9 Genius Ways to Reuse Old Candles

Whether you have a giant pillar candle that you’re never going to use or shrived nubs of candles that once were, here are some ways to repurpose them around the house.

Stop a Door from Squeaking

Candle wax can actually work better than WD-40 at silencing a squeaky door once and for all, because you don’t have to reapply it every couple of weeks. Take the door off its hinges, then rub the hinges all over with a candle. The wax will stick and prevent the hinge components from rubbing against each other, which causes the annoying sound.

Make DIY Wine Corks

Here’s a great use for those short candlestick ends you haven’t thrown out: use them as makeshift corks for wine bottles. If you have an unfinished bottle of wine but you’ve lost or broken the cork, heat a one-inch candle end in a glass container in the microwave for three seconds on high. It will soften it up enough to stick in the bottle and serve as a stopper. And it looks romantic, too!

Old-Candle Pin Cushion

You’ve lost the wick of an old candle, and you were never really crazy about the scent anyway. Turn it into a pincushion by simply sticking pins in the top or the sides. The wax will even help the pins slide more easily into cloth.

Use a Candle as Household Wax

Keep a used-up candle on hand to help around the house! Have a drawer that keeps sticking? Rub its runners or anywhere it seems to be sticking with an old candle. You can also solve a stuck zipper by rubbing a candle over it.

Special Uses for White Candles

Have a stash of broken white candles that you’ve been waiting for a use for? It may not be the romantic image you had in mind when you bought the candles, but white candles can reused for some neat household tricks.

1. Keep Mildew and Mold Off Shower Grout

This, without a doubt, is our favorite use for an old candle. After giving your shower grout the cleaning of its life, help make it stay that way forever by rubbing it down with a white candle. Just run the candle between the tiles, and the wax that’s left behind will protect it from growing mold, mildew, and other stains.

3. Waterproof with Wax

To waterproof something you’ve written with marker on your child’s school supplies (or even on a package you’re sending), rub over the writing with a white candle. The wax will repel water, but you’ll still be able to see through it.

3. Old Candle Art Project

Turn your old white candle into part of an art project itself, along with some watercolors. Give your child a white tapered candle and have her “draw” a picture on a piece of paper. She...

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