How to get wax out | How About Orange

July 23, 2008

How to get wax out

Maybe everybody knows this already, but I found it to be life-changing. When your candle is burned up and you want to get the wax out of the holder, put it in the freezer for awhile. The wax contracts, loosens up, and you can dump it right out in one big piece. Awesome.

49 comments:

lyn. said...

Who knew? Not me... lol
Thanks for the great tip!!

Elizabeth said...

You can also do this with wax that gets on a tablecloth...rub an ice cube over it and it should flake right off after it gets cold enough.

Ashley said...

Thanks for the tip! Very helpful.

Anonymous said...

Well, i've learned something today! Thanks!

alice said...

A good tip!

Anonymous said...

great tip! I always fight with that so looking forward to the next candle finishing and testing it

Swiss Ms. said...

Perfect for those Santa Maria de Guadalupe votives you've been trying to reuse.

Priyanka said...

Nope, didn't know about it! And it works!! My next project this weekend will be your Starched fabric decal experiment... Will send you a pic if it turns out well :)
Blogrolling you, btw.

Jessica said...

Thank you so much - I've spent literally hours trying to melt wax out of my nightlight holders and each time I end up with a sink full of wax as well as getting a bit covered in wax myself.

I never knew it could be easy!

Unknown said...

It seems so easy now :) thanks!

Amber M. said...

This post has just changed my life forever!

Brie said...

Haha thanks! :) I was just wondering about this the other day.

Grandma G said...

Gee, I coulda told you that. I came across that great tip a few years ago.

Mum(I think I 'meant' to tell you!)

Young People in Love said...

wow! funny how some of life's biggest dilemmas also have the easiest answers :)

TIG said...

Really? Completely great tip --will definitely give a try.

Jamila said...

I did NOT know that! And there I was trying to loosen the whole thing in boiling water- which took ages. And burnt my finger.

A new big big fan x

Grandma G said...

An added note: this only works, of course, if your candle holder is as wide as or wider at the top than it is at the bottom. Forget using this method for a jar-type container. Best to just let that sit in hot water until the wax softens so you can dig it out. Then you can freeze it to get any remaining bits.

Mum

Nicole said...

I love this tip... I use it a LOT!

Also, I found that if I get wax on fabric and freezing it won't take it off or it is really ground in take some newspaper and a kitchen towel and place it over it. Then use a hot iron to melt it, the wax comes off and soaks into the paper. You just need to be careful that it is fabric that can be ironed and be aware that the wax may leave a stain in lighter fabrics.

Anonymous said...

thanks for sharing! can't believe it's that simple.

Anonymous said...

Really?? Even if there are annoying little fragments of wax along the side???? AHHH you just changed my life forever!

Marilyn said...

I did not know that, and I am so excited to learn this. If only I had heard this years ago! Thanks for sharing. Love your blog.

jen duncan said...

Oh my gosh. I could just croak when I think of all the times I've let it sit in HOT water. Well, NOW i know!! Thanks! :-)

Cynthia Silvestri said...

you just made my life 8% less annoying!

Jane Valentine said...

Very cool! This will definitely be useful, eventually. I have this problem burning candels - they are so pretty, how can I just burn them up? But I will overcome this problem, and then I will use this tip.

As an aside, have you see Wordle (http://wordle.net/)? It seems right up your alley.

Anonymous said...

Good tip, but there's an even better way: fill your jar/holder/whatever, with soapy water (doesn't even have to be hot) and let sit overnight. Every itty bitty bit comes out when you dump the water out.

Leah said...

This is a great tip and it works wonders. I think I learned it from Martha. Another thing I got from her is to put a little water in the bottom of the votive holder before you burn the candle, and the wax never sticks to the glass in the first place! So simple!

Leah

Tonya Staab said...

I can finally put all of those sharp knives away and stop digging it out. Fabulous

Anonymous said...

never knew that... tnx for the tip

VanPham said...

I haven't heard before but it sounds great! Thanks.
Btw, I am your new reader. Love your site!

Scrumpkin said...

Great tip :o)
I'm totally going to do that!

http://pumpkinandsprout.etsy.com

Scrappy Girl said...

I loved it when I found out this tip too. So easy! I found you while blog hopping. I couldn't pass up checking out a blog about orange. I don't know what it is but I am drawn to orange too. Love the blog!

Anonymous said...

I had absolutely no idea! What a huge time saver this will be. Thanks!

claire said...

i've always wondered...i knew it had to be something simple. after perusing your blog, not only do i love what i see, but can i say what a relief it is to find someone who changes their background perhaps as much as myself?

rachel said...

Pouring very hot water on it works a treat too, especially if you can't wait for the freezer trick to work.

Jessica Jones said...

Mum, not to worry—I've known this trick for a couple years. I just used it the other day which made me think of writing a blog post about it because it's so useful. So relax; you haven't been derelict in your motherly duties.

Everybody, thanks for the other candle wax tricks, too. I'll have to try them!

And Jane, I've had a post about Wordle in my drafts for awhile now, waiting to be published. Great minds...

Grandma G said...

Ahhh.... so maybe I DID tell you!

WHEW!! ;-)

Jenifer said...

I always run mine under hot water in the sink and when it gets soft it pops out!

GG said...

I did know this - but your post motivated me to actually use this tip to revive my sad waxfilled candleholders to be now born again and burning bright! Thanks! LOVE your blog by the way - spent all day yesterday reading back to your first entry. How did you grow such a fan base? Seems like no one reads mine :-\ Anyways - Thanks!

Fer said...

Well there you go - no I didn't know that!

Thanks! :o)

Angie said...

One of my all-time favorite sneaky household tips! So glad you discovered it! Love, love, love your blog by the way!

Unknown said...

isn't that the best tip ever?! i might even go so far as to say that it changed my life. thank you martha stewart.

all over the map said...

I can't remember who passed that trick along to me but yep I've been using it for years and it's much better than trying to scrape that darn stuff out! I just passed it along to my step-daughter the other night. I scored some cool points.

Anonymous said...

Boiling-hot water will also melt the wax but remember not to dump melted wax and hot water into your sink because I think when the wax cools, it hardens again and you don't want to choke up your pipes. Dispose with your trash.

Jean Martha said...

HAHHAHAHHA

OMG.

Thank God I read this post. I put candlesticks in my freezer WEEKS ago and forgot about them till I saw your post! LOL

Jessica Jones said...

Hilarious! Glad I could help.

Dotty Delightful said...

wow your a star i always wondered how too, now no more throwing them out.

NATALIE said...

how clever! ill have to remember this one!

Marjolie said...

Oh my..I never thought I'd get that stuff out- of course the most simple ideas are usually the best
thanks so much
:)
Marj
x

Raymond said...

I have always been using boiling water. I usually end up making a mess out of everything, and it is very time consuming. I am definitely trying this out. Thanks.