If You Use Scented Candles In Your House You May Want To Stop Right NOW! The Reason Is Scary!
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Many people love having candles on hand around the house. Scented ones make the air smell wonderful and certain types, such as citronella ones, help to keep the bugs away. People often use them to add a little warm ambiance to a room or they keep a few close by in case the power goes out.
Some people love candles so much they burn through several a week and place them everywhere, they just can’t get enough. Chances are you have a few candles somewhere in your house and if they are scented you may want to think twice before lighting them up.
A recent study has found that many scented candles contain dangerous ingredients which are harmful to human health. Professor Alastair Lewis of the National Centre for Atmospheric Science at the University of York carried out the study which uncovered the disturbing results.
His research suggests that a common ingredient used to give candles their scent, called limonene, changes into formaldehyde when burned. The potential for danger here is great, because Formaldehyde is highly toxic and the levels at which it was found to be present were alarming.
Limonene is most often found in citrus-scented candles where it’s used to give them a lemony lime type of smell. You’ve probably smelled limonene before because it’s commonly used to scent air fresheners and cleaning products and it’s even safe enough to flavor food with.
However, the problem is that when its molecular structure is altered, it can easily turn into formaldehyde. This occurs when limonene is released into the air, where it comes into contact and reacts with the naturally occurring ozone.
This contact is what alters the limonene molecules and changes them into Formaldehyde. Because modern homes are tightly sealed up, there is little to no air circulation, and the formaldehyde gets trapped indoors.
Over time it lingers in the air and builds up, causing long term harm and damage to any people who may happen to breathe it in. The effects of formaldehyde on human health are toxic. It’s thought to be carcinogenic and is known to be corrosive, poisonous, and combustible.
Exposure to it can damage our respiratory tracts and cause sore throats, nosebleeds, coughs, and a burning, stinging sensation in eyes. It’s best to avoid it all together, and that means not burning any scented candles that may contain limonene.
If you absolutely must or feel the need to burn scented candles, open a window and get some air flow going. That greatly reduces the build up of formaldehyde in the room and cuts down on the amount you may end up breathing in.
Hopefully candle makers will change the way they make scented candles now that this study is out and people are gaining awareness of it. Please spread the word and pass this along to friends and family so that they also know how bad these candles can be.
Watch the footage below for further information.
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This Woman Places Crayons In A Pot And Starts Melting Them. But The End Result Is Incredible!
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With beautiful warm weather comes annoying biting insects. Now that bug season is upon us it’s time to start breaking out the repellent, zappers, and swatters. Nothing ruins a picnic or backyard BBQ faster than a swarm of disease carrying mosquitoes buzzing around.
However, instead of driving yourself crazy, and slapping yourself silly trying to kill the little suckers that land on you, turn the tables on the mosquitoes. Make the environment and air around you a safe, mosquito-free haven by perfuming it with citronella candles. Citronella oil is derived from the leaves and stems of lemongrass plants and it makes an excellent, all natural insect repellent.
Studies have shown that it is effective at repelling mosquitoes, and if you burn it off through candles you can keep an area skeeter-free. Which leads us to this awesome video tutorial on how to make citronella candles! The whole project is cost effective and easy. Forget buying expensive candles at the store, these are even prettier and can be custom colored.
All that it requires is wax pieces, candle wicks, citronella oil, jars (mason jars are perfect- resealable, cheap, and sold everywhere), plus a bowl and boiling water. First determine how much wax you’ll need by pouring it into the container you plan on using as a candle holder. Boil a pot of water and then place a glass bowl in it.
Pour the wax into the glass bowl and allow it to completely melt. If you want to color the wax simply add in a wax crayon or two and melt it down. When all the wax and crayons are fully dissolved mix in a teaspoon of citronella oil. Attach the wicks to the bottom of the jars with a small piece of tape, then carefully pour the wax into the jars.
To keep the wicks in place as the wax sets, hold them up between two chopsticks over the top of the jar. Once the wax is firm again trim the wick to about an inch above the candle line. One last thing I want to mention is that many store bought citronella candles use a synthetic type of citronella which is vastly inferior and not as effective as the real essential-oil type.
They are often labeled “citronella scented” but don’t contain any of the natural variety’s properties, so they won’t repel bugs. Also, don’t use tiki torch oil/fuel, make sure to use citronella essential oil in the candles. I hope you enjoy the video and candles as much as I have been.
Let us know how yours turned out! 🙂
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He Rests A Single Candle Between Two Glasses. The Result Is Unexpectedly Incredible!
Around 1.9 million years ago humans first learned how to create and control fire. This is arguably one of the biggest leaps in human evolution ever. Ancient humans utilized the fire to stay warm on freezing nights, scare off predators trying to hunt them, and of course cook delicious food. This evolutionary step in history gave mankind the ultimate leg up over the rest of the animals!
We now use fire in a million different ways, and the best part is we are masters at controlling it. There are so many awesome things that we can now do with it. With the help of science, we are able to manipulate fire to do just about anything we want it to do.
In the video below, I was blown away by these fire tricks. Some of these tricks were so amazing I had to watch them twice. There is a disclaimer at the beginning of the video that warns you not to try this on your own because they were all done by trained professionals. If you do try some of these be very careful and remember, if you play with fire you might get burned.
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She Mixes Crayons With Crisco For One Weird Reason. But The Final Result Is Stunning!
Many people love having candles on hand around the house. Scented ones make the air smell wonderful and certain types, such as citronella ones, help to keep the bugs away. Whether you use them to add a little warm ambiance to a room, or keep some close by in case the power goes out, it’s always a good idea to have several extra on hand. A major downside to candles is that they can be quite expensive especially if you want a quality one that burns for many hours.
Instead of buying them, save yourself a bunch of money and get creative by making your own custom colored and scented candles. In this YouTube video Lisa Pullano gives a step by step tutorial on how to make candles at home using Crisco and a few other supplies you may already have on hand or that you can pick up at any craft store for a few dollars.
The main item these candles require is Crisco, or vegetable shortening, plus canning jars with lids, cotton candle wicks, oil soluble dyes, oil pastel crayons, fragrance or citronella oils, and various things that can be used to decorate them. Take a fire-safe container, like a glass canning jar or bottle, and hot glue a candle wick to the bottom of it.
If the jar is tall slip the wick through a straw to help keep it in place later, and if the jar is large use 2-3 wicks. Using a double boiler method, melt some Crisco in a glass container over low to medium heat, then allow it to cool for 10-20 minutes. Be very careful melting Crisco since it’s highly flammable and if you ever have the misfortune of a grease fire extinguish it by smothering the flames with a pot lid, salt, or baking soda (never use water!).
Take a lollipop stick, or any similar object, and tie the glued wick to it, then lay it across the jar opening. Melt in either candle wax, crayons, oil pastels, or makeup with mica in it to add color. If you want them scented use candle fragrance oil or essential oil, and for bug repellent ones use about 5-10 drops of citronella oil. Pour the colored and/or scented oil into the candle holder jars and wait about 5 hours for them to solidify before using. To speed the process up you can place them in the fridge for 35 minutes.
These candles make wonderful gifts and can be easily decorated to your liking. The video shows jars spruced up with lace appliques, seashells, ornaments, spray paint, ribbons, and more. Check out the video for more details and further instructions.
Please Share this fun, inexpensive, crafty idea with friends and family! 🙂
