Soy wax candles are biodegradable since they are made from hydrogenated soybean oil. When compared to paraffin wax candles they project less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere because they produce very low amounts of soot. The soybean oil assists in lowering the melting point that results in more even burning. As a result this low heating wax is ideal for making scented soy wax candles since the lower heat helps to distribute more fragrance.

Pure soy wax candles are a natural product and became available to consumers in 1996 following on from the soy wax candles launched earlier by The Body Shop a company that provided candles made from a mixture of beeswax and almond oil. However because beeswax was much more expensive than commonly used paraffin, research was conducted into the use of plant waxes as an alternative to beeswax. This shift to an environmentally friendly product gained universal approval and was a very popular choice particularly in the United States as it provided another market for farmers and their soybeans and marketers who realized that by reducing the use of paraffin it reduced the need for importing petroleum additives for candle making.

If you are interested in making soy wax candles have a look at the article on this site “making soy wax candles”.

There are also many articles online and in book stores with a wide variety of recipes to assist you to become creative in making soy wax candles. Some advice though when making soy candles is to ensure you mix any fragrance oils beforehand to get an idea whether it is the fragrance you want before mixing it into your melted wax. As a general rule when making soy wax candles you will need 1 oz of oil to fragrance it if you use 16 oz of soy wax.