WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.200 --> 00:00:06.960 Hello and welcome. I'm so glad you're here tonight. Before 2 00:00:07.000 --> 00:00:10.759 we begin. If these stories bring you peace, I'd be 3 00:00:10.800 --> 00:00:13.640 grateful if you'd take a moment to like this video 4 00:00:14.400 --> 00:00:18.039 and subscribe to the channel. It helps others find their 5 00:00:18.079 --> 00:00:22.960 way to the workshop too. But for now, let everything 6 00:00:23.000 --> 00:00:29.920 else fade away. Tonight we're going to a quiet workshop, 7 00:00:31.079 --> 00:00:36.520 a place where light is made, where wax becomes something beautiful. 8 00:00:37.399 --> 00:00:42.320 We're scent and warmth and careful work combined to create 9 00:00:42.439 --> 00:00:48.079 candles that will bring comfort to others. You're the candle maker, 10 00:00:49.719 --> 00:00:56.679 and evening is your favorite time to work. Let's prepare 11 00:00:56.799 --> 00:01:04.319 your body for rest. Find your most comfortable position, adjust 12 00:01:04.840 --> 00:01:10.159 anything you need. You're safe here. You're exactly where you 13 00:01:10.280 --> 00:01:15.799 need to be. Take a gentle breath in through your nose, 14 00:01:17.239 --> 00:01:22.920 Hold it softly, and release it slowly through your mouth. 15 00:01:24.599 --> 00:01:36.760 Good again, Breathe in slowly and deeply, hold for a moment, 16 00:01:36.840 --> 00:01:42.680 and let it go, releasing any tension from your day. 17 00:01:44.359 --> 00:01:51.359 Your shoulders drop away from your ears, your jaw relaxes, 18 00:01:52.680 --> 00:01:59.879 teeth slightly apart. Your tongue rests softly in your mouth. 19 00:02:01.480 --> 00:02:04.680 Your eyes are gently closed. There's nothing you need to 20 00:02:04.719 --> 00:02:09.639 see right now. Just my voice, just the story, just 21 00:02:09.719 --> 00:02:16.159 the peace. Feel your body becoming heavy, sinking into comfort, 22 00:02:17.280 --> 00:02:24.680 supported and safe. There's no hurry here, no deadlines, just 23 00:02:24.919 --> 00:02:31.599 the slow, patient work of making light. And now, when 24 00:02:31.599 --> 00:02:36.599 you're ready, come with me. We're going to the workshop. 25 00:02:38.159 --> 00:02:42.360 It's early evening. The sun has set, but the sky 26 00:02:42.599 --> 00:02:49.159 still holds light that in between time, twilight, when day 27 00:02:49.240 --> 00:02:54.240 becomes night, when the world grows quiet. You walk down 28 00:02:54.280 --> 00:02:57.960 a cobblestone street in a small village. The stones are 29 00:02:58.000 --> 00:03:01.960 worn smooth by centuries of foot steps. Your own footsteps 30 00:03:02.039 --> 00:03:09.560 are quiet, peaceful. Most shops are closed now, windows dark, 31 00:03:10.960 --> 00:03:17.120 the day's work finished. But ahead you see light glowing 32 00:03:17.280 --> 00:03:28.199 from one window, warm, golden, inviting your workshop. The sign 33 00:03:28.280 --> 00:03:32.639 above the door is simple, hand painted wood, weathered by time. 34 00:03:33.319 --> 00:03:38.240 It reads candle maker, and beneath that, in smaller letters, 35 00:03:38.960 --> 00:03:42.759 light for every home. You reach for the door handle, 36 00:03:43.960 --> 00:03:50.199 brass cool to the touch. You turn it, push the 37 00:03:50.280 --> 00:03:57.199 door open, and step inside. The workshop welcomes you with 38 00:03:57.400 --> 00:04:02.680 warmth and scent. The warmth comes from the large fireplace 39 00:04:02.960 --> 00:04:06.560 built into the wall on your left. Stone and brick, 40 00:04:07.080 --> 00:04:11.039 blackened by years of use. Fire burns there, now steady 41 00:04:11.039 --> 00:04:14.919 and gentle, not too hot, not roaring, just a comfortable 42 00:04:14.960 --> 00:04:18.639 even heat, just enough to keep the workshop comfortable on 43 00:04:18.680 --> 00:04:22.600 this cool evening, just enough to melt wax when needed, 44 00:04:23.800 --> 00:04:27.959 just enough to create the right atmosphere for work. The 45 00:04:28.079 --> 00:04:31.560 scent is the first thing everyone notices when they enter 46 00:04:31.639 --> 00:04:37.000 this space, the signature of this place, the essence of 47 00:04:37.040 --> 00:04:40.759 the candle maker's art, the thing that makes people stop 48 00:04:40.839 --> 00:04:45.399 in the doorway and breathe deeply in smile. Bees wax. 49 00:04:46.240 --> 00:04:51.000 That's the foundation. That's sweet, honeylike scent that's warm and 50 00:04:51.120 --> 00:04:55.199 natural and ancient, the smell of the hive, the smell 51 00:04:55.240 --> 00:04:59.120 