Materials:
old candle stubs
cotton string
pinecones
old pot
water
clean tin can
spoon
scissors
Instructions
Put wax scraps in a tin can and place the can in an old pot that has water about 3/4 of the way up the can. As you can see, we use a pot that is just for craft projects. In the second picture we had added some more bits of wax so that the liquid wax would rise high enough in the can to cover the pine cone.
Boil the water and melt the wax.
While the wax is melting, tie some cotton string around the top of each pine cone, leaving one long end.
When the wax is melted, fish around with your spoon to remove any old wicks or metal bits left from your recycled candles.
Holding the end of the string, dip a pine cone into the can. You may need to use a spoon to push the pine cone down until the tip of the pine cone and some of the string are covered in wax. Be sure to get wax on the string… this is your wick!
Pull the pine cone out of the wax fairly quickly and let excess wax drip back into the can. If you hold the pine cone in the wax too long, any hardened wax just melts back off… crazy but true!
When you feel like you have enough wax on the pine cone, put it on some parchment or newspaper to cool and dry. Even though very thick wax looks pretty, it makes a mess of your fireplace. So a thinnish coat is a good idea. Trim the wicks. Now your firestarters are ready to use!
Pretty and useful!