SIMPLE TWISTS
BY TEDDY WILLSON
USESpaghettiTOLight a Hard-to-Reach Pillar
Pasta can do so many things! It can feed a hungry crowd, become a kindergartner’s craft necklace…and handily light a wick that’s sitting deep inside a tall hurricane vase or lantern. That’s right. Instead of awkwardly trying to wriggle a lighter or match in there (and risking burning yourself!), take an uncooked piece of spaghetti (a.k.a. a spaghetto) and kindle one end with a lighter. Then use your noodle to get the candle going.
USERubber BandsTOStraighten Wobbly Tapers
Tilted tapers are a no-no for two reasons. First: They can make your lovely table setup look wonky. Second, and worse: They’re a serious fire hazard! To straighten them out, wrap a rubber band around the base of the candle, the way you’d put a hair tie around a ponytail. This should fill the gap between your taper and the holder (the likeliest cause of the lean) while adding some extra nonslip grip. If there’s still a tilt, add another rubber band until the taper stands tall.
USEFoilTOFix a Tunneled Candle
If your wax melts only in the center, tunneling through the middle, you’re losing valuable burn time! A bit of aluminum foil can fix this. Before you light your candle, wrap a piece of foil around the jar. Pinch it into a dome shape that covers the ring of unmelted wax but leaves space around the wick. (You don’t want the flame to touch the foil.) Next—you guessed it—light the candle. The foil will trap the heat and melt that wall of wax to even out the surface of your candle.
USESaltTOExtend Burn Time
You know that pricey, amazing-smelling candle you save for special occasions? What if we told you there was an off-label way to make it last longer so you can enjoy it on a regular old Tuesday? Next time, after you blow out the flame, sprinkle a pinch of table salt into the pool of wax (avoid the wick). Mix the salt into the liquid with a toothpick, then let the wax harden as normal. This can slow down the rate at which your wax melts, resulting in a slightly longer burn time.
USEA Candle JarASA Vessel
Because we’ve all bought at least one candle just for the cute container: Once the flame has flickered its last flick, put the whole jar in the freezer overnight. The next day, carefully use a butter knife to pop out the frozen wax. It should come out in large chunks—maybe even one big piece. Hand-wash the vessel with a little dish soap to remove any residue. Then give it a new life as a vase, a pencil cup, a cotton swab canister, anything!