of thousands of bees working all summer long, making wax 52 00:04:59.279 --> 00:05:05.480 sell by s building comb storing honey. Now that wax 53 00:05:05.560 --> 00:05:13.759 has been melted down and refined, strained and purified, ready 54 00:05:13.800 --> 00:05:19.560 to become light. Bees wax smells different from paraffin, from soy, 55 00:05:20.160 --> 00:05:25.639 from all the modern alternatives. It smells alive, organic, real. 56 00:05:26.480 --> 00:05:30.120 It smells like sunshine stored in solid form, like summer 57 00:05:30.160 --> 00:05:34.040 afternoons when bees work. The lavender like the inside of 58 00:05:34.079 --> 00:05:38.399 a wooden hive, warmed by the sun and beneath the 59 00:05:38.439 --> 00:05:46.160 bees wax layered and complex. Other scents, the essential oils 60 00:05:46.199 --> 00:05:51.079 and herbs you use to scent your candles. Lavender is 61 00:05:51.120 --> 00:05:56.439 strongest right now, sweet and floral and calming. You made 62 00:05:56.519 --> 00:06:00.240 lavender candles yesterday, and the scent still lingers in the air, 63 00:06:00.839 --> 00:06:03.839 in the wooden beams, in the very walls of the workshop. 64 00:06:04.560 --> 00:06:08.720 But there are others too, Vanilla, warm and sweet like 65 00:06:08.759 --> 00:06:15.959 baking rose, delicate and romantic, cinnamon, spicy and warming, sage, 66 00:06:16.480 --> 00:06:21.480 clean and herbal. Each scent a memory, each scent a mood, 67 00:06:21.959 --> 00:06:24.680 each scent chosen carefully for the candles it will inhabit. 68 00:06:25.759 --> 00:06:29.240 The workshop itself is not large, but it's perfectly organized. 69 00:06:29.839 --> 00:06:32.800 It has to be. Efficiency matters when you're working with 70 00:06:32.839 --> 00:06:37.720 your hands, creating things from raw materials, transforming elements into 71 00:06:37.720 --> 00:06:45.879 finished goods. Every tool has its place, Every ingredient has 72 00:06:45.920 --> 00:06:51.639 its spot. Years of work have taught you exactly where 73 00:06:51.720 --> 00:06:55.879 each thing should live, where your hand can find it 74 00:06:55.920 --> 00:07:00.879 without thinking, where everything flows in the nat natural order 75 00:07:01.079 --> 00:07:07.240 of the work. The walls are whitewashed plaster, thick and old, 76 00:07:08.399 --> 00:07:11.040 the kind of walls that were built when this building 77 00:07:11.120 --> 00:07:15.480 was new more than a hundred years ago, clean and 78 00:07:15.560 --> 00:07:20.399 bright in the lamplight, reflecting the golden glow making the 79 00:07:20.439 --> 00:07:24.040 workshop feel larger than it is, making the light go 80 00:07:24.199 --> 00:07:30.120 further along the walls. Wooden shelves hold your supplies. These 81 00:07:30.199 --> 00:07:35.480 shelves are old, too, dark, with age worn smooth by use. 82 00:07:36.560 --> 00:07:41.639 Each shelf holds specific things. On the top shelf, blocks 83 00:07:41.680 --> 00:07:46.360 of beeswax, Each block wrapped carefully in clean muslin cloth 84 00:07:47.040 --> 00:07:51.000 to protect it from dust, from moisture, from anything that 85 00:07:51.079 --> 00:07:57.879 might compromise its purity. The blocks are substantial, heavy. Each 86 00:07:57.920 --> 00:08:02.480 one represents the work of the thousands of bees, tens 87 00:08:02.519 --> 00:08:07.360 of thousands of trips from hive to flour and back again. 88 00:08:08.839 --> 00:08:14.319 Below that, bottles of essential oils glass bottles, mostly brown 89 00:08:14.639 --> 00:08:17.759 or dark blue, to protect the oils from light, which 90 00:08:17.800 --> 00:08:21.279 can degrade them over time. Each bottle is labeled in 91 00:08:21.279 --> 00:08:30.160 your own handwriting lavender, rose, peppermint, eucalyptus, lemon, cinnamon, clove. 92 00:08:31.040 --> 00:08:34.480 Each one opened carefully when needed, sealed tightly after use. 93 00:08:35.240 --> 00:08:40.159 Essential oils are precious, expensive, potent. A little goes a 94 00:08:40.200 --> 00:08:44.279 very long way. Another shelf holds stride herbs. Some you 95 00:08:44.360 --> 00:08:48.080 use directly in candles, embedding them in wax for decoration 96 00:08:48.360 --> 00:08:52.039 and scent. Others you infuse in oil before adding to 97 00:08:52.120 --> 00:08:57.000 the wax. Lavender sprigs, their purple color faded, but their 98 00:08:57.000 --> 00:09:02.559 scent still present. Rose petals dried to brittleness, but still beautiful, 99 00:09:03.639 --> 00:09:08.720 camomeale flowers, sage leaves, each gathered at the right time, 100 00:09:09.440 --> 00:09:15.120 dried properly, stored carefully on a lower shelf. Spools of 101 00:09:15.200 --> 00:09:19.879 wick cotton wick in different thicknesses for different sizes of candles, 102 00:09:20.840 --> 00:09:25.759 thin wick for motives, medium for tapers, thick for large 103 00:09:25.799 --> 00:09:30.799 pillar candles. Each spool white and waiting, holding hundreds of 104 00:09:30.840 --> 00:09:32.320 feet of potential. 