Christmas Floating Candles

Christmas floating candles are perfect compliments to your holiday decorating. Floating candles are a must have accent for entertaining during the holiday season since most are unscented and made with food grade wax. They are a safe and practical way to add candlelight to all your Christmas festivities.

Where to Find Christmas Floating Candles 
Floating candles may be purchased at specialty candle shops and, during the holiday season, at Christmas stores. Many party stores also carry floating candles year round. Floating candles can also be found online at:
Candle Styx has holly floating candles that can be displayed singly or as a group. They work perfectly in a center dish on your holiday table and have a 12 hour burn time.
Christmas People sells personalized holiday floating candles that make a great remembrance of the Christmas season. Each candle is engraved with the family name or your choice of words along with the year and the word Christmas. The personalized candle can be accented with a variety of holiday embellishments, such as holly wreaths, floating glitter and miniature Christmas ornaments. They make great hostess and family gifts that will surely be treasured.
Candle Boutique offers a large selection of Christmas floating candles. They have designs such as peppermints, poinsettias, snowflakes, holly, Christmas trees, wreaths, snowmen and polar bears.
Crafted Candles has a unique selection of holiday floating candles. They feature designs such as chestnut leaves, snowflake, snowman, Santa, Christmas cookie, gingerbread man, holly leaf, holly wreath, poinsettia and holiday tree.
Wedding Flower and More sells floating candles in shapes such as stars, poinsettias and snowmen. They sell them separately or as part of a kit.

Uses for Christmas Candles 
There are endless possibilities for decorating with floating candles. Most commonly, floating candles will be used as part of a holiday table centerpiece. Creating a floating candle centerpiece for your Christmas table is quite simple. All you need to do is place a decorative bowl on a mirrored base in the center of your table. Add water and your candles then accent with festive touches such as candy, ribbon or glitter. Light the candles before your guests arrive.Floating candles can be used in wine glasses or any other decorative container you choose. Place a few around the room to cast light and add ambiance to your party. Why not wrap up a floating candle in netting and tie with a Christmas bow to use as a place setting on your holiday table? Add your guests' names to a tag and they will not only have a festive place setting but a fun gift to take home with them.
Candles make a quick and easy Christmas gift. They are perfect to give a hostess or use for a Secret Santa exchange. With all the designs available, you will be able to give a gift that is fun and festive and sure to be enjoyed during the holiday season. Wrap up floating candles as a group and give with a decorative bowl or throw some in to accent another gift you are giving.
No matter how you choose to decorate with your Christmas floating candles, they will add a special touch to any table or room.

Final Thoughts 
Since many floating candles come in shapes that appeal to children such as snowmen and Christmas cookie designs, pay close attention when you have lit candles around younger children. They may be attracted to the fun shapes and not realize that they are not meant to be played with. As with any candle, do not leave them unattended.

The History of Candles

Candles today are used to create warmth, scent and ambiance in our homes. There was a time quite long ago when candles were a necessity for lighting the darkness. The first mention of candles in the bible was as early as the 10th century BCE. Clay candle holders found in Egypt date back to 400 BC. The candles were then made from sticking wicks into containers filled with flammable material.
It has also been noted that the ancient Egyptians used rushlights or torches, made by soaking the core of reeds in molten tallow. This type of candle had no wick. It was the Romans who are credited with developing the first wick candle.
The Egyptians and the Roman's gathered tallow from cattle or sheep suet as their main ingredients in candles.
 

