A Beginner’s Guide to Choosing the Right Wax

So, you’re ready to dive into the wonderful world of candle making but you’ve hit your first hurdle: the wax. Staring at a page of different waxes can be confusing—they all look similar, but each has its own unique characteristics and applications.

Don’t worry. This guide will break down our most popular waxes to help you select the right one for your candle.

Here’s How to Choose the Right Wax – It Has to Match What You Are Making

Easy Container Candles & Wax Melts: Choose Soy Wax

If your goal is to create scented candles in jars, tins, or other containers, soy wax is a good choice.

• What it is: A natural, vegetable-based wax derived from soybeans. It’s eco-friendly, vegan, and known for its creamy white appearance.
• Best For: Container candles and wax melts.
• Why you’ll love it: Soy wax is beginner-friendly as it doesn’t shrink like paraffin waxes, meaning you could get away with one pour.
• Keep in Mind: Soy wax is too soft to mould it’s designed to adhere to container walls.

Choose Soy Wax if: You want to make eco-friendly, highly fragranced container candles with ease.

Pillar Candles: Choose Paraffin Wax

If you dream of pillar candles or classic dinner candles, paraffin wax is the answer.  This is the most affordable candle wax and therefore typically the go to for events companies.

• What it is: The traditional choice for candle making, paraffin is versatile, long-burning and has excellent scent throw. Blend it with any number of additives, e.g. stearic acid, white colour for paraffin wax and microwax.
• Best For: All types of acrylic candle moulds (pillars, dinner candles), bronze casting and sculpting.
• Why you’ll love it: The creative possibilities are endless. Pouring temperature is the single most important variable when it comes to paraffin wax and can get many different surface finishes by playing with temperature.
• Keep in Mind: Can be more technical to work with than soy, but offers unmatched versatility.

Choose Paraffin Wax if: You want to make candles in acrylic moulds and have complete creative control over colour and surface finish.

Novelty Candles and Affordable Container Candles: Choose IW3F Wax

If you silicone candle moulds get your creative juices flowing, IW3F is the wax for you.  Its opaque white colour makes beautiful pastel shades.

• What it is: A Fischer-Tropsch wax made by Sasol, South Africa with an opque white colour and good scent throw.
• Best For: All types of silicone candle moulds (cats, droplets, twine, twists), as well as container candles.
• Why you’ll love it: Make stunning pastel shades with our dye flakes.   Mix your own colours – see the instructions for colour mixing in our “candle dye” product descriptions.
• Keep in Mind: Can be more technical to work with than soy, but is the very best choice for silicone candle moulds.

Choose IW3F Wax if: You enjoy using silicone candle moulds and love pastel colours.

For Natural Cosmetics & Luxury Candles: Beeswax

For those who prioritise all-natural ingredients for skin and home, nothing beats the golden standard of beeswax.

• What it is: A completely natural wax produced by honeybees, with a golden colour and a sweet honey aroma.
• Best For: DIY skincare (lip balms, salves, lotion bars), creating luxurious, clean-burning candles, and even making natural wood polish.
• Why you’ll love it: Beeswax is naturally skin-nourishing, containing Vitamin A. As a candle wax, it burns longer and cleaner than other waxes.

Choose Beeswax if: You are creating premium, all-natural cosmetic or candle products.

We hope this guide has been useful to you. Choosing the right wax is the first step on a rewarding creative journey.

Happy crafting!