105 00:09:32.399 --> 00:09:32.600 Light. 106 00:09:33.679 --> 00:09:39.360 And molds. Tin molds old and dented, but still perfectly functional, 107 00:09:40.080 --> 00:09:45.200 Ceramic molds for special shapes, Silicone molds for more detailed work, 108 00:09:45.960 --> 00:09:49.799 Each mold clean and ready, each one of form waiting 109 00:09:49.879 --> 00:09:53.480 to be filled, a shape waiting to be given substance. 110 00:09:54.759 --> 00:09:59.480 Your work bench dominates the center of the room. It's 111 00:09:59.559 --> 00:10:04.559 the heart of the workshop, the place where everything happens. 112 00:10:06.039 --> 00:10:08.960 The bench is a long, solid table made of dark 113 00:10:09.039 --> 00:10:14.159 wood oak, probably, though it's so old and worn that 114 00:10:14.240 --> 00:10:17.519 it's hard to tell for certain. The surface is scarred 115 00:10:18.120 --> 00:10:22.000 and marked by years of use. Knife marks where you've 116 00:10:22.000 --> 00:10:27.320 cut wax, burns from the occasional accident with hot wax 117 00:10:27.960 --> 00:10:34.080 or flame. Small divets and scratches that tell stories you've forgotten. 118 00:10:35.399 --> 00:10:41.200 And wax everywhere on the bench, tiny spots and drips 119 00:10:41.320 --> 00:10:45.480 of hardened wax. Most you've scraped off over the years, 120 00:10:46.240 --> 00:10:50.080 but some remain. Some are embedded so deeply in the 121 00:10:50.080 --> 00:10:52.799 grain of the wood that they've become part of it, 122 00:10:54.200 --> 00:11:00.639 part of the bench's character, part of its history. Are 123 00:11:00.639 --> 00:11:04.960 different colors. Most are the pale gold of bees wax, 124 00:11:05.720 --> 00:11:09.360 but here and there you can see spots of darker wax. 125 00:11:10.200 --> 00:11:14.279 That was when you experimented with adding color with creating 126 00:11:14.360 --> 00:11:18.600 tinted candles. It didn't work well with bees wax, which 127 00:11:18.679 --> 00:11:25.399 resists dye, but you tried, and the evidence remains on 128 00:11:25.440 --> 00:11:25.879 the bench. 129 00:11:25.960 --> 00:11:26.240 Now. 130 00:11:26.799 --> 00:11:32.039 Your tools weight, each one placed exactly where you left 131 00:11:32.080 --> 00:11:37.360 it this morning when you finished yesterday's work. A large 132 00:11:37.440 --> 00:11:42.080 copper pot for melting wax. The copper is old, darkened 133 00:11:42.120 --> 00:11:47.679 with age and use, but still beautiful. Copper conducts heat evenly, 134 00:11:48.240 --> 00:11:51.960 which is crucial for working with wax. Too much heat 135 00:11:52.120 --> 00:11:56.879 in one spot can scorch the wax, ruin it, even 136 00:11:56.919 --> 00:12:01.919 cause it to smoke or catch fire, but copper distributes 137 00:12:01.960 --> 00:12:09.559 the heat gently, evenly, safely. A smaller pot that sits 138 00:12:09.679 --> 00:12:13.759 inside a larger water filled pot to create a double boiler. 139 00:12:14.759 --> 00:12:19.000 The safest way to melt wax indirect heat through water, 140 00:12:19.799 --> 00:12:23.399 gentle and controlled, the way wax makers have done it 141 00:12:23.440 --> 00:12:27.639 for centuries, because it works, because it's right. Wooden spoons 142 00:12:27.679 --> 00:12:33.080 for stirring. Long handled spoons, their wood darkened and smoothed 143 00:12:33.360 --> 00:12:37.320 by years of stirring hot wax. The wood has absorbed 144 00:12:37.360 --> 00:12:43.480 wax over time, becoming slightly waterproof, slightly golden, slightly fragrant. 145 00:12:44.720 --> 00:12:48.799 These spoons are only for wax only for this work. 146 00:12:49.639 --> 00:12:55.559 They're dedicated, sacred in a way. A candy thermometer for 147 00:12:55.679 --> 00:12:59.360 checking the temperature of the wax wax has an ideal 148 00:12:59.399 --> 00:13:03.799 pouring temper. Too hot and it can warp molds or 149 00:13:03.840 --> 00:13:08.159 create rough surfaces. Too cool and it won't flow properly, 150 00:13:08.720 --> 00:13:13.200 won't fill molds completely, won't coat wix evenly. The thermometer 151 00:13:13.279 --> 00:13:17.559 tells you when it's just right. Pouring pictures with spouts 152 00:13:17.720 --> 00:13:23.919 for transferring melted wax from pot to mold. Metal pictures 153 00:13:24.840 --> 00:13:32.399 dented and worn, but clean and ready. Wickholders small metal 154 00:13:32.399 --> 00:13:35.480 clips that keep wicks centered in molds while wax is poured. 