Since tallow was cheap and easily available, Tallow candles were widely used for many centuries.
It is said that the Romans used candles during the Saturnalia festival. During the festival, tall papers of wax were offered to Saturn (an angel of God).
The Chinese made candles from whale fat. In India, they used the wax from boiling cinnamon for candles in their temples. Japanese candles were made from extracting wax from nut trees. In the first century AD, the indigenous people from the region between Oregon and Alaska used a fish called the eulachon or "candlefish", which is a type of smelt.
The oil from this fish was used, or a candle could be made by putting the dried fish on a stick and lighting it.
Tallow was still used during the first century AD, however the tallow was smoky and odorous. In the early 1500's the beeswax was introduced as an alternative, however, beeswax was more difficult to obtain. Since beeswax was difficult to obtain and costly, beeswax candles were used almost exclusively by the wealthy, upper class and the Church.
With Christianity becoming more widespread, the custom of placing candles in the window began to be popular. The Irish Christians believed that placing a candle near a window on Christmas Eve would guide the Christ Child as he wondered from house to house. The people of Europe have kept this tradition going.
Early colonial women made their first contribution to candle making by boiling the berries of the bayberry bush to produce a sweet smelling, clean burning wax. This didn't last long, as the task of extracting the wax from the bayberries was tedious and the use of the bayberry candle diminished.
In the 18th century, candle makers began to use sperm whale oil to make candles because it was clean burning and low on odor like beeswax. They also found that it was harder than beeswax and withstood the summer heat better. In the Victorian period, candles were being placed on the Christmas Tree as a symbol of the star which guided the three wise men to the dwelling of Jesus. In 1890 candle holders were used for only one year to hold the candles to the tree. Before that, melted wax was used or the candles were pinned to the tree.
In 1834, Joseph Morgan introduced a candle making machine that used a cylinder with a movable piston that ejected the candles as they hardened. In 1850, paraffin wax was made from oil and coal shales. It was processed by distilling residue after crude petroleum was refined. Paraffin was found to burn clean with no odor, and the cost was very economical. The only threat to paraffins popularity was its low melting point. By the end of the 19th century, stearic acid was being produced and most candles consisted of paraffin and stearic acid. Soon the devastation would begin in the candle industry.
The distillation of kerosene would hurt the candle industry because it made an excellent fuel for lamps. In 1879, the introduction of the light bulb caused the candle making profession to decline until the turn of the century when there was a renewed popularity for candles. Candle making was enhanced during the first half of the 20th century due to the growth of the U.S. oil and meatpacking industries. Several meat packing and oil producing companies also had candle businesses. In 1829, Price's Candles, William Wilson, made candles from coconut oil and later he tried palm oil. In 1854, Williams brother George distilled the first petroleum oil. In 1919, Price's Candles was purchased by Lever Brothers. In 1922, Candles Ltd was created. By 1991, the last remaining owner of Candles ltd was sold off by Shell Oil Company.
Today, candles have become more of a decorative item. Candles are now available in a broad variety of sizes, shapes and colors. During the 1990's a new type of candle wax was being developed due to an unusual demand for candles. Soybean wax, which was softer and slower burning than paraffin, has become popular. Candles are used today to warm our hearts with alluring scents of remembrance and romance. They are also used as symbolic in celebrations. Candles are used in weddings to define ceremony and in our homes to accent decor. Candles are even popular to light paths for outdoor parties.

Floating candles

Floating candles are candles which are designed to float in water. They are molded with oversized tops and small bottoms so that they will remain stable as they burn, rather than tipping, listing, or inverting themselves. Many candle stores sell floating candles, and they can also be ordered directly from candle manufacturers or made at home, by purchasing block wax, melting it, and pouring it into molds which are suitable for floating candles.
There are a number of uses for these decorative candles. At outdoor parties with pools, floating candles can be scattered across the pool to create an interesting visual effect, and to alert guests to the presence of the water. A floating candle centerpiece can be used at the dinner table, with the candles suspended in a large dish of water, and floating candles can also be added to water features in the garden, large bowls outdoors and around the house, and any other environment where there is water.
One major advantage to floating candles is that they carry few safety risks, as long as flammable materials are kept away from the sides of the water so that the candles do not accidentally set something alight if they drift against the edges. When floating candles burn down, they eventually sink and extinguish themselves. When materials like flowers are floated along with the candles, these materials are usually too waterlogged to catch fire, making a floating candle arrangement reasonably safe when compared to ordinary displays of candles.
Many floating candles are very small, like tealight candles or small votive candles. It is also possible to purchase floating candle holders which can be used to display tealights or small tapers, along with other types of candles. One issue with floating candles is that they can burn out within a few hours, so it is important to keep an eye on the display and refresh it as candles go out.
A variety of wax colors can be used for floating candles. White is classic, and very common, but for themed centerpieces or visual variation, dyed wax candles can be used, and it is also possible to find dipped candles which display a rainbow of colors as they burn down. Scented candles can also be utilized, although they are not recommended for pools or garden water features, since the oils used to create the scent will leach out and make a mess in the water.