coloring 100% beeswax for ornaments. I used black crayola crayons to color the wax and everything went perfectly. After casting the images I rubbed them with cinnamon and got the perfect look. Now, a month later, the ornaments are turning bluish/grey. It seems as though the bluish/grey tint is a powder forming all over the ornaments. It isn't bloom from the beeswax; I think it is from coloring with crayons.

Has anyone experienced this?
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9 years ago
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8 years ago
How to make pure white candles?is there any chemical required? Is there any diy technique to make it white?
Sara Bein
8 years ago
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Sara Bein
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Or maybe the wicks just werten''t the right ones for the wax & diameter of your candles.
Zara Willows
7 years ago
Cheri, crayon wax doesn't work well with any wick. Crayons aren't the best option for colouring candles as they make the flame last for a shorter time than expected. You can get good pigment but it doesn't function well for candles. Try looking for candle colorants which are liquid or you could use candle colour blocks. A colour block is basically candle wax (no wick) mixed with A LOT of pigment. It is a very strongly pigmented chunk of wax. You cut bits of and melt them into your candle wax. Both methods work well.