Choosing a candle-making kit can be an agonizing choice because there are hundreds of options available, but very few people have owned or tried more than one or two, so finding reliable information on which one is best is almost impossible. This usually leads to spending too much money to break into the hobby or spending too little for low-quality items – both of which can sour the experience.
We value your time, so we’ll give it to you straight. If we could pick any candle-making kit on the market, it would unquestionably be the SoftOwl Premium Soy Candle-Making Kit. It’s affordable, high-quality, yields a robust and wide variety of candles, uses eco-friendly materials, and has great attention to design and detail. Because of its polish, the kit makes a great gift itself, or you can create individual candles to gift.
Aside from a heat source, it contains everything you need to get started the moment you unbox it. And because it can be as simple or complex as you’d like, the kit works well for all skill levels in candle making.
Because of our experience teaching new hobbies, and specifically related to this, procuring and selling candle-making kits, we’re extremely focused on the value exchange. We’re sure you have questions and want more info – well, you’re in luck, because we’ll answer just about any question you could possibly have when it comes to finding the best candle-making kit on the market today.
WHY YOU CAN TRUST THIS REVIEW
If this is your first time making candles, congratulations, you’re about to discover a waxy world of creativity, self-expression, and, believe it or not, a good bit of relaxation. There are countless benefits and reasons to make your candles rather than buy them, on one condition – only make candles if you can use quality materials from a quality kit.
With a hobby like this, using anything subpar is going to deteriorate an adventure into a chore. More importantly, since you’ll be melting and burning fumes, the last thing you want to end up with is a product that’s polluting the space you breathe. It’s like the difference between trying to learn guitar on a finely tuned instrument versus one that’s missing a string or two and leeching toxic fumes. With stakes this high, why would you listen to us? Here’s why:
- Experience: New Hobby Box has extensive experience in building, selling, and teaching hobbies to thousands of customers, and now it’s completely focused on teaching hobbies.
- Procurement: One of the kits we used to make and sell was candle-making, so we know what the balance between high quality, great prices, and the right materials looks like.
- Education: We still teach readers how to make candles at home and will be using the SoftOwl kit for any new candle-making education materials moving forward.
- Unbias: Since we aren’t trying to sell a product that we own or make ourselves, we have no binding agreement to promote one product or another – we are making the recommendation in this article simply because we wholeheartedly think it is the best candle-making kit money can buy. We’re going to share the good and the bad about the product because we have the freedom, to be honest.
- Cats: We have a cat, and he is in the photo above. What else do you need?
Plus, we’ve used, tested, and reviewed countless candle making kits – and at the top of our best 5 candle making kit list for the year, you’ll find none other than the SoftOwl candle making kit in this review.
So, when we tell you that quality in candle-making matters and that we’re sensitive to budgets, we hope our credentials have earned your trust. Now then, let’s dive into the details and uncover what makes this kit the best, but also what can be improved.
#1 CANDLE-MAKING KIT: SOFTOWL PREMIUM SOY CANDLE-MAKING KIT
As we said, we’re wild horses in the review department, so we want to make sure our opinion remains impartial. In this section, we’re going to put this to the test by showing you the pros and cons of SoftOwl’s candle-making kit. We’ll pull out our favorite features that makes this kit uniquely amazing, but we’ll also share areas we’d like to see this kit improved.
Our Favorite Feature | Design Details
When you’re looking to dip your toes into the soothing art of candle-making, you want a kit that doesn’t just scrape the basics but instead, goes the extra mile. This is where the SoftOwl Premium Candle Making Kit truly shines – this kit isn’t just affordable, but also has a knack for details that transform a humble DIY project into an elegant, gift-worthy piece of decor. We call this “giftability” which may not be a real word, but it’s certainly a real factor for evaluating any candle making kit.
From the moment you see the box of the SoftOwl kit, it’s evident that the brand has placed a lot of effort into its design. This is carried through as you unbox it too. It’s premium through and through, leaving you satisfied as you pull item after item out of this design-forward packaging.
SoftOwl has mastered the art of attention to detail that elevates a craft from homespun to refined. This shows in the subtle touches like printed labels and Kraft paper tags, with jute to match. These finishing touches not only add a boho-chic vibe but make the candles feel complete and ready to gift.
Another feather in SoftOwl’s cap is its ability to present all this without breaking the bank – when we used to make and sell candle making kits at New Hobby Box, this was something we tried to create, but it was extremely challenging to do while keeping the prices affordable to the customer. Maintaining an excellent balance between quality and cost, SoftOwl has found the sweet spot of delivering a top-notch candle making kit that doesn’t leave a hole in your pocket.
