Tips for Living Wicca: Clean Up Your Candle Wax

Candle wax is a bitch... I say this every time I try to clean up my surfaces and supplies (which I did yesterday), so I thought a tip of a more practical nature would be apt today. 

You really should clean up your candle wax occasionally, just to keep tidy and prevent negativity a messy spot to grab hold and fester.  You should especially for any candle holders you use for spellwork and magic-- you don't want the residual energies to stick around when you're casting a different spell. For example, you cast a candle spell to banish an old boyfriend who is harassing you. You leave some of the remnants of that candle wax in the holder, then set a new candle in there to cast a spell of healing on your cat... do you really want any of those banishing energies around, no matter how subtle?

Here are some ways I've found to clean up the wax.

My Tip for You Today: Try these wax-cleaning tips. 

If you can't pop candle remnants out of a holder, use a hair dryer on hot and blow the air on it for a while. Eventually it should heat up enough so you can pop out those stubs.

Use a hair drier if you get wax on a nice wood surface-- don't scrape, or you might damage the wood. Just heat the wax and wipe. Keep doing this till you wipe it all up. 

Use a plastic knife to scrape away excess candle wax on your holders (be careful not to damage pretty candle holders~ I have mostly cheap glass candle holders. If you have nice pottery ones, you don't want to gouge them). 

Bring a pot of water to a simmer. You can either place your candle holders into the pot (I wouldn't if you use it for cooking, but I have a craft pot for non-edible projects), or you can place candle holders on the ground outside and pour the hot water slowly over them. Before they cool, use a rag or scrubby brush to get off excess wax while it's warm.

Don't rub wax if it gets on your fabric like your altar cloths; you 'll just work it in deeper. Instead, pop in the freezer, most of it will pop off in a chunk.

If the wax doesn't fully come off frozen fabric, or if it's on a surface you can't freeze (like a wall or rug), put a paper bag over the wax and iron it on a low setting, then let it cool. The bag will absorb it and it should peel right up.

Finally, take preventative measures-- you can cover your altar surface or altar cloth with a piece of glass cut to size. If that's not a good option for you, then use those candle dish dribble catchers you can get at the dollar store, or purchase some cheap small dishes from a thrift shop. Set your drippy candle holders on there. If you're going to dribble wax for a spell or seal or some reason, cover the altar surface. 

It also doesn't hurt to invest in better candle holders that are better at catching drips when you can. Again, thrift shops can be a great place to find this kind of thing at a bargain.

DO NOT pour candle wax, or water from candle wax cleaning, down the drain! This can be a costly mistake as it can clog up your pipes, and it's not as easy to break through as any old clog. If you accidentally get wax remnants down the sink, run the water as hot as it will get for a few minutes. 

Any wax-cleaning tips you care to add?