CANDLE STAMPING
By Barbie Boop barbieboop1@juno.com
Select your candles.
Stamp and emboss on tissue paper.

Color it in if you wish with colored pencils BUT on the back side of the stamped image.
Cut the image out as close as you can to the image without crossing over the image lines with your scissors.   Using your heat gun, heat the candle in the spot where you want your stamped image.

You want to allow the candle to melt a little and quickly place the stamped/embossed image over that area.   Continue to use the heat gun following in a circle around the image making sure that the candle wax has melted and adhere the tissue image to the candle.

I think the fun part is doing the embellishing afterwards!

EMBELLISH THEM FOR GIFT GIVING:
Tie a pretty bow around a set of them.
Add a charm or buttons, flowers etc.
(Embellishments are to be removed prior to lighting of course!)

ADD SPICES:
If you like a spicy smelling candle… you can melt the bottom few inches of the candle with the heat gun and roll it in spices: I have used nutmeg, cinnamon or cloves- my favorite.

CANDLE DECORATIONS NOT FOR BURNING:
If you put the image toward the middle of the candle, this will allow room to embellish your candle even further!  Use your heat gun to melt the candle around the bottom and or the top and place ribbons, buttons, spices or other embellishments (fish hooks for the dad or brother?   Paper
clips for the teacher?  Seeds for the gardener?  Use your imagination!  Add a bow of your choice that will wrap around the whole candle and tie up nice and big and pretty.

A "CANDLE-CANDLE HOLDER!"
Another really cool idea is to use a BIG candle and make it into a Candle holder!
Just get a real big candle the ones that are as big as your hand span and about 6-12 inches tall.
Cut a whole in the top and line it with foil, a small glass cup or bowl, a mini flower pot. (the whole should be big enough to fit a taper candle in it or one of the short fat candles and allow extra room to spare so that you don't end up melting your big candle.

Note: When using your CANDLE-CANDLE HOLDER do not melt the little candles all the way down.  Your big candle WILL MELT.

Melt the out side of the BIG candle and roll it in buttons, flowers, spices, whatever embellishment you choose. (see the CANDLE DECORATIONS NOT FOR BURNING instructions above…)

Use this as a CANDLE HOLDER for your smaller candles!

If you want the big CANDLE-CANDLE HOLDER to have a stamped image… Mark the area you want the image to be in (use a circle or oval shaped stencil or paper as a guide and mark the candle with a pencil - you can cover your pencil line when embelishing.)   Add your embossed image in the middle of that circle or oval shape.   (follow the above directions to stamp/emboss on candles.)

ANOTHER WAY to stamp on candles:
Did you know that you can stamp directly onto your candles?
Buy some cheap votive candles (the small 2" ? fat ones) at the dollar
store and practice this method:
Using Pigment ink, ink up your stamp of choice, set aside
Using your heat gun, heat the side of your candle until you see it melting. (area should be big enough to fit your stamp- remember to think small when choosing your stamp)
Quickly put your gun down and press that inked stamp onto the melted area of the candle- in a right to left or left to right roll. Remove stamp.
This looks really neat! Try it.

• Cover work surface with newspaper. Wear latex gloves.
  
• Fold paper towel. Place candle on top of paper towel to catch melted wax and to keep candle from rolling.
  
• Heat an isolated area on the candle with a heat tool until wax begins to liquify. Let the wax cool slightly. Once the wax looks cloudy, press the stamp into the melted wax. Hold for a few seconds. Repeat on other areas of the candle.
  
• Squeeze a little of each color Decor-It ink onto a palette.
  
• Using a makeup sponge, sponge ink lightly across stamped areas. Finish by sponging on metallic ink.
  
• Embellish with raffia and beads if desired.
  
  Tips:
• To clean waxy residue from rubber stamps, heat the waxy stamp with a heat gun then blot off wax with a paper towel. The heat gun should not affect the rubber.
  
• When working with round candles, place the candle on a bunched-up paper towel to prevent the candle from rolling around on work surface. Roll stamp across round candle after heating the wax to impress the image.
  

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  Contributed by Charlotte
• Another great way to use your stamps with candles is to use tissue paper. Cut a piece of tissue the size of your candle from top of round edge, to bottom. (not over the "pointed" part if it's not a straight candle) Stamp your image on the tissue, either with bold stamps and colored ink, or if it's a line stamp, color in lightly with pens, or chalk design. (thicker tissue paper works best with pens so there isn't as much "bleed through"). lay tissue on candle, and working at one end, use a heat tool to start a melting process on your candle. Watch carefully, you only want to start the wax melting, not start a drip. As the wax melts, it "glues" your tissue to the candle! slowly turn candle and smooth paper as you go, the candle will re-solidify once you remove the heat, and your stamped design becomes a permanent design on your candle. I let my candle burn down till there is a "well" created in the top, then place a tea light candle in the top. Your masterpiece then lasts "forever" as you just replace the tea candle, rather than burn your pretty one! Charlotte
  

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  Stamping on Candles  
  Contributed by - Jules
  I found that if you are doing a simple stamp design, you can stamp on toilet paper (two-ply). Instead of covering the whole candle, tear away your design, take off 1 ply and heat-attach, (as in Charlotte's example below) your design to the candle. Be careful- it doesn't take much heat! Because the toilet paper is so thin, it virtually disappears. (works best when the candle is similar
  

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