It’s the 23rd of December, and you still don’t have a single gift. Rushing to the mall, you realize you’re not alone. You’re bounced around in different directions like a billiard ball—a woman with three crying children forces you to the left, while five loudly chatting teenagers push you to the right. You’re nearly run over by two young men in a hurry to catch a bus, train, or whatever. The warm winter down jacket that seemed like a good choice for waiting at the bus stop has now turned into a portable sauna, with drops of sweat running down your back. Hours later, you stumble out of the last store with only two presents bought and five more still needing to be purchased the next day (if the stores are even open on Christmas Eve).

The shops are just filled with stuff that people will never use—a new kitchen tool that grandma already has, socks that don’t fit your cousin’s style, and a book that your mom won’t read. 

So, why spend all your CSN on gifts that people don’t want, suffer in queues, and all for a fake ‘thank you, it’s just what I wanted’? Instead, you should make gifts yourself. The effort of making something yourself makes any gift thoughtful, it fits the student budget, and making them puts you right into the Christmas spirit.

But there needs to be something rational that does not take days or cost a fortune. So, no crocheted pot-holder and no handmade butter knife—these things take far too much time to make. Instead, you need something that can be produced in big numbers but still gives a feeling of handmadeness: – homemade candles.

It’s a personal favorite of mine. While it may take some time it is a very Christmassy activity and the results give light during these dark months. 

These are some of last year’s gifts in use.

For the dipped candles you need: wax, wicks, a large pot, a smaller but deep pot or bowl, some sticks, two chairs, and some old newspapers. Wax and wicks can be bought from any paint or hobby store (such as Panduro in Lund).

First, you need to melt the wax. This is done in a double boiler, with the smaller bowl/pot being deep enough that a normal candle would fit in length. Simmer the water and stir the wax in the double boiler occasionally, being weary of Aristotle’s principle of displacement of water. Otherwise, you risk making the same mistake as when I was 10 years old and pushing down the smaller bowl without expecting all the boiling water to flow down over your feet (2-degree burns are not to play with, I was a regular at the hospitals that spring, taking care of the new skin) As the wax is melting, take your wicks and measure them to be as long as a candle leaving some extra for tying the wick. Take your wicks and using a simple knot, tie them around the stick. Make sure to put them about 3 centimeters apart to ensure they don’t stick, putting as many wicks around the stick as will fit in the wax container. Place two chairs with their back against one another with the old newspapers below, this is where the candles will drip and dry. When the wax is molten you can add some boiling water to make sure it fills the container to the top, it won’t mix.

My Aunt and her grandmother making branched candles,

this is where it all began

Now comes the fun part, take your wicks and dunk them in the wax then move them over to the chairs to dry. This works best if you are working with five or more sticks (might as well make as many candles as possible) as in this way, when you have done a round the first candles are dry and ready to be dipped again. This process is quite slow as the candles only grow by the amount of wax that sticks, but slowly you will see the progress. Here is when you can listen to some very sweet and Christmassy music. The repetitive activity makes your shoulders lower and your exams fly away. Then simply continue dipping until they are your desired size. Comparing with a store-bought candle helps you determine the size that fits most candleholders. For the last step, you simply cut the ends to make sure they are flat, and voilà, you have made 30 candles! Grab five, and wrap a thick red ribbon around them, now they are ready to go under the Christmas tree. If you want to innovate, you can try making branched candles. The process is similar only instead of using one wick, you tie the desired amount of wicks together halfway down to make the branches. 

So instead of facing the Christmas purgatory (the mall), give yourself an early Christmas gift by exchanging the frantic shopping for the therapeutic candle dipping. And then on Christmas Eve, enjoy watching your relatives realize that this gift is not some mass-produced trinket, but instead a handmade, useful, cozy present. Next Christmas, don’t forget that by that time your candles will have been used, making them the perfect gift that you can keep on giving.

Merry Christmas!