Not all candles are vegan, unfortunately. Which may be disheartening and surprising to hear. There are the more obvious non-vegan candles, like those made of beeswax. If you’re against buying honey, you’d probably be against buying beeswax candles as well. There are also candles that contain stearic acid. This is an additive in candles derived from animal fat. The more old-fashioned way of making candles includes tallow, which comes from the “fatty leftover bits of butchered meats.” Tallow candles are less common now because of the glycerin they contain, which smells bad.

Candles that ARE vegan include soy, hemp, vegetable, and paraffin wax candles. Vegetable wax is thought to be the best because, not only is it a renewable resource, like hemp and soy, but it burns about 50% longer than most candles. So you get more for your money.

For my wedding, which will be on a lake in the Fall, candles will play a big role in the warm, Autumn-colored atmosphere we’re going for. I’m working on finding inexpensive jelly/mason jars, which I will be painting warm, coppery colors, then placing candles inside. I was inspired by this picture.

I was very excited to randomly discover some soy tealights on sale at Target that were just the right colors and smelled lovely. I guess that’s a benefit of soy candles– they have a very powerful smell so you don’t have to be sticking your nose in the flame to get the scent. Of course, since we’ll be outside, they’ll probably still be hard to smell. But hopefully, with the right wind, the guests will pick up on some of the vanilla, brown sugar, melon, mango, and lemon scents wafting through the air…

Another fun, crafty project is making your own candles. I found this on CaringConsumer.com. It teaches you how to make your own soy candles. Could be fun!

Even though it’s a bummer realizing not all candles are vegan, finding alternatives can be fun, educational, and even better than expected. Renewable recources that smell better and burn longer? I don’t mind if I do!