DIY How to Clean a Candle Jar

I have a slight addiction to Bath and Body Works Candles. I am slightly embarrassed at the stash I have. Ok, not really. But I do love them and usually have at least one lit all the time. The strength of the scent depends on the candle of course. My favorites (right now) are the Garden Strawberry, the Lemon Mint Leaf and Summer Boardwalk which smells vaguely like Cinnamon Sugared Donuts. A lot of their candles are seasonal so I have my favorites for each season. Because I burn through a lot I end up with a lot of empty candle jars so I've been re-purposing them for awhile now and thought I'd share with you not only how I do it but some ideas for the empty jars. Now I should point out that I do not keep them all but I do empty out the wax at the bottom to save and I do recycle the ones I don't use. I am actually saving up a few right now in order to make some crafty holiday containers. I am not a very crafty person (though I can fake it really well) so it'll be interesting to see how it goes. 

To clean the candles I start with a candle that has burned the wax to the bottom of the Jar. Now you could make removing the old wax easier if you pop the candle in the freezer for a few hours and let the wax harden. I usually decide at the last minute to clean my candle jars so I usually skip that step. Next, I use a dull utensil, usually a kitchen butter knife to break up the wax and remove it. I add the wax to a another jar because I don't want to be wasteful and it's perfectly good wax. Once the jar is full, I set the jar in a pot of slightly almost not boiling water (not covering the top obviously) and soften the wax just enough to put a few wicks in the wax. I take it out, let it harden and presto I have a new candle that is uniquely layered and scented. 

Once you have removed the wax, these candles have wicks attached at the bottom with a glue. A little hot water will loosen that right up and you can easily remove them. The labels come off easy enough and any residue can be removed with warm water and a kitchen sponge. I hear vinegar works well to remove the sticky residue but I haven't actually tried it. Rinse, dry and voila! As detailed as those instructions were (sarcasm intended), I actually made a little video to show you quickly how to do what I just described. I would suggest checking it out because my instructions are terrible. 

(Note: since the video is fairly new, I can't embed it here. To see it click on the image below and it will take you to YouTube. Once it has been updated I will come back and embed for your viewing pleasure!

The possibilities for what you can put in the jars are endless. Pictured below left to right, top to bottom: Eyeliner pencils, perfume samples, lipgloss, makeup brushes. 

Pictured below left to right, top to bottom: Hand creams, Lip Balms, Cotton Rounds, Pens.