Finally, the kit itself makes a stellar gift, thanks to its beautiful presentation. Whether you’re gifting the candles you’ve crafted or the entire kit, it’s a fantastic gift option that’s sure to impress. Few other candle-making kits on the market manage to achieve this balance of style, substance, and affordability.
Other Features We Love in This Candle Making Kit
COMPREHENSIVE KIT
When your SoftOwl Premium Soy Candle Making Kit arrives at your doorstep, it’s already primed and ready for action. All you need to supply is the heat source, and you’re good to go! And oh, did we mention the colors and scents? They’re perfect for adding a touch of personal flair to your creations. Want to challenge yourself? Experiment with mixing and matching different hues and fragrances!
HIGH ACCESSIBILITY
We really love how versatile and inclusive this kit is. It doesn’t matter if you’re a seasoned candle-making veteran or a greenhorn just stepping into the realm; there’s something for everyone. Enclosed within the package are vessels of varying styles and complexities. You can start with the simple ones and gradually work your way up to the intricate designs as you get more comfortable with the process.
VARIETY
The kit is teeming with tons of wax (3 lbs is a lot to get started) and a variety of scents and colors that will keep you engaged for a long while. It encourages you to create multiple candles, refine your craft, and discover your unique style.
PREMIUM SOY WAX
One of the most impressive elements of the SoftOwl kit is its primary material – soy wax. This isn’t merely a random choice; it’s a critical feature that distinguishes good candle making kits from the rest. Soy wax burns cleanly and is non-toxic, so it’s better for your health, which we’re sure you’ll agree is a burning issue.
Plus, it’s kinder to allergy sufferers and is devoid of carcinogens, letting you create and enjoy your candles guilt-free. If you’d like to learn more about the eco-friendly advantages of soy wax, check out our in-depth article on all the 7 different types of candle wax here.
HIGH QUALITY TOOLS
Now, let’s face it – candle making can sometimes be a little messy. And not just in the fun, artistic way like when you’re learning calligraphy, but in a sticky, hard-to-clean ‘wax-everywhere’ kind of way. That’s why the SoftOwl kit includes everything you need to avoid turning your kitchen into a waxworks – we wish our first go at making candles started with SoftOwl. You’ll receive a dedicated 34oz melting pot for your wax, a precision thermometer, and a stirring spoon. These aren’t just any old tools – they’re specially designed for this purpose. The melting pot? It’s a star performer. And the best part? You don’t need to sacrifice any of your existing kitchenware to the candle gods. Every piece of equipment in this kit is geared towards making your new hobby as easy and enjoyable as possible.
SoftOwl Candle Making Kit: Things to Improve
It’s mostly rainbows and sunshine with this kit, but there are a couple of things we think could use some attention.
SUSTAINABILITY AND ECO-FRIENDLINESS
The kit puts a lot of attention on the soy foundation of the wax, which is better for fumes as well as greener sourcing. Soy wax is a sustainable solution and because the water depletion and energy required to grow soy is far lower than some other resources, it’s a highly sustainable way to get wax. Our hat is tipped to SoftOwl for focusing on this, but we think there’s still more work to do.
We’d love to see the same concept of sustainability and eco-friendliness applied to other components of the kit. For instance:
- Jars and Tins: Create the jars from recycled glass bottles and the tins from recycled metals
- Wicks: Use a more sustainable wick than cotton (cotton is eco-friendly but requires a tremendous amount of water to grow)
- Packaging: Use recycled cardboard or reusable packaging
- Recycling Program: Create a program that accepts discarded candle jars for recycling that offers a discount on purchase for anyone that partakes in the program
- Dyes: Focus on eco-dyes or incorporating natural plants to create pigment in the candles
Wax is certainly a massive component to creating sustainable candles, but if SoftOwl could take their eco-friendly efforts one step further, no candle making kit would even come close to being competitive.
SPELLING AND GRAMMAR ISSUES
The SoftOwl Premium Soy Candle Making Kit is beautifully designed, with one exception. There are several misspellings and grammatical errors throughout the kit. We’re self-conscious writing this section since there are most likely some spelling issues in this review… but we also aren’t selling you anything, and we embrace not being a perfect product. We’re learning along with you, the readers.
As for the SoftOwl Candle Making Kit, most of the issues are internal facing. For example, there don’t appear to be any issues with the labels you slap on the candles, so if you give a candle as a gift, you won’t look foolish.
