They add romance to an evening, warmth to a party or whisk you away to distant happy memory. We can all agree, that scented candles add a certain something to a home and their effects on our mood are remarkable.
There are many different types of wax, but the most common are:
Soy wax: derived from the soy plant
Beeswax: collected from the honeycomb of bees
Rapeseed wax: collected from the rapeseed plan
Paraffin wax: made from petrol
So you can see there is a mix of natural and synthetic waxes. We always opt for soy wax in our candles, because it burns cleanly, it’s from renewable sources and it’s a dream to work with.
Soy candles have tons of benefits - and when combined with natural essential oils, they're the healthier option for candle lovers.
Soy wax candles don’t emit toxic chemicals into the air
Paraffin (or a paraffin blend) is probably the most commonly found wax on the high street. It’s mostly found in lower-end candles and it’s cheaper to produce than natural waxes. But when you buy paraffin wax candles, you pay a heavier price on your health.
When Paraffin candles are burned, they release harmful, carcinogenic particles and chemicals in to the air we breathe. (They also smell awful…).
Soy wax is known as ‘non-toxic’.
It’s a plant-based wax that burns cleanly and won’t effect the quality of the air in your home.
Soy wax is a vegetable wax and does not release any toxins into the air. If you're conscious about the air quality in your home, perhaps if you already live in a city, soy wax candles are a good option for you.
Soy is vegan and renewable
Soy wax comes from the soy bean. It’s a hydrogenated vegetable that is liquid when heated, but returns to solid at around 20 degrees (room temperature).
Soy is quite a useful bean. Many farmers rotate their soybean crops with corn production, and the husks are used as animal feed; it’s renewable and environmentally efficient. The only thing to be careful is your soy beans are bought from farm that hasn’t been made by damaging natural areas. Most of the worlds soy beans are grown in North America.
Soy wax has the upper hand on beeswax here as it's not an animal product, and no animals are harmed in its making - making it the popular option for vegans.
Soy wax burns at a lower temperature
Soy wax has a lower melting point than other popular waxes. So from a safety perspective it’s a better choice if there are potential hazards in the house.
A cat sauntering across a mantelpiece, or a dog running around the living room could potentially knock a lit candle, and they have less chance of hurting them self or causing damage to anything precious when it’s soy wax.
In fact, people often put a drop or two of the melted wax on their hands as a treatment for dry cuticles - plus the natural oils make them smell incredible.
Soy wax candles burn low and slow
Well we’ve already mentioned how soy candles burn at a lower temperature, but did you know they also burn slower.
That means you get more burn for your buck. Our 30cl candles, for example, take around 45-55 hours to burn from top to bottom - almost 50% slow then a paraffin candle of the same size.
They’re also known to burn more evenly than your standard candle, which can have a tendency to leave wax on the side. That said, if you ever find yourself wanting to burn that outside wax, we recommend the tin-foil trick (you can find out more about that here).
You get a purer scent profile (if you have scented candles)
Soy is naturally sweet smelling (and tasting - you just have to ask the soy latte enthusiasts). My people opt for unscented soy candles because they enjoy super-subtle notes it releases. We have a ‘simply soy’ candle made just for that reason.
But because soy has such a subtle scent profile, it means you notice the notes of the essential oils much more clearly. As a candle marker, one of the many reasons we choose soy is it gives us much more freedom to use the scents we want to, not the ones we have to.
The benefits of soy wax candles over others
Soy wax has many strings to its bow - and for us it’s the obvious choice because it’s vegan, animal friendly, toxic–free, chemical free, clean burning and naturally sweet smelling.
If you’re wanting to make your own candles or home, or you’re considering your next purchase, we highly recommend going from a reputable local candle maker - and if you can, always opt for one that uses natural essential oils.
Comentarios