Ice Candles to celebrate the return of sunlight in the darkness of winter.

February 2 is here and it’s the one day of the year most of us think of groundhogs and if they’ll predict how much longer winter will last. Where I live winter lasts until April, so we don’t get too excited about groundhog predictions. We do celebrate Candlemas on February 2 and try to make something special each year to acknowledge the return of sunlight. We mash this up with honouring the Celtic goddess Brigit and have celebrated by making woven bread and reading Brigid’s Cloak by Bryce Milligan.

We always make a candle for Candlemas and this year made an ice candle to light our kitchen table. This is an activity that works best with child helpers but the adult should be in charge of using the stove and handling the hot, melted wax. Use your common sense and it should turn out fine.

Here are the instructions to make an ice candle.

Cover your work surface with newspapers in case of spills.

Find a clean, milk carton and cut the top off.

Chop your wax pieces into small chunks to help it melt quickly. Place the wax into a double boiler and keep an eye on it while it melts. (This will be waxy forever so improvise with a metal can and old pot specifically for this purpose.)

Tie a piece of candle wick to a popsicle stick and dip the other end of the wick into the melted wax, then attach it to a coin or washer. This is just to help the wick stay put at the bottom of your candle.

Hang the candle wick across the carton.

Next fill the carton with ice cubes.

Pour the hot, melted wax into the carton and wait for it to cool.

When cool, discard the water (all your ice melted).

Trim the wick and light your ice candle.