Make a Candle out of an Orange

Typical, store bought holiday candles can be dull when compared to homemade candles. And one truly unique option is to fashion a candle from an orange! This fun holiday craft will add ambiance to your next get-together, brighten your home and use up any unwanted oranges. This project is easy, inexpensive and suitable for anyone comfortable with handling a knife for carving.

Steps

  1. Prepare your orange.
  2. Cut the orange on the cutting board. Use the paring knife to slice into the peel of the orange. Insert only as far as the pith, taking the knife around the middle of the orange, going all the way around the circumference.
  3. Peel the orange. Gently push your finger under the skin of the orange and peel the skin away so that it separates from the orange without tearing.
  4. Locate the "wick". Once separated from orange flesh, the orange peel should be easy to remove. When removing the orange flesh, a white wick-like “stem” part should remain––leave this intact, still attached to the peel.
  5. Add oil. Pour olive oil (approximately 3 tablespoons) to cover the stem and allow wick to soak for a 2-3 minutes.
  6. Create a design. The design is both pretty and functional, as it allows the candle to breathe. Create a design on paper first, to help prevent mistakes when cutting the orange. Then, take the top off the orange and score out the design you've made, using the paring knife.
  7. Light the candle. Light the orange’s stem with a lighter. This may take a couple of attempts. It might be easier to use extra long barbecue matches if you feel it's too cramped using a lighter.
  8. Place the top half (with its pre-designed hole) onto the bottom half with the wick. This completes the candle.
  9. Enjoy!



Tips

  • Make sure the orange used is relatively large.
  • Make sure the paring knife is larger than the orange (about 8-10 inches/20-25cm in length).

Warnings

  • Make sure flame does not touch the top of the orange so that it doesn't burn it. If this begins to happen, make the hole bigger.
  • Use caution while using paring knife. Try to cut away from your hands or body.
  • Never leave lighted candles unattended.
  • Be careful while using the lighter when lighting the candle.

Things You'll Need

  • Orange (on the large side)
  • Cutting board
  • Paring knife
  • Olive oil or vegetable oil (you can add a few drops of orange oil for scent if desired)
  • Lighter

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

You may like

Retrieved from "https://kipkis.com/index.php?title=Make_a_Candle_out_of_an_Orange&oldid=358874"