The errors are confined mostly to labeling of items for production incorrectly and to the booklet that explains how to make candles. It’s not a deal breaker by any means, but for someone who gives the entire kit as a gift, just fixing these minor details will make the kit earn the polished reputation it deserves. We’re definitely laser-focused on spelling and grammatical issues because of how frequently we write, so maybe most people won’t notice these issues. That said, we felt it was our responsibility to relay any problems we find with this kit.
And those are the biggest issues we see with this kit – heavy sarcasm on “biggest”. They are minor in the grand scheme of things. Addressing the sustainability miss and the spelling errors will take this kit from a 9.5 out of 10 rating to a 10 out of 10 rating – meaning it’s already an amazing kit. Now then, if anyone from SoftOwl is reading this, we have a couple of ideas we’d love for you to consider.
Ideas We’d Love to See in the SoftOwl Candle Making Kit
Making a kit that makes every customer happy is quite challenging – believe us, we know. And stocking enough inventory to customize kits to meet specific requirements takes this to a whole new level, but it would still be a great goal for SoftOwl to work toward.
GREATER CUSTOMIZATION
Right now, the SoftOwl Candle Making Kit does a tremendous job of catering to a wide audience. It has all the basics to make it simple enough for a beginner, enough variety of materials for them to experiment and grow into intermediate candle makers, and a huge range of scents, dyes, and vessels to appease an advanced chandler.
If you distill all the great features of this kit into one concept, it revolves around the ability to learn. And since this is intrinsic to its value, we think the ability to customize the kits in a few areas would be a tremendous way to not only personalize the kits, but help more people get into the hobby of making candles.
A few ways to bring this to life include:
- Wax: There are quite a few different types of waxes you can use. While soy is our favorite, others like beeswax and coconut wax are great to learn with as well. And what you may not know is that many of the best candles use a blend of wax sources to get the best of both worlds out of a candle. Since this kit comes with so much wax, the ability to mix up and choose your wax would be an interesting way to learn and experiment with the most important component of making a candle.
- Scents and Dyes: This idea is partially educational and partially related to gift giving. We think it would be fantastic to pick your own scents – whether that’s to match a season (think Christmas scents or Fall) or to hit a color palette that screams a specific time of year, or because you want both scent and color to be catered toward a person’s preference.
- Containers: Did you know you can currently purchase the SoftOwl Candle Making Kit in two different color varieties of containers? It’s true. The images from the kit in this review is the standard light shade. But there is also a black edition, where the candle jars and tins are all black. While this is a great step in given the candlemaker some variety of choice, we think offering even greater variety of container types would be a great next step. Adding in tins for tea lights, pillar molds, etc. Variety is the spice of life after all.
While true customization is extremely complex, even expanding the offerings to a larger menu of options would go a long way. Now then, you’ve heard what we love about the kit, what we don’t love, and what we would do to make it even better. Let’s shift gears and look at every single item that comes in this kit.
WHAT’S INSIDE THE SOFTOWL PREMIUM SOY CANDLE MAKING KIT?
- 4 Glass Jars: Teal, White, Pink, Yellow
- 3 Metal Tins: 2 Silver, 1 Black
- 1 Melting Pot
- 1 Digital Thermometer and 1 Mixing Spoon
- 7 Bags of Soy Wax: Each bag weighs 7 ounces
- 3 Bags of Dried Flowers: Lavender, Rose Bud, Osmanthus
- 10 Blocks of Color Dye: Black, Orange, Aquamarine, Yellow, Violet, Purple, Blue, Pink, Green, Red
- 7 Essential Oils: Cinnamon, Lavender, Apple, Sandalwood, Jasmine, Vanilla, Rose
- 10 Cotton Candle Pre-Waxed Wicks
- 2 Centering Devices
- 25 Sticker Labels
- 2 Kraft Gift Labels
- 10 Glue Dots and Pipettes
Let’s have a closer look at each item:
Glass Jars:
The standard kit (the one reviewed here) features four sleek glass jars in an array of colors: teal, white, pink, and yellow. If you purchase the black edition, the frosted glass jars will be black. The lids to the glass jars are wooden with a smooth bevel that’s been finely sanded.
The frosted look is easier to detect on the colorful jars, when lit, they not only house your candles but also add a decorative touch to your room decor and house.