155 00:13:36.120 --> 00:13:40.080 Simple tools, but essential without them, wicks drift to the side, 156 00:13:40.320 --> 00:13:45.279 creating candles that burn unevenly, that tunnel that fail. Everything clean, 157 00:13:46.360 --> 00:13:52.200 Everything prepared for tonight's work. Everything ready because you prepared 158 00:13:52.200 --> 00:13:56.600 it earlier, because you always leave the workshop ready for 159 00:13:56.639 --> 00:14:00.559 the next session. Because that's how you were taught, and 160 00:14:00.639 --> 00:14:04.679 it's how you teach yourself every day, to respect the 161 00:14:04.759 --> 00:14:11.240 work and the work space. Along the back wall more shelves. 162 00:14:12.360 --> 00:14:17.840 These hold the finished candles, your daily production, the output 163 00:14:17.960 --> 00:14:23.200 of your craft, the reason this workshop exists. Tapers and 164 00:14:23.279 --> 00:14:28.919 pears tied together with string, standing in rows like soldiers 165 00:14:28.960 --> 00:14:34.279 at attention. White and cream and the natural pale gold 166 00:14:34.519 --> 00:14:39.879 of pure bees wax, pillars of various heights, short fat 167 00:14:39.919 --> 00:14:45.000 ones for tables, tall slender ones for mantlepieces, each one 168 00:14:45.159 --> 00:14:50.519 smooth and perfect, made in molds, turned out carefully finished 169 00:14:50.559 --> 00:14:56.639 by hand. Small votives in cups, tea lights, and metal containers. 170 00:14:57.519 --> 00:15:03.279 Specialty candles in unusual shapes, a bee, a flower, a 171 00:15:03.320 --> 00:15:10.039 simple cross, each one made by your hands, Each one 172 00:15:10.200 --> 00:15:17.240 the result of hours of work gathering materials, preparing, melting, 173 00:15:18.039 --> 00:15:24.519 pouring or dipping, waiting for cooling, trimming, finishing, Each candle 174 00:15:24.600 --> 00:15:29.559 representing knowledge and skill and care. Each one, ready to 175 00:15:29.679 --> 00:15:35.840 bring light to someone's home, ready to fulfill its purpose. 176 00:15:37.480 --> 00:15:42.320 The floor is wide, pine boards old and darkened with age. 177 00:15:42.960 --> 00:15:47.000 The boards are uneven, worn down in pathways where you walk, 178 00:15:47.080 --> 00:15:52.000 most often from door to work bench, from workbench to fireplace, 179 00:15:52.759 --> 00:15:57.200 from fireplace to shelves. Your feet have worn these paths 180 00:15:57.639 --> 00:16:02.519 over years of walking the same roots, following the same patterns, 181 00:16:03.679 --> 00:16:08.200 doing the same work in the same ways. Here and 182 00:16:08.240 --> 00:16:12.440 there on the floor spots of hardened wax mark where 183 00:16:12.519 --> 00:16:17.879 spills have occurred over the years, small accidents inevitable when 184 00:16:17.919 --> 00:16:22.240 working with liquid wax. A pot tipped too far, a 185 00:16:22.279 --> 00:16:27.480 pore that missed, the mold, drips that fell while carrying candles. 186 00:16:29.039 --> 00:16:31.519 You tried to clean these spots when they were fresh, 187 00:16:32.279 --> 00:16:34.960 but wax has a way of settling into wood grain, 188 00:16:35.759 --> 00:16:39.600 of becoming part of the floor. So now they remain 189 00:16:40.519 --> 00:16:46.360 small sculptures, tiny monuments to mistakes and accidents, part of 190 00:16:46.360 --> 00:16:50.480 the workshop's history, part of its character. Proof that work 191 00:16:50.559 --> 00:16:56.039 happens here, that creation is sometimes messy, that perfection isn't required. 192 00:16:57.080 --> 00:17:02.960 Only care, only effort, only the willingness to try. You 193 00:17:03.039 --> 00:17:09.480 move through the space, slowly, comfortably. This is your domain, 194 00:17:10.480 --> 00:17:15.839 your place of creation your refuge. You light the oil 195 00:17:15.960 --> 00:17:20.240 lamps first. There are three of them, one on the 196 00:17:20.279 --> 00:17:25.079 work bench, one on a shelf, one hanging from a 197 00:17:25.119 --> 00:17:29.640 beam near the fireplace. You lift the glass chimney from 198 00:17:29.640 --> 00:17:34.240 the first lamp, strike a match. The sulfur flares, then 199 00:17:34.279 --> 00:17:37.279 settles into steady flame. You touch it to the wick. 200 00:17:38.000 --> 00:17:44.920 The wick catches, the flame grows steady, golden, beautiful. You 201 00:17:45.000 --> 00:17:52.559 replace the chimney. The flame steadies protected, now glowing warmly. 