Reclaim Scented Candle Warming Wax for Layered Candles or Fire Starters

My sister in law gave me a mason jar warmer, and I use scented wax tarts or votives in it.  After a week or so (if I am using it regularly) the scent is faint and it is time to dump it and get a new one.  I always feel bad wasting and I have come up with 2 uses for the wax!

Layered Jar Candles & Fire Starters

Both of these make use of other recycled materials.  

Layered Jar Candle

Materials

• melted wax, from your warmer
• smallish glass jar from the recycle bin, mine is a small jelly jar
• candle wick, I try to use at least one votive in the warmer, and I save the wick.  You can also take a piece of 100% cotton string and dip it in the melted wax to make a wick, 
• paper clip, if you are not re-using the votive wick with the metal piece at the bottom, this will be used as a little weight at the bottom of your wick to keep it from floating up.
• thread
• pencil
• paper bag on work surface in case of spills
• scrap of cloth, optional
• decorative string, optional

Tie the end of the thread to the top of the candle wick ( put the paper clip on the end of the wick if there is not a metal piece there already), then place the wick in the jar.  cut the thread off about 3-4 inches above the rim of the jar.  Place the pencil across the top of the jar and tie the thread to it such that the wick stays upright without lifting off of the bottom of the jar.

You are now ready to pour the used wax into the jar.  I tuck my jar in side of a kitchen cabinet while awaiting the next layer of wax.  Continue to layer until there is only bout a 1/4" wick exposed. Now cut off the thread, if you would like to gift it cover it with a scrap of cloth and tie a string around it.

Finished Product

 Fire Starters

Fire Starter in progress

Materials

• melted wax, from your warmer
• paper type egg carton from the recycle bin
• paper,grab non-glossy from recycle bin, best is more paper egg carton 
• Dryer lint works great if youve been drying cotton materials, otherwise paper is fine
• paper bag on work surface in case of spills

Rip the lid off of the egg carton, tear it up into smallish bits and place them in the bottom sections of the egg carton.  Use another egg carton, dryer lint, newspaper or whatever to fill all the sections.  Now you are ready to add the melted wax.  I have started the first two sections above. It will take several cycles of warmer melts to fill them all, so I will leave it in the cabinet in between.

To use simply break apart the sections once filled with wax.  Place them under your little wood bundle and light the egg carton with a match. It will catch easily and stay lit long enough to catch your tinder burning.

Crafting as Motivation

Had a hard time keeping up with the blog.  It actually really had me going strong on decluttering and thinking!  Two things happened, there was so much i wanted to do and I found that I was not doing a project or passing on a possession because I was not ready to sit down and blog it, or I didn't have my camera on me....and so eventually it was silly to hold back progress for these reasons, but then i just let it go.  Also, I felt like all I should do is declutter, and would not allow myself to make any thing new.  Well there was no, balance there, and so I just sort of fizzled.

I find that creating is relaxing, and fun. I find that after I make something new I want to put it in a nice pace. I want to clean up and get rid of old things, or at least pass them on. creation can be a wonderful motivator.
After a couple of days of crafting projects for both the House and presents has left me wanting to improve my surroundings.

In the positive direction...I have not been buying the kids any clothes or shoes.  Just trying to use what we have (we are small adults and they are small kids-so no crazy growth like most parents get to purge closets! 9 yo has her favorite outfit from 4 yo and it still looks great on her!)  This spring i went through 4 boxes of baby clothes that we never unpacked after moving and they are gone (well i kept about 6 outfits and 2 pairs of little shoes)  Just today i unpacked a box of maternity clothes and it is slated to go!

We also spent 2 unexpected child-free hours rearranging our bedroom.  It is amazing.  I have to say it is a great place to start.  If you have a chunk of time dive in and get it done!  then when you wake up you look around and it is so clean and fresh that you want to make the bed and pick up your clothes to keep it that way.  It is an inspirational way to start the day!   And when you get overwhelmed at say 2 p.m. you can retreat for a few min. to put away some laundry and remember why you are working so hard.

We took out all of the what-nots out,  all of the kids things are gone.  Stacks of books that i am not going to read, leaving just a few that I might if i feel like it.  the dust is gone!   We sweep regularly, but just from moving all of the furniture i had to clean the air filter.

 I do have one 'bowl' of yarn in here still.  It really needs to go....but i love the wooden bowl, it is turned on a pedestal...I can no longer knit, well i can for a few minutes, but it is painful, and so i don't really enjoy it.  I would like to eventually spin some of the angora from when we had a rabbit, and make a second shawl so that i can give one to each daughter....but i don't need a bowl of yarn i have not touched in a year to do it ;)  but what else to put in the bowl?  and where to put the yarn (hand spun mind you....maybe i should try etsy?!)



The closet, it is up next.....when i sat down to type this i thought, I will first get up and put out those short black boots i never wear, and that pink shirt with the vertical ribbing, because it bulges funny....when i got to the boots i found myself thinking they match anything, are simple, and dressy enough but kinda casual, and easy to walk in.  If I had to pick only one pair of boots it would be those or the brown ones......yet i have not worn them in more than a year.  I put them back and moved on to the pink shirt.  I tried it on.  I realized that most of what I own is really exercise wear.  so while i don't like it, it is one of the few real shirts i own, and looking in the mirror i don't think it looked too bad....Maybe now i will wear it more?  Otherwise it has to go.  and those boots are very practical, high quality, and versatile...but i don't wear them, and even if i had to pick one pair of boots, to be honest I would pick the brown ones!