Step by Step Guides

How to Make Votive Candles

Votives are small molded candles made for holders, and a pound of wax turns into about eight of them. They teach every molding skill, including pouring, managing shrinkage, second pours, and release, without requiring a large amount of wax.

Rows of multicolored votive candles on a rustic wood table with twine, wax, dried lavender and pouring pitchers

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Lone Star Candle Supply

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Votives are small molded candles made for holders, and a pound of wax turns into about eight of them. They teach every molding skill, including pouring, managing shrinkage, second pours, and release, without requiring a large amount of wax. That also makes them the most affordable way to test a new fragrance across an entire batch of candles. The wax prep is the universal sequence from How to Prepare Wax for Pouring; this guide covers what's specific to votive molds.

What You'll Need

What You'll Need

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Supplies

Tools & Equipment

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Votives Are Not Small Pillars

The two look related, but a votive is designed around its holder. A pillar must stay rigid as it burns; a votive is supposed to liquefy almost completely, with the holder containing the pool that feeds the flame. That's why votive wax sits between container and pillar blends in hardness, and why a votive burned outside a holder fails: the wax escapes and starves the flame. The molds reflect the difference too: simple open metal cups, no base hole to seal, no mold putty involved.

The Step-by-Step Process

How to Make Votive Candles

  1. 1

    Weigh the wax

    Plan on about eight votives per pound. Votive slabs are brittle: score with a utility knife, snap over a table edge, and weigh the pieces in your pouring pot.

    Hands using a putty knife to chip into a white slab of votive wax
  2. 2

    Melt in a double boiler

    An inch of simmering water, trivet under the pot, medium-low heat to 175°F to 185°F depending on your wax. Stay with the pot; melting wax is never left unattended[1].

    Aluminum pouring pitcher set inside a stainless saucepan as a double boiler
  3. 3

    Clean and arrange the molds

    Wipe each mold's interior with mold cleaner on a paper towel. If you're using auto wick pins, straighten any bent pin and set one in each mold. Line the molds up in a single row near the edge of the workspace so every pour is an easy reach.

    Single metal votive wick pin standing upright with a round base and tall stem
  4. 4

    Add fragrance at 180°F

    Weigh the oil (0.5 up to 1 ounce per pound for most votive waxes) and stir for two to three minutes until fully blended. Adding fragrance above its flash point is safe; the precaution that matters is keeping oil away from open flame[2].

    Hand tipping an amber Lone Star Georgia Peach fragrance bottle over a steel pouring pot on a scale
  5. 5

    Color, test, stabilize

    Drip-test on a paper plate to preview the cured shade, and stir in UV stabilizer if the candles will live near light.

    Hand holding a folded white paper towel with a small orange wax test spot

    Dye Blocks

    Cut the block into small pieces so it melts in quickly.

    Hands using blue-handled scissors to cut shavings off a dark red dye block

    Liquid Dye

    Add drop by drop; start light, especially for pale shades.

    Hands holding an amber dye bottle and dropper over a steel pouring pot
  6. 6

    Pour level with the rims

    Fill each mold to the top, slowly enough that no bubbles form. Keep wax in reserve; every votive gets a second pour.

    Amber wax poured from a blue pitcher into two rows of metal votive molds with wick pins
  7. 7

    Insert wicks as the wax sets (no pins)

    When wax starts firming up around the mold edges, push a pre-tabbed wick down through the center until the tab seats on the bottom. As the wax shrinks it may tug the wick downward; a gentle upward straighten fixes it.

    Overhead view of metal votive molds filled with orange wax around center wick pins
  8. 8

    Second pour, hotter

    Fully set votives show a sinkhole from shrink. Reheat the reserve wax to about 190°F (the hotter pour fuses cleanly with the first) and fill each mold to just above its rim edge. You can fill slightly past the rim using surface tension; just keep the pouring pot from touching the edge and breaking the seal.

    Topping off filled yellow votive molds with wax from an aluminum pouring pitcher
  9. 9

    Release

    Once completely cool, votives slide out with a pull on the wick or pin. A stubborn one gets 5 minutes in the freezer, repeated once at most; longer chills can crack the wax.

    Single blue votive mold with yellow wax sunken into a well around the center wick pin
  10. 10

    Swap pins for wicks and finish

    Tap each wick pin out against a surface that can take it, press a tabbed wick into the hole, and trim to a quarter inch. Add a caution label to each votive or its packaging[1].

    Hands pulling the wick pin from the base of a yellow votive candle

Burning and Selling Votives

Cure votives about a week before the first burn so the wax binds the fragrance, and always burn them in a holder that fits closely; a votive's melt pool is the fuel system, and a loose or absent holder spills it. If you sell them, label each votive or its packaging with a caution label, and tell customers the holder rule; it's the difference between a votive burning for hours and starving in twenty minutes. For a full comparison of votive, pillar, and specialty molds, see Different Types of Candle Molds for Candle Making.

Sources

  1. Candle Safety National Fire Protection Association, 2024 ↩
  2. 29 CFR 1910.106 — Flammable liquids (definition of flashpoint) U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration ↩

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a votive candle?

A small molded candle, usually about 2 inches tall, designed to burn inside a votive holder. Unlike a pillar, a votive liquefies almost completely as it burns and relies on the holder to contain the wax, which is also why votive wax can be a bit softer than pillar wax.

How many votive candles does a pound of wax make?

About eight votives per pound of wax in standard votive molds. That makes votives an economical way to test fragrances and colors: one pound of prepared wax yields a whole tray of testers.

Do votive candles need a special wax?

A votive blend, such as IGI 4794, is made for the job: rigid enough to release from a mold and hold shape, but formulated to liquefy in the holder as it burns. Container waxes are too soft to unmold; very hard pillar blends can also work in votive molds.

What's the easiest way to wick votive candles?

Auto wick pins. Set a pin in each mold before pouring and the candle comes out with a perfect center hole; slide a tabbed wick in and the votive is done. Without pins, insert pre-tabbed wicks once the wax begins to set up around the mold edges.

Why do votive candles need to burn in a holder?

A votive liquefies nearly wall to wall as it burns. In a snug holder that liquid pool feeds the flame and the candle burns its full life; on a bare surface the wax runs out and the wick starves. Pick a holder that fits closely.

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