'Tis the Season for Handcrafted Gifts! - Soy Wax Candle Edition

If you have a Pinterest account or have spent any time on the internet, you might have run into some DIY gift ideas. This one is no different.

For some reason, I wanted to make candles this year. I went online to look for a recipe/instructions, my only criteria being it had to be easy and fairly inexpensive.

I came across this simple recipe for soy wax candles from CandleScience.com. And surprise! It's a business that sells candle-making materials -- one stop shopping!

I made a few adjustments to their recommended methods, mostly because I found easier/cheaper ways to do a few things. And I want to share those here with you.

RECIPE YIELDS ENOUGH TO FILL 24 fl oz.
(i.e. 3 CUPS -- 3 x 8 oz CONTAINERS, OR DERIVATIVES THERE OF)

MATERIALS

• 1 lb soy wax
• 1 fl oz fragrance oil
• pre-tabbed candle wicks
• hot glue gun
• 1 sturdy drinking straw
• disposable wooden chopsticks, not separated (like the kind that have been piling up from Chinese take-out -- you need one for each candle)
• containers (3 x 8 oz jars/tins or any derivative there of -- like 6 x 4 oz jars, etc.)
• 8 cup Pyrex (or equivalent) measuring cup 
• cooking pot or double-boiler, large enough to fit Pyrex measuring cup
• silicone spatula, or other mixing utensil
• kitchen scale
• tray (optional)
• 1/2 block of candle dye (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Get your hot glue gun ready. Why hot glue? Because we need something that can withstand the heat of melted wax. 
2. As you wait for the glue gun to heat up, prep all of your materials. Make sure your candle containers are clean and dry before you start. Place them on a tray to keep them organized. This will also protect your table/surface from the heat or from any spills when you start pouring the melted wax.
3. Thread one pre-tabbed candle wick into a drinking straw. Apply one pearl-sized bead of hot glue at the bottom of the tab. Using the straw, apply the candle wick to the center of the candle container and press down. Remove the straw and repeat for each container.
   
   

   A photo posted by J Kim (@msjkim) on Dec 9, 2016 at 1:46am PST

   
   
4. Once you are done attaching all of the candle wicks, hold them up straight by using disposable chopsticks. Be careful not to split the chopsticks, though! You need them to act like clothespins or paper clips -- only open them wide enough to hold the wick in between.
   
   

   A photo posted by J Kim (@msjkim) on Dec 8, 2016 at 3:08am PST



5. Fill your double-boiler or cooking pot up to about half full with water (use your judgment here) and heat on medium.
6. Tare/zero out your kitchen scale with the Pyrex measuring cup on it. Scoop 1 pound of soy wax into the cup.
7. Wait for the water in the pot to start simmering. If it is at a full, rolling boil, reduce the heat. 
8. Carefully lower the Pyrex cup into the pot, being mindful not to let it touch the bottom, or to let any water get into the wax. If necessary, remove some water from the pot. If you're using a double-boiler, rest the Pyrex cup in the upper pot (you can also pour the soy wax chips directly into a double-boiler, if you feel confident that you can clean it all out afterwards).
9. Stir occasionally as you wait for the wax to melt. This is going to take a little bit, so turn some music on or something. Wax will turn a golden color as it becomes liquid.
10. If you want to add some color, the recommended amount of candle dye is 1/2 a block for 1 lb of soy wax. I would say use your judgment here (you could certainly mix and match), keeping in mind that the color will change a little bit as the wax cools and solidifies. Continue to stir until everything is melted and mixed evenly.
11. DO NOT OVERHEAT THE WAX! As soon as the last bit of solid has become liquid, turn off the stove and remove the Pyrex cup from heat. Let the wax cool for about a minute before you add any fragrance oil (this is to make sure the fragrance doesn't burn off).
12. Gently stir fragrance oil into the melted wax until it is blended in. Don't stir it too much -- you don't want to create any bubbles.
13. Let the wax cool for at least a few minutes before pouring it into the containers. The original recipe says to wait until it's 135° F. My rule of thumb for knowing when it's okay to pour is when you start noticing trails in the wax when you stir, kind of like if you were stirring honey (or any thick, clear liquid).
14. Pour the melted wax evenly into each container, using the spatula to scrape the sides, etc. Obviously, don't fill each one to the brim (unless you want the melted wax to overflow when you light the candle). In general, you should leave at least a 1/2" from the top.
15. Let the candles set overnight. Keep them at room temperature in a dry area, out of the way of any disturbance.
16. When cleaning up your utensils, it will make your life easier if you wipe off any remaining wax with a dry paper towel before you start washing them.
17. Once your candles are all set, carefully remove the chopsticks. Make sure you don't tug too much on the candle wicks.
18. Cut the wicks so that they're about 1/4" to 1/2" tall.
19. Et voilà! Put the lids back on and decorate the containers to your heart's content!
    
