I love to dip candles in December. Today was dipping day! Candles are a beautiful symbol for the season. Candles are symbolic for Solstice–it’s nice to have the warmth and light of candles during the dark days of winter. Solstice celebrates the return of light after December 21st. The holidays of the season–Christmas, Chanukah and Kwanzaa–embrace the same idea. So candle making is a universally wonderful thing to do in December, don’t you think?
We like making things for ourselves, and we especially like making it from the source. Homegrown from the start inspires us deeply. So this year’s candles were e-special-ly special dipped from our own bees’ wax. See the honey on the beeswax? It makes the candles smell even sweeter.
It was a year long project. I adventured in the art of refining lumps of dirty beeswax from February through August. I had dirty lumps of beeswax on the counter and in two different freezers, and one in the back of the fridge. It felt good to collect them (most of them?) and melt em down and clean em up into usable beeswax. I will write a post with the refining details later, for those of you with dirty lumps of beeswax in your freezer(s). But anyway, this month, we brought out the block of refined beeswax and melted it down to dip candles.
They aren’t smiling for the camera, but the kids get pretty into it. Probably though, I like it the most. It makes me feel warm inside, to dip beeswax candles.
The kids love having homemade, homegrown Chanukah candles for our menorah. Jonah made the menorah, too. Happy Chanukah to those celebrating this week and next.
That looks like fun! What a wonderful way to make Chanukah more special.