Metal Tins:
The kit includes three sturdy metal tins – two silver and one black. These tins are excellent for crafting portable candles for travel or gifting. The thinner sticker labels are meant to wrap around these tins. Take note that the Black Edition kit includes 3 black metal tins and not any of the silver tins.
Melting Pot:
The kit includes a durable melting pot that will be your trusty sidekick when melting and blending your candle ingredients. It’s designed for convenience and ease of use. It’s sturdy in your hand and the metal feels thick without being too heavy to easily maneuver when filled with wax. The quality of this melting pot is surprisingly great, given the price of the entire kit.
Digital Thermometer and Mixing Spoon
These two tools are your keys to precision. With the digital thermometer, you’ll achieve perfect wax temperatures every time. A quick note on this, the melting temperature of soy wax is lower than beeswax and a couple other waxes, which makes it easier to work with.
The mixing spoon, does exactly what you’d imagine – it blends the wax, dye, and fragrance oils evenly. A key component in getting a balanced scent and burn.
Premium Soy Wax:
The kit packs 7 bags of top-notch soy wax, each weighing 7 oz. Soy wax promises cleaner and longer-lasting candles. The natural, renewable and biodegradable wax doesn’t just make great candles; it’s a big thumbs-up for green enthusiasts.
Dried Flowers:
This kit contains three bags of dried flowers – lavender, rose bud, and osmanthus. Each is unique and extremely fragrant flower. Simply sprinkle these these into your candles for an aesthetic boost and a subtle, natural scent.
Color Dye Blocks:
Breathe life into your candles with ten vibrant color dye blocks – SoftOwl gives you something of a bag of Skittles to play with. There are so many color combinations that you won’t have any problems mixing and matching to meet your mood or decor. Plus, you’ll have more than enough dye after running through your wax, which is great.
You’ll find the following color dye blocks in the candle making kit:
- Black
- Orange
- Aquamarine
- Yellow
- Violet
- Purple
- Blue
- Pink
- Green
- Red
Essential Oils:
One of the most exciting parts of making candles is selecting the fragrance. SoftOwl has carefully curated a selection of 7 premium fragrance oils that allow you to craft uniquely fragrant candles. The fun part is mixing and matching to create your signature scent, and fill your home or space with a comforting aroma.
The kit includes:
- Cinnamon
- Lavender
- Apple
- Sandalwood
- Jasmine
- Vanilla
- Rose
Cotton Pre-Waxed Wicks and Centering Devices:
The pre-waxed wicks in your kit are cotton-based, which isn’t the worst option available since they are easy to use and offer a decently steady and consistent burn. But this is one that we swap out and if you’re going to customize the kit on your own, this is the one area we’d advise you to do so.
Replace the cotton wicks with Organic Hemp Wicks, this specific product is pre-waxed with a coating of beeswax – the burn is fantastic and they’re the most versatile and eco-friendly candle wicks on the market at the moment.
The kit also contains two centering devices to help you position your wick accurately in the candle.
Sticker Labels:
You’ll also find twenty-five sticker labels in the kit with each scent already labeled and designed beautifully. This will help you personalize and package your candles as gifts.
Kraft Gift Labels
The kit also includes two kraft paper tags with jute to give a rustic maker vibe to your projects. They are clearly intended as gift labels and are super cute to boot. See, SoftOwl knew these make great gifts!
Glue Dots and Pipettes
The glue dots and pipettes aren’t the most exciting elements of the kit, but they play an important role nonetheless. The glue dots help secure the wicks in place, which is a real issue if you don’t secure it properly. As for the pipettes, if you track a scent creation, this little device will make sure you’re able to measure oils precisely, helping you recreate that signature aroma.
Who Is the SoftOwl Candle Making Kit for?
The SoftOwl Candle Making Kit is ideal for those seeking a new, creative hobby. By enabling the user to craft handmade candles, this kit not only introduces a new skill but stimulates artistic expression. It suits beginners, hobbyists, and even gift-seekers.
Trust us, this isn’t your everyday, run-of-the-mill craft kit. It’s the kind of kit that’s got everyone from total beginners to DIY pros hooked. Want a fun family craft session, or hunting for a new hobby for your retirement? Maybe you’re just swamped at work and need something calming to unwind. Whichever camp you fall into, SoftOwl’s Candle Making Kit has you covered. And no, you don’t have to be a seasoned candle-maker to make a candle that’s a showstopper!
But, we do think a few personalities would thrive with this candle making kit more than others, including the bespoke, the active parent, and the person who prides themselves on giving the best gifts.
