Make Your Own Fire Starters ~ upcycling again ~ fabric scraps and old candles
July 9, 2012
Fill cupcake cases with scraps of fabric
- Leave to set
Not strictly craft or creation per se, but I came across this simple idea of making my own firestarters which will come in useful for our campfires in the summer. I always have a lot of scrap fabric – the teeny tiny bits that are too small for anything useful. I love candles, and my tea lights and candles always burn out leaving a fair bit of wax round the wick, so all this cost me was the cupcake cases (or you could fill the egg box troughs instead but I’m saving those for something else!).
Here’s how you do it…
- Put your cupcake cases into muffin baking tins.
- Divide your fabric scraps (or pencil shavings, or sawdust etc) into the cupcake cases.
- Break up your old wax leftovers into a saucepan with a spout.
- Bring a larger saucepan of water to the boil, and when it’s boiling, turn the heat down and put the saucepan with the wax on top to create a double boiler.
- Stirring occasionally, allow the candle wax bits to melt down to liquid.
- When it’s melted, pour carefully into the cupcake cases and leave to cool.
3 Comments
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MadeByYoursTruly 
Do you use the cupcake paper as the wick then? Have you tried them out, how do they work?
Yes, I light the paper casing. They’ve worked fantastically and are now the only fire lighters I use. Good to have a few scraps of the cotton bits sticking out at the top as well though, but this happens naturally when making them anyway. Good luck with them! Would love to hear how you get on!
I will have to try them. I have made some here http://homesteaddad.com/2012/11/19/home-made-firestarters/
But I am always up for new ideas. Thanks