Interesting video on why bees build hexagonal honeycombs. #bees #honeycomb #natural #nature ..read more

I am an avid gardener. I have both a flower garden with annuals and perennials as well as an annual vegetable garden of some kind. It is a fun pastime that I enjoy very much. I also have dogs. Now, dogs and flower gardens don't always mix well so I plant my flower gardens in the front yard where the dogs don't hang out just to be safe. It is easier to do that than keep track of the plants that are toxic to dogs and I can show the blooms off better there anyway. My dogs also tend to trample my flowers so it works well all the way around! Why do I bring this up? Because if a certain plant is tox ..read more

Lemongrass is one of my favorite essential oils. It is refreshing and relaxing to the senses and reminds me of a cool summer morning. As a candlemaker, it’s one of my go to scents as I know that it will be a hit with most people. It’s one of my best sellers. I’m even trying to grow some lemongrass of my own in the garden this year. We will see how that turns out! A little about Lemongrass essential oil. Having its beginnings in Southeast Asia, Lemongrass is an herb that belongs to the grass family Poaceae. The essential oil is extracted through steam distillation. It has a light, fresh, lemony ..read more

With Spring and Summer just around the corner, it's a good time to talk about bug repellants, natural essential oil bug repellants, that is. As most people know, Citronella candles are quite common at Summer picnics to bug proof. Citronella is extracted from the Lemongrass plant though it is believed by some that it comes from the Geranium plant. Geranium also has bug repelling properties so this is probably where the mix up happens. Something that you might not know about essential oil bug repellants is that there are other essential oils that that work too! Some of these are Clove, Cedar, Eu ..read more

I ran into Natadel's at Four Seasons Farmer's & Artisans Market in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Four Seasons is a year round farmer's market. It's absolutely wonderful and full of great items made by local artisans. One of these local artisans is Natadel's. My first experience with Natadel's was one of her scrumptious orange chocolate Madeleines. OMG! It was absolutely fantastic. Something that you want to keep eating until you're stuffed. Yummy! My second experience was a lovely home baked croissant. It looked like any other croissant but boy it was sooooo good. Flakey, buttery goodness. Nathal ..read more

Do you know how to tell the difference between a 100% beeswax candle and a beeswax blend candle? There are a few ways to tell. The first is the texture of the candle. A beeswax candle will be hard and smooth to the touch. Depending on what you have blended, a beeswax blend candle will have a more grainy texture. Another way to tell is the color. Pure beeswax will have a solid, somewhat clear yellow color. A blend may have a softer yellow color, even a milky looking color. Last but not least, a way to tell pure beeswax from blends is the scent. Pure beeswax will have a distinct honey scent exce ..read more

I love beeswax. Is it hard to work with? Not really. Some folks would like you to think so but working with beeswax is no different than working with any other media. You learn what you need to, you remember those rules and you go for it. Can it be challenging sometimes? Yes. Of course. Still, you push through. Here are some things to think about: Beeswax needs to be completely melted before pouring. If it looks more cloudy than clear, keep it on the heat a little longer. 175 degrees is a good temperature for pouring candles. Beeswax can be hard to repair after it has hardened. It shrinks dur ..read more

Candle burning seems like a no brainer, right? You light the candle and it burns away, releasing a wonderful scent in the process. That simple? Yes and no. If you want the cleanest and longest burn from your beeswax pillar, there are some simple things you can do to ensure you get what you paid for. First, before you light your candle, each time, trim your wick to 1/4 inch. This will help in three ways: 1) It will help your candle to burn at a steady, moderate rate. A long wick can burn your wax much faster, leaving you wondering what happened to the burn rate. 2) It will keep your wick from s ..read more

If you have questions about candle making or about beeswax candles, we at Nature's Gifts would love to create a blog post to answer them for you. Send your questions to us at info@naturesgiftsshop.com and we'll get posting ..read more

Trimming your candle wicks before lighting your candle seems like a small thing, doesn't it? Half the time I forget myself and then have to blow my candle out, trim the wick and then relight. With proper wick trimming, you can avoid some basic problems and even extend the life of your candle. Here are some common issues: - Smoking candle - a long wick can smoke, creating soot which can get into your candle and the air. - Broken wick - an untrimmed wick can break during burning and fall into your candle, marring the wax for future burns. - Accelerated burning - an untrimmed wick can cause your ..read more