Stamping on Candles

by Jenni Mouer

Stamp tissue paper and melt it into your candle. Decorated candles make unique gifts.

Supplies

  • Candle - preferably white or cream

  • White Tissue Paper

  • Stamps

  • Ink Pads

  • Markers or some other type of coloring medium

  • Scissors

  • Wax Paper

  • Embossing Gun

Step-by-Step

  1. Step 1

    Stamp on tissue paper. Use images that can be colored-in or solid images, in the ink color of your choice.

    Tip: Stamp extra images on the tissue in case of a mistake.

  2. Step 2

    Color in stamped images using some form of coloring medium, but be careful and test the medium used. With Twinkling H2O™s™ (as in this example), you will want to make sure your Aquabrush™ is not very wet but has a fair amount of watercolor on it. If you would prefer not to color just use a solid stamp with your choice of ink.

  3. Step 3

    Cut out your stamped images fairly close to the edges.

  4. Step 4

    Take a piece of wax paper and cut it so that it is not any taller than the candle being used and long enough so that it wraps completely around the candle and then some.

  5. Step 5

    Take your first stamped image and place it on the candle. Then place the wax paper on top and wrap the wax paper around the candle. Wing out the extra wax paper and pinch close with your fingers making sure the wax paper is tight against the candle.

  6. Step 6

    Heat up your embossing gun for 30-40 seconds until it is nice and hot. Moving quickly, wave it over the area where the stamped image is; be sure to keep the wax paper nice and tight. Every candle will have a different wax melting point, but you should see a change begin to take place within a few seconds. As the candle heats up, the pressure from the wax paper should push the image into the melting wax of the candle, embedding the image and leaving your image intact.

    Slowly peel the wax paper off the candle. Remember: every brand is different so if you are switching between brands you may need to adjust your heating times a bit.

  7. Step 6

    Heat up your embossing gun for 30-40 seconds until it is nice and hot. Moving quickly, wave it over the area where the stamped image is; be sure to keep the wax paper nice and tight. Every candle will have a different wax melting point, but you should see a change begin to take place within a few seconds. As the candle heats up, the pressure from the wax paper should push the image into the melting wax of the candle, embedding the image and leaving your image intact.

    Slowly peel the wax paper off the candle. Remember: every brand is different so if you are switching between brands you may need to adjust your heating times a bit.

  8. Step 7

    Finish your candle.

    You can do numerous images on one candle; just place another image and move the wax paper. It is best to try and not use the same spot on the wax paper for each image, but you can use 1 piece of wax paper numerous times.

Video!

Your Turn

You've seen the tutorial, now you try it! We've got a section of the gallery set aside for Stamping on Candles. Try this technique, then upload your artwork to the gallery. Show us your creations!

***Please note - Internet Explorer/Edge is not a supported browser, and will not allow you to see the videos. Please use Chrome, Firefox or Safari to view our tutorial videos.

Questions and Comments

We'd love to get your feedback or questions. Leave your comment below.

This is so great; I'm going to use it for a valentines demonstration for my stamp club. The girls are going to love it - Thanks for the great tips too...
Pam Foster  |  Thu Jan 17, 2008 at 9:18 PM
Wow this is fantastic. I love this technique and it was so easy to do thanks to your clear step by step instructions. thank you so much smile
Maggie  |  Sun Feb 24, 2008 at 8:53 AM
This is so great. Cant wait to try it smile
Gemma  |  Thu Feb 28, 2008 at 11:21 AM
This is such a cute idea. Im going to make this as a favor for my wedding!
Jessi  |  Mon Apr 14, 2008 at 4:18 PM
What happens to the tissue paper as the candle burns?
Kate  |  Mon Apr 21, 2008 at 4:54 PM
This is so much fun! I showed the girls at one of our gatherings and they loved it.
Thanks for such a great idea.
Andrea Flatt  |  Sun May 18, 2008 at 10:07 AM
What a neat idea. Thanks for the tutorial.
Annapurna  |  Sun Jun 29, 2008 at 6:48 PM
This is such a great idea, i always wondered how it was done, and you have shared a very clear tutorial, Thankyou.
Majella  |  Mon Jul 14, 2008 at 4:22 AM
Just TOO COOL!! Sounds like a LOT of fun, and would make such great gifts for ANY occasion!! Definitely gonna try this technique.

Thanks for EXCELLENT instructions and pictures!

Take care...
Jo  |  Thu Jul 24, 2008 at 1:52 AM
you all are so amazing!! thank you for sharing this! something i have been looking for an amazed by the ones that I have seen!
Cristena Bagne  |  Sun Aug 17, 2008 at 9:10 PM
I would like to know also about the tissue paper. I LOVE this tutoral. I just want to know about the saftey issue of this. Thank you so much for sharing this. smile
Nicky  |  Wed Aug 20, 2008 at 1:59 PM
can I do this with ink jet printer if I dont have stamps
MARIA ESTELA ACEVEDO  |  Mon Aug 25, 2008 at 2:52 PM
If you burn it down just a little bit you can insert a tea light candle in and it can be switched out. You can also carve a little hole out for the tea light, but burning is easier to me. This solves the tissue paper issue and saves the candle. If you still don't want to burn with a tea light, they sell battery operated tea lights at Wal-Mart in the craft section. Ours are located near the wedding supplies in the craft dept. They flicker just like real candle light. I use these for my paper bag luminaries at Halloween and in our pumpkins.
Kelli  |  Wed Sep 10, 2008 at 11:44 AM
This is a great idea
diane  |  Fri Sep 19, 2008 at 3:34 PM
Another tip that made a BIG difference in my candles is to let the candle cool a few minutes BEFORE you remove the waxed paper. This lets the candle wax stay nice and smooth. Also, I roll mine on a hard surface as soon as I shut the heat gun off. No drips that way if maybe you heated it too long.

Also you can copy an image from a picture or newspaper clipping and put on a candle. I frequently do this with the wedding announcements/invitations. Just print it out on a plain piece of paper first, then tape the tissue in the area you printed, and print again. It will then be printed on the tissue and you can proceed with putting it on the candle in the usual way. I have never had any problem with the computer ink running or anything.

Hope this helps, these make great gifts.
Brenda  |  Wed Oct 22, 2008 at 9:24 AM
This is great idea..I am planning my wedding and this will be great to put on tables..Something different, looking forward to trying.
Sharon Curtin  |  Thu Oct 23, 2008 at 4:46 AM
Can you use white tissue paper on any color candle? or does it need to match the candle?
Amanda Pina  |  Wed Oct 29, 2008 at 4:42 PM
THANKS FOR YOUR HELP! REALLY NICE AND EASY. I`LL TRY IT ON MY CANDLES.
veronica  |  Sat Nov 15, 2008 at 4:13 PM
What a great idea!! I sell candles and have an open house this weekend. I may have to do this and see if it sells more.
Chrissy Kavitz  |  Fri Dec 5, 2008 at 6:35 PM
I am going to do this with my children's art work as a Christmas gift for their teachers. Thanks for the good idea!
Liz  |  Tue Dec 16, 2008 at 11:59 AM

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