DIY Strawberry Candle

This strawberry candle is one of the easiest projects you can start with if you’re new to candle making (or just want a quick, satisfying DIY). It’s beginner-friendly and budget-friendly. You only need a few ounces of wax, minimal supplies, and very little time to pull it off.

I’m making my strawberry candles with beeswax today, but I will walk you through all of the options – everything from choosing the best wax to sourcing the strawberry mold and other supplies. This is one of the most affordable candle projects I’ve shared on Candle Culture. 🍓 I hope you find it helpful!

Strawberry Candle Supplies

To make this candle, you will need:

Strawberry Candle Mold

Look for a silicone strawberry candle mold like the one I’m using in this tutorial. It has 4 strawberry shaped cavities and very thick silicone all around the edges. It’ll be made out of a flexible stretchy material that makes the de-molding process very easy. You won’t have to worry about the candle getting stuck in the mold or breaking when you de-mold it (as long as you use the right type of wax… more on that, later). 

One mold makes 4 strawberry candles (and holds about 1 ounce of wax). My order came with a set of 2 molds so I can make up to 8 strawberry candles at a time. 

Tools

• Scissors to trim the wick.
• Wax Melter or Double Boiler to melt the wax. I’m using a double boiler. If you also want to use the double boiler method, here’s how to set it up.
• Thermometer to monitor wax temperature.

Ingredients

• Candle Wax: I used beeswax today. You can also do this with any of the harder wax types like: paraffin wax or a pillar wax blend. Avoid using softer wax types like soy or coconut (because they lack the durability needed to de-mold cleanly without snapping or deforming). 
• Candle Dye: To add color. I used a liquid dye to get a bold shade of red. If you want a lighter / more pastel shade, you can use dye blocks or wax chips.
• Wick: Wick size depends on the diameter of the candle. I used a size #6/0 wick for this strawberry candle (which is almost 1 inch in diameter at the widest part of the candle).

Optional Items

• Stearic Acid to improve the opacity of the red color and to harden the candle.
• Heat Gun to smooth out the bottom of the candle.
• Fragrance Oil to scent the candle. 

Strawberry Candle Recipe

Here is the exact candle recipe I used to fill up both molds with some leftover wax to spare just in case. Technically, you only need 1.72 ounces of wax to fill both molds, but I always round up because I’m a clumsy candle maker and this accounts for spills:

• 3 ounces of beeswax
• 3 drops* of liquid red candle dye
• 0.3 ounces of stearic acid
• #6/0 wick

How to Make a Strawberry Candle

Okay, let’s get to the fun part!

Wick the Candle Mold

1. If this is your first time using the mold, use a sharp object (a toothpick will do) to pierce the center of each strawberry in the mold. 
2. Thread the wick through this hole. You may have to use the toothpick to guide the wick through.
3. Cut the wick so that it is slightly longer than the height of the candle mold.
4. Position the wick so that it stops short of the base of the strawberry (which is the top of the mold). You don’t want it to stick through the bottom of the candle. If you want to know why I’m not using a wick bar to secure the wick, check out the FAQ at the end of this post.
5. Repeat with all 4 strawberries.

I’m using: a size #6/0 wick for this candle (which is about 1 inch in diameter at the base of the strawberry).

Measure the Ingredients

1. If you are using the same strawberry mold set as me: you can use the measurements in the recipe section above. If you’re using a different mold: you can determine how much wax to use with the water to wax conversion trick.
2. Measure out any candle additives like stearic acid.
3. Add ingredients to a melting pitcher or a wax melter.

I’m using: 3 ounces of beeswax + 0.3 ounces of stearic acid to make 8 strawberry candles.

Melt the Ingredients

1. Use your *preferred melting method to heat the wax. Monitor the temperature while it melts. 
2. After the wax melts completely, continue to heat the wax up to a temperature of 185 degrees Fahrenheit. 

There’s more than one way to melt candle wax. I’m using a double boiler today. If you want an alternative method, check out How to Melt Candle Wax – 3 Ways. 

Add Candle Dye and/or Fragrance Oil

1. If you want to add scent or color, do it after the melted wax reaches 185 degrees Fahrenheit. 
2. Stir thoroughly but slowly so that you don’t introduce any air bubbles. I like to swirl the melting pitcher around a few times before I stir.

Pour the Wax into the Candle Mold

1. After you’re done adding dye/fragrance oil, remove the melted wax from its heat source.
2. Monitor the thermometer as you let the melted wax cool down to its *optimal pouring temperature. 
3. Slowly pour the melted wax into each cavity in the mold.

I poured at 155 degrees Fahrenheit. 

De-Mold the Candle

I only waited about 3 hours before de-molding these candles. Usually, I leave molded candles to cure overnight, but these candles are so small that they harden much faster.

1. If the bottom of the candle is uneven, use a heat gun to re-melt the wax until it is level. If you have to re-melt, wait until the wax hardens before moving on to the next step.
2. Flip each strawberry inside out to remove it from the mold. It doesn’t require much pressure.
3. Trim the wicks and enjoy!

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did you choose not to use a wick bar to secure the wick?

It’s not safe to burn these candles all the way down to the base of the strawberry so I wanted the wick to stop short. That means I couldn’t use a wick bar to center it like I do in most of the tutorials you’ll find on this site, but that’s kind of okay for a candle this small. I did my best to position the wick in the center, but most of them curved slightly to one side. I’ve burned several of the strawberries since making this tutorial and they did well so I’m going to keep using this method for future batches.

How much wax do I need to use in the strawberry candle mold?

For a small mold like this where very little wax is needed, I usually just eyeball it. If you want to be exact, the strawberry mold I used requires 0.86 ounces of wax to fill all 4 strawberry cavities. I always round up to account for spills so I’d recommend using at least 1 ounce of wax for each mold. 

Here’s an easy trick to help you figure out exactly how much wax to use in any candle mold:

1. Turn on a digital scale and place the mold on top, then tare the scale. Taring the scale just means setting the value to 0 so that when you add water in the next step, you’re only measuring the weight of the water by itself, not the water and the mold.
2. Fill the mold with water.
3. Multiply the water weight times 0.86 to get the wax weight.

Wax is about 86% of water’s weight so the formula for converting water weight to wax weight is: Water Weight x 0.86 = Wax Weight. The strawberry mold holds 1.0 ounces of water so you will need to use 0.86 ounces of wax to fill the mold.

What is the best wax for a strawberry candle mold?

For molded candles, you should use one of the harder wax types: paraffin wax, beeswax, or a pillar wax blend. While you can technically use any wax type, I do not recommend softer wax types like soy or coconut for molded candles (unless you blend with a harder wax). The de-molding process can be a bit rough and soy wax is not very durable. A 100% soy candle is more likely to break, chip, or become deformed while you’re pulling it out of the mold.

Why did you use beeswax?

I’m testing out birthday candle options for my daughter’s first birthday. If wax is going to drip onto the cake, I’d prefer beeswax over paraffin or soy. Technically, beeswax is edible (though after mixing it with the liquid dye, it’s probably still not a great thing to ingest). Beeswax is just a personal preference for this set of candles, but this project works just as well with paraffin wax and pillar wax blends. If you decide to try it out, let me know your recipe!