How do you make concrete candle jars that don’t break when you demold them?

For this batch I used a custom blend of Hydrostone with a small amount of Cement All, and it demolded like a dream—especially on the pumpkin and gourd stems. Hydrostone has a really high PSI, so it’s tough, and it can handle candle heat. The blend helps me keep strength while still getting the color performance I want.

Why do you mix pigment with water before adding Hydrostone or Cement All?

I always start by mixing the pigment into the water first because it helps it blend way more evenly. If you dump pigment into the dry mix it can work, but it’s harder to integrate smoothly. With water-first, I get a more consistent color without fighting clumps.

What is efflorescence on Hydrostone candle vessels and can you prevent it?

Efflorescence is basically salts extracting during curing and showing up on the surface—Hydrostone is more prone to it. I’ve tried the “myths” online, and honestly there’s not a perfect fix. My workaround is blending in a bit of Cement All, which helps minimize it and still lets me hit bold oxide colors.

What fragrance oil do you use for Pumpkin Bread candles?

I use Pumpkin Soufflé from CandleScience, and it’s been one of our most popular scents for the last five years. Three of those years it’s been the #1 candle after I moved it to concrete and renamed it Pumpkin Bread. If you want my exact wick + formula, I keep that on my Patreon.

How long do you wait before sealing and engraving concrete candle vessels?

After I cast the concrete, I usually wait a good week before sealing. Then after sealing, I wait about 24 hours before engraving. That timing helps everything finish curing and gives me a cleaner engraving result.

What safety gear do you recommend for concrete candle making and laser engraving?

If you’re working with Cement All or Hydrostone, I highly recommend a respirator with the pink filters because you don’t want fine dust in your lungs—especially with the silica concerns. And for engraving, I always wear the green laser safety goggles. Also, keep cleanup wet so you’re not kicking dust airborne.

How do you ship concrete candles without them arriving broken?

I use a box-within-a-box method, and it’s kept our damage rate under 1%. The candle is packaged in a snug inner box (flush fit for the 3-inch tulips), then that goes into an outer box. It’s efficient, keeps inventory clean, and you don’t have to overstuff void fill.

🎃 Make Our #1 Bestselling Fall Concrete Candle | * @BoowanNicole gourd molds* | Engraving Concrete — allen | earthglow

About This Video

Hey everyone—Allen with EarthGlow. In this video I’m making our Pumpkin Bread concrete candles for the third annual “existence” of Pumpkin Bread, and I’m finally doing something I’ve never done on these Modern Craft Labs 3-inch tulips: engraving the vessels for a third anniversary edition. I walk you through my custom casting formula (a blend of Cement All + Hydrostone) and why I built it that way—so I can keep Hydrostone as the main base (safer, high PSI, heat-resistant) while borrowing what I love from Cement All: bold oxide color and better pigment performance. I also pour a batch of pumpkin + gourd castings using the Boowan Nicole molds, swirl in DecoArt Splendid Gold, and then you get the most satisfying demold moment ever—stems intact, crisp details, and basically zero drama. After curing, I seal the vessels, wait, then engrave with my laser (with proper safety gear), and finish the candles with CB2 wax + CandleScience Pumpkin Soufflé (aka one of my most popular fragrances for years). I also share how I package these using a box-within-a-box setup to keep our damage rate under 1%—because pretty candles are great, but delivered intact is the real flex.