    Or just light and enjoy!
    
    

    A photo posted by J Kim (@msjkim) on Dec 12, 2016 at 9:44pm PST

Etude House - Another YouTube Beauty Tutorial Find

Etude House is one of South Korea's most popular cosmetics companies, with hundreds of standalone stores throughout Asia.  If you're a fan of South Korean popular culture, you may have seen one of their commercials (starring some of South Korea's top K-pop idols) or caught a quick glimpse of one of their shops in a video or blog somewhere online.  With their cute, pink, European-style decor, the shops are hard to miss.

And the best thing about the products is that they're super affordable!  Their prices are comparable to drugstore make-up prices (in the U.S., at least), averaging under or about $10 USD for most items.  The products are geared towards teenagers and young adults (hence the affordability and cute packaging), but the quality is pretty much on par with more expensive brands.

** Quick story - During an extended trip to South Korea a couple of years ago, I sent my mom a letter with some BB cream samples I got from one of my many trips to Etude House (ohmigod the SAMPLES!!!).  Let me take this moment to note that my mom is very particular about foundations and the like.  She doesn't like how most of them look or feel (no, thank you, orange bottle of Maybelline) and is convinced that the only ones that suit her are from expensive, Asian (usually Japanese) brands (Shiseido or die).  Anyway, she liked the sample so much, she had me buy her a full-sized bottle.  If Etude House has the stamp of approval from a picky Korean woman in her 70s, it's good enough for me.  End story. **

Anyway, Etude House has had a YouTube channel for ages now, offering various tutorials and tips for make-up and skin care trends popular in South Korea.  Aware of their growing global audience, they recently started adding English captions/subtitles to their videos.



Many of their videos aren't translated but are still pretty easy to follow along.



Where can you buy these products?  ...  Sigh.  That's the problem; unless you live in Asia, it won't be easy.  If you don't have a generous pen pal who lives in Korea, your only option is to order online.  Unfortunately, since Etude House doesn't do global orders at the moment, you'll have to try your luck with third-party sellers (in some cases, at exorbitant prices).

In regards to these tutorials, though, you don't necessarily need these particular products.  Improvise with what you've got or can get, and start creating these looks on your own!


UPDATE (11/4/14): Etude House now ships worldwide! Go to their global site and shop away!

Jung Saem Mool - My Most Recent YouTube Beauty Tutorial Find

Even though I've been sorely neglecting this blog, I've still been keeping up with makeup and beauty blogs and YouTube channels. I have to admit that my obsession with makeup has relaxed in the last few years, but I still like to keep myself updated with all the new products and goings-on.

I first came across Jung Saem Mool's YouTube Channel through Eat Your Kimchi, a blog devoted to Korean popular culture (K-pop for the most part) and everyday life in South Korea. It wasn't long after I first discovered EYK's website and YouTube channel for myself that I spent an entire evening trying to watch all of their videos and happened to come across an interview they did with these wonderful makeup artists.

Jung Saem Mool is a professional makeup studio in South Korea, run by the makeup artist of the same name. She and her colleagues are makeup artists to most, if not all of the top South Korean celebrities and are responsible for creating many of the iconic looks of your favorite K-pop stars (assuming you're familiar with K-pop).

AND they post tutorials for these looks on their YouTube channel. This isn't a random YouTube beauty guru recreating a particular look for you (not that there's anything wrong with that). You are getting firsthand lessons from the artists who actually created these looks!

