Candles add a cosy touch to any home. Available in a wide variety of styles and scents, candles illuminate dark corners, add pleasant aromas to the air and provide a warm glow in a room. Unfortunately, all candles are not created equal. Some burn down in such a fashion that the wick gets lost in a pool of wax, rendering the candle useless. If you have a candle with a lost wick, don't be in a hurry to throw it out or replace it. A lost wick can be fixed.

  • Candles add a cosy touch to any home.
  • If you have a candle with a lost wick, don't be in a hurry to throw it out or replace it.

Use a sharp knife to scrape away the hardened wax that has buried the wick. Work slowly and gently to avoid severing the wick completely and making your job harder.

Use a pair of metal tweezers to retrieve the wick from the wax once you have located it. Pull it gently upward to a standing position.

Continue scraping wax away from the wick with a teaspoon to form a depression around the wick for wax to pool in.

  • Use a pair of metal tweezers to retrieve the wick from the wax once you have located it.
  • Continue scraping wax away from the wick with a teaspoon to form a depression around the wick for wax to pool in.

Light your candle and allow it to burn until wax melts and pools in the well you dug around the wick. Tip the candle and allow the wax to run onto a piece of newspaper to reduce the wax around the wick. Dispose of the newspaper in the trash once the wax has cooled.

Use a metal spoon to remove the excess melted wax if you'd prefer not to pour it out. Place it on a piece of newspaper and dispose of it once it's cool.

Protect your candle from drafts and breezes while it burns to prevent future problems with the wick. Keep the wick trimmed to a length of approximately 1/4 inch.