The new studio

As candle making can be a rather messy activity, it is not something I do in the office with my computer and other things around (not to mention the carpet either!). The Garage at our new house is an L shape, so there is a nice little nook to set up all my candle making equipment and store all of the materials.

I tidied it up a couple of weeks ago, and took some pictures to share with you.

Lots of storage is important because all equipment and materials seem to keep breeding. I'm all almost at the point now where I know where everything is now. This garage has a handy well placed window – great to open for ventilation, and lets in natural light. The radio serves a dual purpose – it's power button is jammed on, so the only way to switch it off is at the wall. I plug the hotplate into the same outlet with a double adaptor, so I know if it is switched on or off by whether I can hear the radio.

This is where most of the action happens – as you can imagine, the hotplate is a fairly integral part of the candle making process. I think some people use gas to heat the wax, but for me that would be a disaster waiting to happen!

At my old place, I had to scrape the spilled wax off of the painted concrete floor, which wasn't a lot of fun. As the concrete in this garage is rough and unpainted, that just wouldn't work, so I was on the lookout for some old lino. My brother-in-law had this piece leftover from his house, and it works perfectly, and makes the studio look much nicer.

Mum has been having a cleanout, and gave me some bit and pieces of mine, including my old shop I started with my cousin when we were 12. Looking back through this has left me in no doubt of my true calling! I might have to take some pictures and put them up...

Next weekend I will be off on a wee road trip to Lake Tekapo for the Lake Tekapo NZ made Fete which I went to last year. If you'll be there too, do come and say hi.