The proper care and trimming of the wick is critical for a smooth, clean burning candle. If the wick is too long, it supplies more wax to the flame than it can burn. The excess wax results in a dirty flame. If the wick is too short, the resulting flame is too small to generate enough heat to properly pool the wax.

The general rule of thumb is to trim the wick to about 1/4″. What matters most, however, is to trim only as much wick as needed to produce a clean 1″ tall flame after the wax has pooled. As the wax melts, the wax pool will expand, so be careful not to trim the wick too short too soon. Remove wick trimmings and wick buildup from the candle. Periodically, check your candle and re-trim the wick as needed.

If you trim a wick too short, continued burning will generally recover the wick. You can also remove some of the softened or liquid wax with a spoon.

We are often asked about the myth about lead in wicks. Please feel assured that our wicks do not contain lead. We use many different styles of wicks when designing our candles. Many of our wicks are constructed with cores to keep them rigid in the liquid wax and to provide specific burning characteristics for the different types of fragrances. Cores can be made of different materials including cotton, paper or zinc wire. None of these materials are harmful when burned.

If you should find that the wick has wandered off to one side, keep it centered by moving it while the wax is liquid or soft using the tip of a wick dipper. Never allow the wick or flame to come in contact with the glass.

When extinguishing the candle, it is best to drown the flame in the liquid wax. This prevents continued smoldering of the wick which deteriorates the wick and affects its burning characteristics.