That's what I was thinking Sue, but I just can't find anything ( I'm normally pretty good w/ google key words). If veg oil can burn in a wick lantern and soap is just veg oil with a little lye... who knows? I'm half tempted to stick a wick in some home made soap to see what happens. 200 yrs ago everyone had candles. I don't think it all came from bees. That's a lot of hives to tend.
One of the things I would consider is whether it's safe to burn the homemade soap with lye in it. Could there be fumes that shouldn't be breathed?
I found some directions for tallow candles in "Encyclopedia of Country Living" by Carla Emery:
"Tallow. Save your firm, clean hunks of fat from butchering, about 2 pounds of tallow for each doezn candles you plan to make. Render out the tallow as you do in lard making, by heating to melt it, and then straining through a cloth. Then skim your candle tallow off the top. It helps in final appearance to go through the whole procedure again with your once-skimmed tallow: melt, strain, and skim to get your final candle-making tallow."
In the wicking section it says: "You can buy wicking or make your own. If you're a spinner, you can loosely spin hemp, tow, cotton, or milweed "silk" for wicks. Or just twist the material together tightly as best you can. You can make wicks out of common rushes by stripping part of the outer bark from them, leaving the pith bare. You can make wick out of string or make long cotton wicks out of cloth strings made by tearing cotton rags. It helps to braid it. For wicking you could also use old wicks from used candles, commercial wicking from candle suppliers, or pipe cleaners. A wire center makes it burn brighter. I wick too narrow for the diameter of your candle will not be strong enough and will let the flame get drowned in the melting wax. A wick that is too thick will smoke. To improve the final action, soak your wicking in limewater and saltpeter, limewater alone, vinegar, or saltpeter alone. Then dry."
"Making Dipped Tallow Candles: Tie a wick to a stick and dip into melted tallow. Let harden, and then dip again. Continue in this way until your candle is big enough to suit you. You can make more than one candle at a time by tying several wicks to a stick and dippin them all at once. For the first dip, wet your wicks in the tallow. they will probably want to float, and you'll have to help them into it. When cool, straighten and smooth them. Then dip again. If the bottoms get too large, hold them in the hot tallow until part melts off. After they've hung all night to cool, you can cut off the bottoms and trim around the base to get a nice bottom that will fit into your candleholder."
"More Dipping Tips: Tying a small weight, such as a little steel bolt (I've heard of using washers, too) to the bottom of the wick will help keep it straight. Another hint is to alternate dips into the hot tallow with dips into cool water to speed cooling, but you can't dip it into the tallow again until the candle is dry. About 30 dips make an average candle."
Gee, now I want to try this! I still have rendered bear lard, maybe I should get out a jar. If I do, I'll post pictures.