BESPOKE IS IN YOUR DNA
If you’re the type of person that loves to customize and zig when others zag, then you have the bespoke DNA. And this kit is a great match to help you dig into your individualistic spirit, creating one-of-a-kind candles that reflect your personal taste and creativity.
It’s an opportunity to express your identity through the colors, scents, and forms of the candles you’ll handcraft.
FAMILY ACTIVITY DIRECTOR
If the family turns to you like you’re cruise director, then there’s a great chance you need some new ammunition. Something that takes the family off the couch and away from screens. The SoftOwl candle making kit is a fantastic way to foster collective creativity and transform an ordinary afternoon into a bonding session.
It’s about learning and collaborating (we realize that’s nearly impossible sometimes with the kids…), and yes, making beautiful candles together. It’s not just another activity, it’s a memory-maker that leaves behind tangible mementos of fun times spent together. And it smells great!
THE GIFT-WINNER
Gift-Winners pride themselves on thoughtfulness, and making something that people enjoy that also activates multiple senses is one of the best ways to hand over a memorable present – one that goes beyond material value.
Giving this kit isn’t just about the physical product, but sharing the joy of a new hobby, a shared experience, or a potential passion. And if you’re crafting a candle as a gift, every pour, every scent chosen is a personal touch that says, “I made this for you.” You can even personalize the scent to what you know about the recipient and what they love. Now that’s a gift-winner.
WHAT IS SOFTOWL?
SoftOwl is a distinctive educational brand focused on DIY candle-making kits and accessories. Their kits promote creative engagement, with beginner-friendly instructions, making it easy for beginners to learn how to craft candles.
SoftOwl is a bit like the Estonian version of New Hobby Box, back when the brand used to make and sell hobby kits. They’re laser-focused on teaching beginners something new, using an engaging way of learning rather than text or video. We love that about them, and their product exudes their passion for the hobby.
WHAT SHOULD BE IN A CANDLE MAKING KIT?
A complete candle making kit should include wax, wicks, fragrance oils, a melting pot, thermometer, containers, glue dots, and dye blocks. The most important element to get right is the wax, where you should choose kits that use soy, beeswax, or coconut wax. They burn more evenly and create less harmful fumes.
At a bare minimum, you need wax, wicks, essential oils, and dyes. However, all the other items like a melting pot and a wax specific thermometer will make it far less likely you’ll ruin tools you currently use in the kitchen. Other items like centering devices and glue dots simply make the task far easier. But there are things you can use around the house to supplement for those.
Aside from purchasing high quality wax, you’ll want to invest some time in making sure the sensory components of the candles are what you want. This means fragrance, dyes, and containers match the style and goal of the candle you’re trying to create. Miscellaneous items such as labels or pipettes aren’t completely necessary, but they do add a nice level of detail that helps take the hobby even further.
SoftOwl Compared to Other Top Selling Candle-Making Kits on Amazon
If you’re on the fence about the SoftOwl candle making kit, we’d like to show you how it compares to two other popular candle making kits on Amazon.
FROM WAX TO FLAME: IGNITE YOUR CANDLE MAKING HOBBY WITH SOFTOWL
We’ve talked a lot about the SoftOwl Candle Making Kit, haven’t we? We tend to do that since we view it as more than just a box of waxy stuff – it’s your ticket to a brand-new, soul-soothing hobby. Think about it. With SoftOwl, you’re not just mixing wax and scents; you’re creating your own little universe of delightful smells. Need a calming whiff of lavender for your chill-out moments? Or a comforting vanilla vibe for those snug family dinners? This kit has you covered.
Outside of SoftOwl, there’s something truly special about making candles. You’ve got the steady pour of the wax, the quiet threading of the wick, the art of blending just the right scents – it’s a perfect mix of zen and zest. Imagine coming home after a long day and losing yourself in the calm rhythm of candle making. It’s just you and a whole lot of creative peace. And guess what? The more you get into it, the more you see the bigger picture. Candle making isn’t just about making cool stuff for your home. It’s a way of expressing yourself, a relaxing break from life’s hustle, and hey, it makes for a killer gift as well.
So, ready to dive in? Grab a SoftOwl Premium Candle Making Kit and let your inner artist take over. Once you do, be sure to come back and try our candle-making tutorial if you get stuck. You never know—you could light up a candle one day and find a new passion glowing back at you. Trust us, there’s nothing quite like the glow of a candle you made yourself. Ready, set, glow!
Happy Hobbying,
