Aromatherapy is typically gifted in the form of lotions, salves, body scrubs, eau du toilette or cologne, and even wax- or soy-based candles. Sure, you can make your own scented wax candles, but oil-based candles come together more quickly and perfume the air with an earthier, more woodsy aroma. The illuminated golden oil twinkles ethereally when ignited, providing a visually soothing ambiance absent from a regular candle.  

Fragrant Olive Oil Candles

Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

• Primal Kitchen Extra Virgin Olive Oil (about 4 ounces oil per candle)
• Fresh herbs 

Suggested herbs:

• Rosemary
• Thyme
• Oregano
• Lavender
• Mint

Equipment 

• 4 ounce mason jars*
• Candle wicks (find these online or at a craft store)
• Thin gauge wire (find this online or at hardware stores)
• Wire cutters

*Ingredients in the amounts listed above fill five 4-ounce mason jars. Double, triple, quadruple, etc., this recipe depending on how many candles you want to make. 

Instructions

• Massage or bruise the herbs before placing in the oil. To do this, you can rub the green parts of the herbs with your fingers, or lay the herb stems down on a cutting board and rub them a few times with the back of a spoon.
• This will help release the herbs’ essentials oils once immersed in the oil. Trim the gauge wire so each strand is about 4 to 5 inches long.
• Trim the candle wicks so that each wick can stand upright in your mason jars and poke out about 1.5 to 2 inches from the top of the jar. 
• Wrap one piece of trimmed wire around one trimmed wick by looping the end of one side of the wire around the wick and tucking the remaining end of the wire over itself.
• Make the wire loop loose enough so the wick can move inside the loop, but not so loose that the wick falls out easily. Bend the other end of the wire over the edge of the jar.
• Pour olive oil into the jar until the oil almost reaches the top of the jar. Insert the herb stems into the oil-filled jar. 

• Either light the wick right away to enjoy immediately, or screw the cover on top of the mason jar and gift for later. 

Note: The longer the herbs sit in the oil, the more fragrant the candles become. It takes about a week of steeping in the oil for the herbs to become very aromatic.