202 00:17:53.839 --> 00:17:57.640 You light the other lamps the same way, each one 203 00:17:58.160 --> 00:18:02.240 adding its light to the room, each one pushing back 204 00:18:02.279 --> 00:18:08.039 the darkness a bit more. The workshop is bright, now warm, 205 00:18:09.640 --> 00:18:17.200 ready for work. You're making candles tonight, bees wax tapers, 206 00:18:18.960 --> 00:18:26.039 long elegant candles that will burn slowly and clean, the 207 00:18:26.160 --> 00:18:29.079 kind that have been made the same way for centuries, 208 00:18:30.200 --> 00:18:33.559 the kind that never go out of fashion because they're 209 00:18:33.640 --> 00:18:39.519 simply right. And you're going to scent them with lavender, 210 00:18:40.640 --> 00:18:46.880 calming lavender, the scent of peace and rest and gentle 211 00:18:47.000 --> 00:18:54.160 summer evenings. You begin by preparing the wax. You take 212 00:18:54.200 --> 00:18:58.079 a block of beeswax from the shelf. It's wrapped in 213 00:18:58.119 --> 00:19:03.559 cloth to keep it clean. You unwrap it carefully folding 214 00:19:03.599 --> 00:19:06.640 the cloth and setting it aside. 215 00:19:06.839 --> 00:19:07.799 The wax is. 216 00:19:07.799 --> 00:19:12.559 Pale gold, the color of honey in sunlight. The surface 217 00:19:12.599 --> 00:19:16.119 is slightly rough, showing the texture of the mold it 218 00:19:16.200 --> 00:19:21.039 was formed in. It's heavy, solid, cool to the touch. 219 00:19:21.920 --> 00:19:27.000 You can already smell it, even unmelted. That sweet, warm scent, 220 00:19:27.960 --> 00:19:31.319 the scent of summer stored in solid form, the scent 221 00:19:31.359 --> 00:19:35.799 of bees and flowers and sunshine. You need to melt it, 222 00:19:36.799 --> 00:19:41.359 transform it from solid to liquid so it can be worked, 223 00:19:42.200 --> 00:19:45.559 so it can be poured, so it can become candles. 224 00:19:46.880 --> 00:19:51.160 You have a system for this, a method perfected over 225 00:19:51.279 --> 00:19:56.160 years on the work bench. Sits your large copper pot. 226 00:19:57.160 --> 00:20:02.119 Copper because it conducts heat, even because it's been used 227 00:20:02.160 --> 00:20:07.319 for centuries for this exact purpose, because it's beautiful and functional. 228 00:20:07.359 --> 00:20:11.240 At once, you fill a larger pot with water from 229 00:20:11.279 --> 00:20:14.079 the bucket by the sink, place it on a trivet 230 00:20:14.119 --> 00:20:18.359 near the fire. This will be your double boiler. Gentle 231 00:20:18.400 --> 00:20:24.240 heat indirect the way wax likes to be melted. Rushing it, 232 00:20:24.880 --> 00:20:28.720 heating it too fast can ruin it, can make it 233 00:20:28.799 --> 00:20:34.759 smoke or even catch fire. But gentle heat, patient heat 234 00:20:35.799 --> 00:20:40.480 transforms it perfectly. You break the block of bees wax 235 00:20:40.680 --> 00:20:45.759 into smaller pieces. It's hard, so this takes effort. You 236 00:20:45.880 --> 00:20:50.200 use a special knife, heavy and sharp. You press down 237 00:20:50.480 --> 00:20:54.400 and the wax splits along natural lines. Chunk by chunk. 238 00:20:54.759 --> 00:20:59.920 You break it down. Each piece goes into the copper pot. 239 00:21:00.960 --> 00:21:07.880 The pile grows golden chunks, filling the pot. You place 240 00:21:07.920 --> 00:21:10.319 the copper pot into the water bath. The water pot 241 00:21:10.319 --> 00:21:12.920 sits close to the fire, but not too close, just 242 00:21:12.960 --> 00:21:15.880 close enough that the water will heat, will steam will 243 00:21:15.920 --> 00:21:20.519 gently patiently melt the wax. Now you wait. But waiting 244 00:21:20.839 --> 00:21:26.240 in candle making is never idle. There's always something to prepare, 245 00:21:27.160 --> 00:21:33.079 something to ready. You prepare the wicks while the wax melts. 246 00:21:34.400 --> 00:21:36.279 The wick is crucial. 