Welcome To Pilgrims and Pioneers!

After many years of researching my family geneaology I have been lucky enough to discover actual information about my relatives that lived in the Pilgrim Era and the Pioneer Era- while many people also have realtives from those eras- many do not know their names or where they lived- actually seeing the proof in print makes you much more aware of who they really were.
After discovering these relatives it of course made me curious to learn more about the eras that they lived in and what their lives were like as, the history I learned in grade school had long since been forgotten.
I decided to start this blog for others who are also interested in these eras.
Some of the information here will be actual facts about my realtives and some will be information about the eras in general that I have found on the web.
I hope you will enjoy traveling back in time with me!

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Milk Carton Candles

My Mom & Made candles similar to this when I was young. We did use the candle wicking but this seems easier.
You can easily use candle dye to color them.
The ones we made had holes where the ice was in the container- I can't tell from the photo
if these do or not but, be aware that the may have them.
If so they look wonderfully prim! You can also skip the glitter if you want a more primitive look!


What You Need:
Clean half-gallon cardboard milk carton
A pan and a large clean can
Broken ice
10-inch white taper candle
Large spoon
2-1/2 to 3 pounds of wax and 3/4 cup of stearin (to make the wax burn better) or use 2-1/2 to 3 pounds of wax or wax crystals with hardener already added
Candlemaking thermometer
Superfine glitter


Instructions:



1. Break the wax into chunks and place it in the can. Pour a few inches of water in the pan, then set the can of wax in the water. Bring the water to simmering and let the wax melt. (To make pouring the wax easier, you may wish to bend the can at the top to form a spout before putting the wax in.)
2. Add stearin to the melted wax. If you're using wax crystals or wax with hardener added, follow the manufacturer's instructions for melting.
3. Partially fill the milk carton with broken ice cubes. Center a taper in the milk carton, then continue filling the carton with ice. Tap the carton on your work surface to settle the ice, then add more ice. Sprinkle glitter over the ice.
4. Let the wax cool to 170 degrees F, then pour it into the carton. As the wax cools and shrinks, add more ice or wax to keep the top of the candle level.
5. After the wax hardens completely, peel the cardboard carton away from the sides. Trim the top of the taper so it's level with the top of the candle, leaving 1/2 inch of wick. If the bottom of the candle isn't level, slide it across an old warm skillet to smooth any rough spots.
Caution: Wax is extremely flammable. Never melt wax directly over heat or to a temperature above 220 degrees F. Never leave melting wax unattended; if it starts to smoke, remove the pan from the heat immediately. If wax catches fire, smother the flame with a pan lid; don't throw water on the flame. Never leave a burning candle unattended, and never burn candles where the flame might come in contact with flammable surfaces or objects.

6 comments:

KKJD1 said...

I dont know how long you have had the John Denver song on just normally dont have the volume on but I love it. John Denver is one of my favs! Ok well anyways I want to try and get the stuff to make the candles my youngest son loves to make things and I think he would enjoy this too. Thanks for the idea! Hope you have a great weekend! Blessings,Karen

Olde Dame Penniwig said...

We used to make these, for Christmas! They are so lacey-looking, very prim but pretty!

Debra said...

Hi Karen- I have John Denver on here for awhile now- I love him too!
Hope your candles turn out well!

Debra said...

Holly - it's wonderful that you used to make these too! I loved to make them with my Mom when I was young! They do turn out primitive!

The Gathering Room said...

Mom and I used to make these years ago..loved how the light would illuminate through them. I believe we added those "plastic flowers" also..I know I know.sounds gaudy...but they really didn't show..only the colored floral shape...very pretty..I may have to give these a try for old times sake!

Debra said...

Hi Cindy! I'll bet the grand kids would love to help you!

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