The Different Types of Wax

Paraffin Wax

First of all, Paraffin Wax which is the most commercially available. It is a by product of the crude oil refinement process and burns at a higher temperature meaning it can be used to make pillar candles. Paraffin wax however omits carcinogens into the air, whilst the soot created from the candles has been known to cause asthma and allergy flare-ups. This should be reason enough not to buy candles made from this wax.

Beeswax

Derived from honey bees, bees wax is totally natural and chemical free. It is a hard wax that can be used for all types of candles, votives, pillars and moulds. It gives the cleanest burn of all the candles and leaves no soot. Producing negative ions, it naturally cleans the air and is virtually dripless in a draft free environment. It does howeever naturally smell of honey which isn’t great when mixing with other scents. And it is the most expensive wax!

Soy Wax

Finally Soy Wax which was developed in the 1990’s soy wax has grown in popularity as more and more people are wanting to burn a ‘natural’ candle. Made from 100% soy bean oil, soy’s greatest advantage is that it is completely renewable. Whille global reserves of oil shrink, paraffin prices increase whereas this is not the case with soy beans. It also burns slower than paraffin so you get more bang for your buck with it and it is great for making votive candles. It is expensive though and as one of the softer waxes it can’t be used to make pillar candles or in moulds.

Other wax types include:

• Coconut – sustainable wax that is known for good scent.
• Rapeseed – a non hazardous, biodegradable wax.
• Bayberry – a veg wax obtained from boiling berries of the bayberry plant – which is a bush found in North America.
• Palm – once known as the sustainable wax to paraffin but not any longer due to deforestation and endangering insects & animals.

Laura Thomas Co Natural Scented Soy Candles

At Laura Thomas Co we pride ourselves on using only natural materials so we use 100% soy wax for all our candles. We add nayural essential oils and a textile grade cotton wick. That’s all! Our LT Candles are handmade and hand-poured in-house, in-batches to ensure the highest quality soy wax candle.

Check out our range of 100% natural soy wax  candles on our website at http://laura-thomas.com/product-category/scents/candles/