247 00:21:37.880 --> 00:21:43.720 It's what carries the flame, what transforms the wax from 248 00:21:43.759 --> 00:21:49.000 solid to liquid to light. A good wick burns steadily, 249 00:21:49.720 --> 00:21:53.680 neither too fast nor too slow. It keeps the flame 250 00:21:53.799 --> 00:21:58.240 the right size. It makes the candle last. You use 251 00:21:58.440 --> 00:22:04.680 cotton wick, the traditional kind, not coated, not treated, just 252 00:22:04.799 --> 00:22:08.440 pure cotton twisted into a cord. You buy it on 253 00:22:08.519 --> 00:22:12.559 spools and you cut it to length as needed. For 254 00:22:12.680 --> 00:22:16.759 tapers you need long wicks. You measure one against your 255 00:22:16.880 --> 00:22:22.279 arm from fingertip to shoulder. That's about right. You cut several, 256 00:22:22.799 --> 00:22:27.160 laying them out on the bench, straight white lines. Ready, 257 00:22:27.920 --> 00:22:31.720 you check the wax. The chunks are beginning to soften 258 00:22:31.720 --> 00:22:36.440 at the edges, small amounts of liquid forming around them. 259 00:22:36.880 --> 00:22:43.640 It's working, it's beginning. While it melts, you prepare the 260 00:22:43.759 --> 00:22:50.640 lavender oil. The bottle is small brown glass to protect 261 00:22:50.640 --> 00:22:59.960 the oil from light. A handwritten label, Lavender Summer Garden. 262 00:23:01.680 --> 00:23:05.559 You grew this lavender yourself in the small garden behind 263 00:23:05.640 --> 00:23:10.160 the workshop, planted it years ago, tended it through seasons, 264 00:23:10.880 --> 00:23:14.079 harvested it last summer when it was in full bloom. 265 00:23:14.519 --> 00:23:19.920 Distilled the oil yourself slowly, carefully, capturing the essence of 266 00:23:19.960 --> 00:23:29.720 those purple flowers. The oil is precious, concentrated, powerful. A 267 00:23:29.799 --> 00:23:35.519 little goes a long way. You set the bottle on 268 00:23:35.559 --> 00:23:43.079 the workbench, ready, waiting for the right moment. The wax 269 00:23:43.240 --> 00:23:47.039 is melting now you can see it, the solid chunks 270 00:23:47.119 --> 00:23:51.880 becoming smaller as liquid gold pools around them, the level 271 00:23:51.880 --> 00:23:56.000 of liquid rising in the copper pot, the transformation happening, 272 00:23:56.880 --> 00:24:02.000 solid becoming fluid, Potential becoming possible. You stir it gently 273 00:24:02.200 --> 00:24:06.559 with a wooden spoon, a long handled spoon, darkened by use, 274 00:24:07.200 --> 00:24:13.480 smooth and warm in your hand. The motion is slow, circular, meditative, 275 00:24:14.200 --> 00:24:18.359 helping the heat distribute evenly, helping the wax melt uniformly. 276 00:24:18.880 --> 00:24:24.720 The chunks grow smaller, the liquid grows deeper, gold and moving, 277 00:24:25.519 --> 00:24:31.160 catching the light beautiful even in this intermediate state. Finally, 278 00:24:32.000 --> 00:24:43.079 the last solid piece melts. The pot is full of liquid, wax, pure, golden, perfect. 279 00:24:44.400 --> 00:24:48.759 You check the temperature with your thermometer, not too hot, 280 00:24:49.920 --> 00:24:57.799 just right. Ready, Now the scent. You open the bottle 281 00:24:57.839 --> 00:25:04.359 of lavender oil. The scent blue ms immediately, strong, sweet, floral, 282 00:25:05.279 --> 00:25:09.319 the essence of summer, the essence of peace. You add 283 00:25:09.359 --> 00:25:16.119 drops to the melted wax one two, three, four, five, 284 00:25:16.880 --> 00:25:20.960 counting carefully, just enough to scent the candles without overwhelming them, 285 00:25:21.359 --> 00:25:24.119 just enough that when they burn, they'll release the fragrance 286 00:25:24.200 --> 00:25:32.200 gently into the air. You stir the oil into the wax, slowly, thoroughly, 287 00:25:33.400 --> 00:25:39.960 watching the oil disperse, disappear into the gold, become one 288 00:25:40.039 --> 00:25:44.039 with it. The workshop fills with the combined scent, now 289 00:25:44.920 --> 00:25:50.720 bees wax and lavender, sweet and floral, warm and calming. 290 00:25:51.519 --> 00:25:54.559 The smell of the candles. These will become the smell 291 00:25:54.599 --> 00:25:58.359 of comfort. And peace and gentle light. You're ready to 292 00:25:58.400 --> 00:26:03.160 make the candles. Now, ready to transform this scented liquid 293 00:26:03.240 --> 00:26:10.519 wax into something beautiful and useful. You're making dipped tapers tonight, 294 00:26:11.680 --> 00:26:16.400 the old way, the traditional way, the way that's been 295 00:26:16.440 --> 00:26:20.920 done for hundreds of years, the way that produces the 296 00:26:20.960 --> 00:26:26.240 most beautiful candles. Dipped tapers are made by repeatedly dipping 297 00:26:26.240 --> 00:26:34.160 wicks into melted wax. Each dip adds a thin layer. Gradually, slowly, patiently, 298 00:26:34.759 --> 00:26:41.839 the candle builds, grows, becomes. It's slow work, very slow work, 299 00:26:42.359 --> 00:26:47.559 patient work, work that cannot be rushed, work that teaches 300 00:26:47.720 --> 00:26:52.599 patience just by doing it. But that's what makes it meditative. 