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We Know: How to Buy Candles
Candles come in a variety of shapes and sizes, colors and scents and, in modern
times, are mostly used for decorative lighting. You can find long tapers in white or colors for weddings and candelabras, or short squat pillars and pedestal candles that create their own unique container for the flame to shine through.
What materials are candles made from?
Candles today may still be made of tallow or beeswax, but are often made of paraffin wax, soy and vegetable oils, or other solid fuels like stearin (a palm wax), gel (a mix of resin and mineral oil), and plant waxes from palm, carnauba, bayberry, or soy. In addition, a high proportion of candles today have a high scented oil content.
Beeswax and soy candles are the cleanest burning, and the least clean burning are those based on petroleum (paraffin).
What materials are wicks made from?
A perfectly-burning candle would not consume any part of the wick, but instead burn only the melted wax or solid fuel of the candle. Most of what you see burning in the flame of a candle is the wax, not the wick.
What should I consider when buying a candle?
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