Beeswax Candles and Salt Lamps

Last Updated on June 29, 2022 by Rebecca Huff

Are beeswax and salt lamps on your wish list? If you haven't already subscribed to my YouTube Channel, what are you waiting for. I'm creating a few videos about “My Favorite Things”  because I love share when I find something amazing or wonderful. So now I will some of my favorite things with you.

I have a stack of stuff I have been wanting to show you but to start out, I am going to show you two things:

Beeswax and himalayan salt lamps

I adore beeswax candles and I have to tell you how great they are. One, because the beekeeper who sold me these candles asked me to let him know what I thought about them but also, because I think this is a really important issue! I've had my salt lamps for several years, but I only recently started buying the beeswax candles. There's a reason for that.

I don’t use candles on a regular basis. I’ve had candles in my home, but I've never been an regular candle user.  Also, when we moved into our current home I noticed lots of places on the walls that had black smudges where the previous owner had burned candles everywhere and I just thought “how gross!” 

I am candle-shy since years ago, when my son held a dry cotton mop over one and caught it on fire, then cornered my daughter into the living room with it. I guess he was hoping she’d blow it out, but when she screamed he dropped it on the carpet which caught the carpet on fire… and that’s when I came out of my bedroom and found all the chaos. Chaos, people. My sons = chaos.

So you can see why I might be just slighty hesistant about candle safety. I’m not too quick to jump on the Parent-Bashing-Bandwagon since we all have our moments! It only takes a minute folks, only a minute. Or a couple of minutes. Like the time I woke up to find a mustard trail from the fridge across every single piece of furniture I owned, including the piano keys. Yes, my son crawled out of his crib and did that while I was sleeping.

Back to my favorite things, I do enjoy the glow of a nice candle from time to time but there’s another problem about candle safety that I want to bring to your attention. That is what MOST candles are made of. You know the regular candles everyone buys, like the giant bag of tealights you can get super cheap from the Dollar Store. Those are made from paraffin; namely, paraffin wax which is actually a by-product of petroleum refining.

Yep, that’s right. Paraffin wax is a highly toxic product that is not environmentally friendly and guess what, paraffin wax candles just poisons the air you breathe inside your home when you burn them. Romantic right? Oh yeah baby! Let’s turn off the lights and get some toxins up in this air…yeah! Ok, seriously tho…

I won’t go into great detail right now, but you can do a bit of research into where the paraffin comes from to find out all the dirty sludgy details. Now, on top of the wax being toxic, then we get a mix in toxic concoctions mixed in to create the colors and fragrances to make basically a waste by-product into a marketable, appealing, expensive product.

After all that you end up with this candle which when burned releases eleven, yes, that’s right eleven documented toxins –and get this, two of them are carcinogens. Wow right?

Lucky for us, we can just take a glimpse back in time and look at what our ancestors used before we “fixed” everything and made it all modern. You can actually buy sheets of beeswax and roll up your own candles. It's fun!

In my video, I show you my tea light beeswax candles I purchased from a beekeeper at our local Farmers Market! Now don’t worry, if you don’t have a Farmer’s Market near by you can order these online. You can also order pillars and votives as well as blocks of pure beeswax. 

My daughter pointed out to me that the beeswax candles actually smell like honey, and she’s right, they really do. Now, here’s the cool part about beeswax candles… did you know that beeswax candles clean the air when they burn? That’s because Beeswax releases negative ions when it burns.

Pollen, dust, dirt, pollutants, and any other yucky stuff in the air all carry a positive charge, and that is how they can be suspended in the air. The negative ions released from burning beeswax negate the positive charge of air contaminants, and the neutralized ions are sucked back into the burning candle or they simply fall to the ground. Because beeswax candles clean the air and reduce indoor pollutants, they can effectively reduce asthma, allergies, and hay fever symptoms. (source) 

Beeswax candles actually burn brighter, stronger and last longer than paraffin wax candles, so that is a bonus.  Another bonus is that they are a renewable resource.  

When you are ready to walk away from your candle, because you never leave a candle burning in a room unattended… right? RIGHT. Yes, lesson learned, but when you want to walk away, instead of blowing the candle out, it’s better to snuff it with a  candle snuffer.

Soy candles still contain some paraffin, so I'll stick with 100% beeswax. Before I leave beeswax and move on to Salt Lamps I have to mention this BeesWrap, which I use in place of plastic wrap whenever possible, and by that I mean I don’t send it to work with my husband. Read into that what you like, I’m not saying he doesn’t bring home his lunch containers, but if you want to think that, well, that’s up to you.

The wraps are basically certified organic cotton with sustainably sourced beeswax from the United States, organic jojoba oil, and tree resin.  Somehow these fabulous ingredients creates a malleable food wrap that can be used over and over. (not for raw meat)

Himalayan Salt Candle Holder and Salt Lamps

One reason to use a crystal salt candle holder is because when crystal salt is heated, whether by a candle or electricity, it attracts humidity which causes the surface of the salt to get moist which in turn creates this build up of ions while removing moisture from the air. This helps to neutralize the air in your home reducing allergens and other irritants.

Aside from the purifying benefits, I think it looks warm and cozy and the best thing is that it makes me feel happy! It's most useful to place the salt lamps or candle holders in areas where you spend the most time. I have two in my bedroom and then I have one plugged into my computer as well. I'd really like to have one for each of my bathrooms, but I'll have to just add that to my wish list, now won't I?

By the way, these salt lamps can be purchased in all different shapes and sizes, really big ones or smaller ones and even ones that you can plug into your computer to reduce the electro-smog in your environment while you work!

As long as you're in a bee-frame-of-mind, buzz on over and read my post about the benefits of bee pollen, it has two beautiful coloring pages for you to download!

Update: Pets need to be kept away from salt blocks and salt lamps as they could lick them and get very sick. Just let onions and garlic can make cats and dogs sick, so please take precautions with fur babies.