Tips for using sealing wax

Although a seal can be made directly in place, we highly recommend, especially when you are making a lot of seals, that you make them first on a cookie sheet, aluminum foil or wax paper. The seals can then be easily slid off, and glued in the desired places with any common glue.

This way you will not ruin your envelope if the seal does not come out to your satisfaction. This also allows you to make the seals in advance, and makes it easy to attach ribbons or other embellishments under the seal at the final location. With wax seals, practice makes perfect! Do not worry if you ruin a seal or waste some wax. Unsatisfactory seals or scrap wax can be re-melted, over and over again until you do get a perfect seal. You can use a spoon, a glue pot, or a heating tool to re-melt the scrap wax. You cannot "waste" sealing wax. By mixing different color wax bits and pieces you can produce unique and beautiful "marbled" seals.

To make a wax seal, press in the stamp straight (vertically) into the molten wax gently but firmly. Wait for about 30 to 45 seconds until the wax solidifies, then rock the stamp around gently and pull up. Phoenician brass seals need no oiling before pressing into the molten wax. Other manufacturers’ seals may require oiling. Just smear the seal (stamp) face with a bit of any oil. You may also apply colored or metallic ink to the stamp face for beautiful and decorative appearance. Simply tap the seal lightly on to an inkpad before pressing it into the hot wax. The ink will automatically transfer on to the wax seal. The heat tool mentioned in some techniques is also called embossing tool. It is available at any craft or rubber stamp store. It looks much like a blow hair dryer or a hot air gun. Exercise extreme caution while making seals. Molten wax, flame, hot glue gun, hot glue pot, heat tool may cause burns.

To make a seal using sealing wax candles, light the end of the candle and drip wax onto paper, making a pool of wax of the desired size. Press in seal. While dripping the molten wax it is important to hold the candle at an angle with its flame end lower than the other end, but not so much that the molten wax flows onto the flame and put it out. Also, keep rotating the candle so that the candle melts evenly. But do not rotate too fast or too abruptly; otherwise the flame will go out. This is a little tricky, and may need some experimentation and practice. Alternate methods are: USING A SPOON: Hold candle in the bowl of a spoon held over heat source (make sure the spoon is heat proof and do not reuse for food). Melt enough wax in the spoon, and pour it on to the desired location. Press in the seal.

Candles or Sticks can also be melted by holding in the flame of a butane lighter and dripping the wax on to the desired location. Press in the seal. USING A HEAT TOOL: Hold candle in one hand at an angle, pointing down. Blow hot air on the lower end with a heat tool. When molten wax forms a puddle of desired size, press in the seal.

Candles, sticks, medallions, odds and ends of broken candles, sticks, medallions, etc. can be melted in a glue pot (available at most craft stores). When wax has melted, grease two spoons with vegetable oil. Scoop up the desired amount of melted wax with one spoon and scrape it off on to the desired location with the other spoon. Press in seal. Teflon-covered glue pots work best for this purpose.

Collect scrap wax in a heap just enough to make a seal. Apply heat with heat tool, taking care that the wax bits do not fly away due to air blast. To control the flying wax, you may use a rubber O-ring or some kind of a barrier of appropriate size around the heap. You can also tilt the gun and use the air blast to control it. Press in the stamp when wax melts. Mix different color waxes to make "marbled" seal.