A candle should smell good, but ideally, it should also look good. If you’re making your own waxy decor, and want to avoid using tallow, you’re going to need to invest in some quality soy dye.

Choose your wax, melt it down, and add fragrance. Making candles at home isn't much more complicated than that, but there are a few things to consider.

Tape two wooden skewers together at either end so they look like a pair of chopsticks stuck together. This is your wick support. You’ll notice that the wicks have little metal disks at one end: those ...