301 00:26:53.599 --> 00:26:57.279 That's what makes it perfect for evening, for this quiet 302 00:26:57.319 --> 00:27:01.920 time when the world rests, and you create, for this 303 00:27:02.000 --> 00:27:06.799 transition between day and night, when things slow down, when 304 00:27:06.960 --> 00:27:11.359 urgency fades, when there's space for work that takes time. 305 00:27:12.519 --> 00:27:15.240 You take your wick rod from its place hanging on 306 00:27:15.279 --> 00:27:20.200 the wall. It's a long wooden dowel. Smooth and worn. 307 00:27:21.279 --> 00:27:24.480 Notches are cut into it at regular intervals along its length. 308 00:27:25.160 --> 00:27:29.079 Each notch will hold a wick. The rod is old, 309 00:27:29.480 --> 00:27:33.200 darkened by years of use, marked here and there with 310 00:27:33.279 --> 00:27:38.279 drips of wax from wicks that weren't quite ready that 311 00:27:38.359 --> 00:27:41.880 we're still too wet when you hung them. You drape 312 00:27:41.920 --> 00:27:46.319 the wicks over it, one in each notch, spacing them evenly. 313 00:27:47.119 --> 00:27:50.559 The wicks hang down on both sides of the rod 314 00:27:51.279 --> 00:27:55.160 like fringe. Each wick is weighted at the bottom with 315 00:27:55.240 --> 00:27:58.680 a small heck's nut tied to the end. The way 316 00:27:58.720 --> 00:28:02.640 it keeps the wick hangings soap straight, keeps it from curling, 317 00:28:03.759 --> 00:28:09.559 keeps it properly positioned for dipping. Eight wicks, four on 318 00:28:09.680 --> 00:28:14.079 each side of the rod. Sixteen candles will be made 319 00:28:14.160 --> 00:28:19.559 tonight because each wick will become two candles, one on 320 00:28:19.680 --> 00:28:24.240 each end. The wick rod spans across the workbench, now 321 00:28:24.960 --> 00:28:28.799 supported on wooden blocks at each end that you've placed 322 00:28:28.839 --> 00:28:34.200 there for this purpose. The wicks hang down, white and waiting, 323 00:28:35.119 --> 00:28:39.039 ready to become candles, Ready to be transformed. You lift 324 00:28:39.039 --> 00:28:43.599 the copper pot carefully. It's heavy with liquid wax hot. 325 00:28:44.480 --> 00:28:49.880 The wax moves sluggishly, thickly, its viscosity changed by the heat. 326 00:28:50.880 --> 00:28:54.039 You hold the pot's steady with both hands, feeling the 327 00:28:54.039 --> 00:28:57.119 weight of it, the warmth radiating from the copper into 328 00:28:57.160 --> 00:29:03.079 your palms, and you begin the ancient process, the ritual, 329 00:29:04.440 --> 00:29:10.799 the meditation. The first dip, you lower the wicks into 330 00:29:10.839 --> 00:29:16.559 the wax, slowly, carefully, watching them sink into the gold, 331 00:29:17.160 --> 00:29:20.400 all the way to the bottom of the pot, submerging completely. 332 00:29:21.160 --> 00:29:24.799 The wax swallows them. For a moment, you can't see 333 00:29:24.799 --> 00:29:29.759 them at all, just the surface of the wax, slightly 334 00:29:29.799 --> 00:29:36.559 disturbed by their entry, small ripples spreading outward. Then you 335 00:29:36.640 --> 00:29:42.759 lift them out slowly, steadily, not too fast which would 336 00:29:42.759 --> 00:29:46.480 cause the wax to drip off, not too slow, which 337 00:29:46.519 --> 00:29:50.359 would allow too much wax to accumulate. Just the right speed, 338 00:29:51.279 --> 00:29:55.480 the speed you've learned through years of practice, the speed 339 00:29:55.559 --> 00:29:58.480 your muscles remember without your mind having to think about it. 340 00:30:00.000 --> 00:30:04.799 Wicks emerge from the golden liquid. They're coated, now thin, 341 00:30:05.680 --> 00:30:11.279 nearly transparent, just the beginning, just the first layer. The 342 00:30:11.319 --> 00:30:16.039 wax clings to the cotton fibers, coating each thread, beginning 343 00:30:16.119 --> 00:30:21.039 the transformation from string to candle. You hang the rod 344 00:30:21.200 --> 00:30:27.079 back on its supports and wait. Step back, let the 345 00:30:27.119 --> 00:30:33.160 wax cool, let it harden before the next dip. This 346 00:30:33.319 --> 00:30:37.240 is crucial. If you dip again too soon while the 347 00:30:37.279 --> 00:30:41.519 wax is still soft, the layers won't build the new 348 00:30:41.559 --> 00:30:45.160 wax will just melt the old wax, and you'll make 349 00:30:45.279 --> 00:30:49.720 no progress. The candles won't grow. You have to wait, 350 00:30:50.960 --> 00:30:55.759 have to let each layer cool and solidify before adding 351 00:30:55.839 --> 00:31:02.759 the next. So you wait, and in the waiting you observe. 