All of the videos have English subtitles (some of the older videos have the subtitles in the annotations, so make sure you turn those on) and are pretty easy to follow. Many of the celebrity makeup tutorials go right into the point or color makeup (eyeshadow, blush, lipstick, etc.). Base makeup (foundation, etc.) is a given in these videos, so keep that in mind. The tutorials range from makeup to hair styling to skin care, so they really give us a well-rounded lesson.

I have to warn you: what these women perform is magic, making these videos highly addictive. Granted, these women are professionals, so their skills are light-years ahead of most of ours. You may not have all the tools and makeup that they use to create these looks, but that doesn't mean there's nothing for us to take away here. Regardless of our own skill level and access to certain products, there is a lot that we can learn from watching these masters perform their art.

Jung Saem Mool and Eat Your Kimchi collaborated to recreate Lee Hyori's look for her "Bad Girls" music video.

Lee Hyori's Original Look from the Music Video


Base Makeup, Contouring, Cheeks and Lip


Eyes


Eyelashes

New YouTube Makeup Tutorial Channel Find

I've found yet another YouTube makeup tutorial channel. I have to tell you, though, I am actually pretty picky about which ones I subscribe to: some don't have enough variety in terms of the looks or tips that they offer, while others are just plain annoying to watch (pardon the snark). So, when I do post a YouTube channel here, rest assured that I'm trying to bring you what I consider to be the best (or, at least, the better) of these makeup tutorial channels.

That being said, this particular channel is run by YouTube user xteeena.



I really did come across her channel by accident. I was watching a video by another favorite YouTube makeup artist of mine when I saw a link to one of xteeena's videos (the one embedded above, actually).

What attracted me to that video was the gorgeous smokey eye... on an eyelid with no crease. Being of Asian ethnicity, I find that it's hard for me to copy or mimick some of the eye makeup tutorials I see (both on and off of YouTube) because my eyes don't exactly have the same features as the models'. So, seeing someone creating some of the most beautiful looks I have ever seen, and that she's creating them on an eye that resembles mine, is just amazing and very inspirational. And, to top it all off, she plays with the cheap makeup, yo! Believe me, with my current budget, I can't begin to tell you how great it is to see that little column on the right listing a bunch of drugstore brands, instead of it looking like the usual MAC shopping list!

Anyway, whenever you have a minute, check out her videos. She's very personable and fun to watch.

Another YouTube Makeup Tutorial Channel

I found another makeup tutorial channel on YouTube. This one is by MichellePhan (a.k.a. "RiceBunny").



I find that while her videos aren't as intimate as those by some of the other YouTube makeup artists (she doesn't talk directly to her audience on camera; it's all voice-over), they are very polished (they're EXTREMELY well edited), and the tutorials are easy to follow. She also has good taste in music, making the entire video-watching experience quite pleasurable.

YouTube Make-up Tutorials

Thank GOD for YouTube! Without it, we wouldn't be able to watch all those great TV shows or movies from overseas, that episode of whatever we missed last night, or that episode of whatever we missed 10 years ago, and that video of that kid who wants everyone to leave Britney alone... Okay, so it does have its negative side, too.

Anyway, one of the things that YouTube has also brought to us is a plethora of tutorials for a variety of disciplines. One such discipline is cosmetics/make-up. YouTube has a bevy of make-up arists (aspiring and professional alike) creating tutorials for us gals (and guys) who want to know everything from glamorous make-up looks to special effects make-up looks.

I haven't had time to sit down and watch ALL of them, but I have found 2 YouTube make-up artists that I like and whose tutorial channels I have subscribed to and have become a fan of:

Scandalous Beauty (a.k.a. "Erin")


and Panacea81 (a.k.a. "Lauren")


I think the one thing that turns some women, including myself, off of cosmetics and make-up is that they don't know how to apply it (properly or at all) and, therefore, are intimidated. These two ladies are very personable and are GREAT at showing you how much fun you can have with all the colors make-up has to offer. Rather than using it as a way to subscribe to some sort of standard of femininity and/or beauty, make-up can really be used to create a bold statement of one's individuality. ... Sorry, get too philosophical there for you? ;-)

Anyway, so, yeah. Ladies and gentlemen, don't let make-up intimidate you. Go onto YouTube, grab a few tips from the thousands of skilled make-up artists online, and JUST. HAVE. FUN. !!!