DIY Teacup Candles

5 Materials
Learn how to make homemade DIY teacup candles made with recycled wax and wicks. Both the vintage teacups and the candles themselves come from the thrift store, costing me just 75 cents per teacup candle. This is an easy project you can do it a short afternoon at home. And they look so charming, don’t you think? I know I would love to receive this as a gift! Candles are ALWAYS welcome at my home.
Get the full DIY tutorial here!
Step 1: Go to a thrift store and look for vintage teacups (with saucers) and old candles (all the same color).
Step 2: Carefully break the old candles into smaller chunks and pull out the wicks. If you have a problem breaking the wax, use a knife to score along one side (don’t cut the wick if you can help it), then break. Put the similar color wax in your melting bowl or cup, and set the wicks aside.
Step 3: Melt your wax. Put water in a double boiler then set your bowl or cup of wax in the boiler. If you recycled old candles and some wicks got stuck, you can always fish them out later.
Step 4: Once your wax is melted, pour it carefully into your teacup. I found the bowl was hard to pour from without making a mess, so after I took this photo I poured it into a smaller container and used that to pour into my teacup. Pour the wax into your teacup about 1/2″ from the top.
Step 5: Immediately after you pour your wax in, place your wick into the teacup. You want the wick to go in straight down — stop when you touch the bottom. Now use your clothespins or kebab sticks to hold it in place while the wax cools and solidifies.
Step 6: Wait 4-6 hours for your wax to cool before you attempt to burn the wick. When cooled, snip off any excess wick (leave about 1″).


Wondering how I got that cute heart in my DIY teacup candles? I simply waited until the wax was fairly cooled but still malleable (approx. one hour after pouring into the teacup). Then I gently scooped out some wax in the shape of a heart about 1/2″ deep. I waited a little while longer to make sure the wax was cooling nicely (about 1/2 hour to 1 hour), then I poured white wax into the heart-shaped hole. Voila! (I did try to do this with a cookie cutter instead, but it didn’t work well as the wax would melt at the bottom and gradually fill up the hole inside the cookie cutter.)
Suggested materials:
  • Old candles, all the same color   (Thrift store, your house)
  • Vintage teacups   (Thrift store)
  • Clothespins (2)   (Grocery store)
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Jennifer Maker
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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Frequently asked questions
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3 of 6 questions
  • Mary Smith Mary Smith on Mar 08, 2019

    Can you add essential oil to these? When do you add it?

  • Rhonda Rhonda on Mar 17, 2019

    What about using those wood wicks. What kind of wood do they use? Or can you purchase the wood wicks. Thank you

  • Ashley Wiebe Ashley Wiebe on Sep 12, 2019

    Hi, I've also been making candles like this in vintage bone china teacups but I've suddenly become very concerned about them exploding or something while burning. Have you had any issues like this or heard similar concerns? Thanks

Comments
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  • Patty Anderson Patty Anderson on Jun 29, 2017

    Well there it is! I was given a set of glass cup and saucer sets decades ago, and they were just too pretty to throw out, and I knew the lady who gave them to me wanted me to use them since they meant something to her. I believe I'll glur the cup and saucer together and make candles out of them! Thank you for this wonderful idea!

  • Angela Bigler Angela Bigler on Mar 13, 2019

    Awesome idea! I will try this!!! 😍

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