352 00:31:04.200 --> 00:31:07.599 You can see the wax coating the wicks, see it changing. 353 00:31:08.240 --> 00:31:12.279 The coating starts out glossy, wet looking, the wax still 354 00:31:12.319 --> 00:31:16.559 liquid enough to catch and reflect the lamplight. Then as 355 00:31:16.559 --> 00:31:21.400 it cools, it begins to turn mat loses its shine, 356 00:31:22.559 --> 00:31:28.119 becomes opaque instead of translucent. You can almost see it 357 00:31:28.160 --> 00:31:32.599 happening if you watch closely enough, the transformation from liquid 358 00:31:32.640 --> 00:31:38.200 to solid, the wax molecules slowing down, losing energy, arranging 359 00:31:38.240 --> 00:31:46.799 themselves into their solid structure. Chemistry, physics, magic, all happening 360 00:31:46.880 --> 00:31:51.599 right before your eyes. The workshop is quiet during this waiting, 361 00:31:52.319 --> 00:31:56.559 no sounds except natural sounds, the crackle and pop of 362 00:31:56.599 --> 00:31:58.920 the fire as a pocket of sap in the wood 363 00:31:59.119 --> 00:32:03.480 expands an bursts, the occasional hiss from the water bath 364 00:32:04.079 --> 00:32:06.839 as a drop of condensation falls from the lid into 365 00:32:06.839 --> 00:32:12.920 the simmering water. Your own breathing, steady and calm, The 366 00:32:12.960 --> 00:32:17.440 small sounds of the building settling, the village outside, quiet 367 00:32:17.480 --> 00:32:22.279 for the night. The scent of lavender and beeswax surrounds you, 368 00:32:23.319 --> 00:32:28.480 fills your lungs with every breath. You've stopped noticing it consciously, 369 00:32:29.279 --> 00:32:34.440 but it's there, working on you, calming you, centering you 370 00:32:35.240 --> 00:32:38.720 the aromatherapy of your craft, whether you intended or not. 371 00:32:40.079 --> 00:32:43.880 The wax has cooled enough now, you can tell by 372 00:32:43.920 --> 00:32:49.039 looking by the way it's lost its wet shine, by 373 00:32:49.079 --> 00:32:53.680 the way it's set into a thin, solid coating. Time 374 00:32:53.759 --> 00:32:57.480 for the second dip. You lift the rod from its supports. 375 00:32:58.319 --> 00:33:01.759 The wicks hang down, slightly thicker now than they were, 376 00:33:02.759 --> 00:33:08.759 progress growth becoming. You lower them into the wax again. 377 00:33:09.480 --> 00:33:13.079 Watch them disappear again into that molten gold. Let them 378 00:33:13.079 --> 00:33:16.759 submerge and feel the weight of the rod, slightly heavier 379 00:33:16.799 --> 00:33:22.480 now with the added wax. Lift them out, slow and steady, 380 00:33:23.680 --> 00:33:30.720 the same motion, the same speed, finding the rhythm. They 381 00:33:30.759 --> 00:33:35.839 emerge coated again, a little thicker, this time, another layer 382 00:33:35.960 --> 00:33:40.559 added to the first, the wax building the candles beginning 383 00:33:40.559 --> 00:33:45.519 to have substance, beginning to be real. You return the 384 00:33:45.640 --> 00:33:54.559 rod to its supports. Wait again, watch again, Breathe again. 385 00:33:56.160 --> 00:34:01.200 This is the rhythm of dipping candles. This is the cycle. 386 00:34:02.359 --> 00:34:11.400 This is the meditation. Dip, lower the wicks into molten gold. Wait, 387 00:34:13.119 --> 00:34:22.840 let the wax cool and solidify. Dip, add another layer. Wait, 388 00:34:24.480 --> 00:34:31.960 Watch the transformation, over and over again and again, each 389 00:34:32.119 --> 00:34:36.199 cycle the same, each cycle building on the last, each 390 00:34:36.239 --> 00:34:40.599 cycle adding to the whole. There's no rushingness, no short 391 00:34:40.639 --> 00:34:44.519 cutting it. The wax needs time to cool between dips, 392 00:34:45.199 --> 00:34:48.719 or the layers won't build properly, or they'll build unevenly, 393 00:34:49.679 --> 00:34:53.760 or they'll slip off. The candle won't form right, won't 394 00:34:53.800 --> 00:34:58.559 burn right, won't be right. So you work at the 395 00:34:58.559 --> 00:35:02.559 pace the wax demands, at the pace the process requires, 396 00:35:03.159 --> 00:35:06.320 at the pace that's built into the nature of the materials, 397 00:35:06.440 --> 00:35:16.039 and the work. Patient, steady, present, And something happens as 398 00:35:16.119 --> 00:35:21.800 you work, something that always happens when you dip candles, 399 00:35:21.800 --> 00:35:25.159 Something you look forward to, something that's part of why 400 00:35:25.239 --> 00:35:29.440 you love this particular form of candle making more than 401 00:35:29.559 --> 00:35:38.480