Guide
Can't find the time to make a wreath? This idea is easy-peasy, I promise!
by Natalie Hemengül
These orange candles will infuse your home with a wintery scent
24.11.2025
Translation: Jessica Johnson-Ferguson
Pictures: Stefanie Lechthaler
By mixing leftover candle wax with orange peel, you can create new, fragrant candles. I tried it out and have some tricks in store for you so nothing goes wrong.
Orange-scented candles tick all the wintertime boxes. They diffuse cosy, warm light and the scent of citrus fruits. Inspired by this video, I gave DIY candles a whirl myself.
If you feel like trying this out yourself, you’ll need oranges, a can, candle wax, wick string, essential orange oil and wooden sticks.
First, you melt the wax. Bring water to the boil in a pan. As soon as it starts to boil, reduce the heat. Place the can filled with wax pellets in it. Instead of pellets, you can also use the wax from old candles. Simply cut the wax into small bits and put them in the can. It’s a great way for giving candles a second life.
The juicy part. While the wax is melting, I prep the oranges. I cut them in half and spoon out the flesh. This is where you can learn from my mistakes.
Only cut off the bottom of the orange at the end. Because the halved oranges were rocking back and forth, I decided to cut the base of them off right at the start. Unfortunately, I paid for this move by tearing a hole into the orange peel, thereby rendering them useless for my project. Great.
On my second attempt, I run a soup spoon closely along the peel to remove the flesh. I then carefully cut off the flesh that’s stuck to the knot in the peel using a knife to avoid creating another hole.
As soon as the peel is free of pulp, I attach a piece of wick to the wooden stick and position it as vertically as possible.
In the meantime, the wax has completely melted. I add several drops of essential orange oil to the liquid wax and stir everything together using a wooden stick. I hold the can with an oven glove to avoid burning myself.
I gently squeeze the orange halves so they don’t tip over. I then pour the contents of the tin into the orange halves until they’re full and wait. **After two hours, the wax has hardened and the candle has slightly lost volume.
To fill it to the brim, I repeat the procedure and pour the next batch of wax on top of the candle and wait again. One hour later, the wax is hard and my orange candles are ready.
Only when its dark do I get to see it glow in full glory. The candlelight shines through the orange peel and makes the candle glow like a lantern.
Header image: Stefanie Lechthaler
Painting the walls just before handing over the flat? Making your own kimchi? Soldering a broken raclette oven? There's nothing you can't do yourself. Well, perhaps sometimes, but I'll definitely give it a try.
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