Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Beach Sand Candles

The girls, my mom, and I had fun making beach sand candles a few weeks ago.

First, we melted the wax on the stove. Then we went to the beach and dug holes for the sand molds. We used a Kleen Kanteen to make the right shape. We put the wick down in the hole, and I held it in place while my mom poured the hot wax into the hole.

We had to hold the wicks in place for a while until the wax hardened a little. We let O(5) one of the wicks after the wax cooled a little.

After about an hour or so, the girls dug the candles up from the beach. They were SO excited!


The girls were very pleased with the candles, but I was a little disappointed (but I didn't tell the kids that I was disappointed!). I was hoping that more sand would stick to the sides of the candles. Also, they are a little lopsided :) We plan to make crushed ice candles next!
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6 comments:

  1. Milwife Mama of OneAugust 17, 2011 at 2:57 AM

    Maybe it didn't stick as well because the sand was wet?

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  2. MelissaAugust 17, 2011 at 8:37 AM

    Good theory, but the sand was dry. Although, it does look wet in the pics :)

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  3. Amy A @ Child Central StationAugust 17, 2011 at 9:36 AM

    I'm not sure why the sand didn't stick very well.... We actually use damp sand when we make ours. (It keeps the sand from running down into the hole....) Here is the link to our recent sand candle experience. Also, we don't use a mold (canteen) to make our shape, we just dig a hole. This gives it more character and odd surfaces for rocks and sand to stick! I hope you have more success with your other endeavors!http://www.childcentralstation.com/2011/08/sand-candles.html

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  4. JacquelineAugust 17, 2011 at 11:29 AM

    I made these with my cousins at the beach once when I was little. We just dug a hole as well and don't remember why the sand stuck so well for us. We also put seashells on the outside before pouring the the wax for decoration.

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  5. Ludicrous MamaAugust 20, 2011 at 8:26 AM

    I did these with my Girl Scout troop as a kid. Only we made deep handprints in wet sand and then poured the wax into the hand shapes. We'd also press little stones or bits of shell into our prints before pouring the wax, so they'd stick to the hand-candle, if desired.

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  6. AnonymousSeptember 4, 2011 at 1:58 AM

    Hi. I used t make these little sand candles with my sister when we were kids. We used wet sand as it kept the shape better. We tinted the wax with leftover bits of crayons- it was fun to mix colours and see what we ended up with. Good luck next time!

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