With the weather cooling down and the sun setting earlier each day, it’s time to infuse fall-scented candles into your evening routine. There’s nothing quite like winding down by candlelight, and it’s a happy bonus when you can bring the autumn spirit into your home at the same time.

Fall Candle Bowls

by Kristy Doubet Haare from Willow and Sage Autumn 2023

You Will Need

• • Cookie sheet
• • Parchment/Wax paper
• • Cotton wicks: (4)
• • Wick tabs: (4)
• • Ramekins: 9-oz. (4)
• • Wax-melting pitcher
• • Kitchen scale
• • 2.4 lbs. soy wax
• • Saucepan
• • Infrared thermometer
• • Spatula: heat-resistant
• • 3 oz. apple cider scent
• • Wick-centering bars
• • Dried orange slices: (5)
• • Dried apple slices: (4)
• • Cinnamon sticks: (4)
• • Star anise: (6–8)

To Make

Cover your workspace or line a cookie sheet with parchment or wax paper. Press the bottom of a cotton wick onto a wick sticker tab, peel it off from the sheet, and place it off-centered in the base of a ramekin. Repeat for each ramekin. Place a wax-melting pitcher on a kitchen scale, and tap “tare weight.” Add the soy wax to the pitcher until it reads 2.4 pounds. Place the pitcher inside a saucepan filled with approximately 2 inches of water. Use the double boiler method to heat the wax on low up to 130 degrees Fahrenheit. Keep an eye on the wax’s temperature with a no-touch infrared thermometer, and stir the wax slowly yet often with a heat-resistant spatula.

Once the wax is melted, turn off the heat source. When the wax is between 110–135 degrees Fahrenheit, add the apple cider scent, and stir slowly for one to two minutes to thoroughly incorporate the scent. Using the spout of the wax melting pitcher, fill each ramekin about 60% full. Hold the wicks upright with wick-centering bars while curing. Once the wax has begun to cool and harden, add a dried orange slice, dried apple slice, cinnamon stick, and star anise to each ramekin, creating a crescent moon shape. Allow the wax to harden around these pieces, and pour a top layer of wax while avoiding the spices and wick. Allow the candles to cure for 24 hours before trimming the wick to ¼ inch. For a strong scent, wait three to five days before lighting.

Cozy Comfort Chai Candle

by Becca Piastrelli from Willow and Sage Autumn 2018

You Will Need

• • Wick
• • Containers
• • Chopsticks: (2)
• • Tape
• • Beeswax pastilles/freshly grated
• • Ground spices: ginger; cardamom; cinnamon; nutmeg

To Make

Place the wick in a container of choice, and secure it between two chopsticks with tape. Measure the beeswax at double the size of the container, and place in a glass container in a shallow water bath over medium heat on the stove. Heat until fully melted. Remove the melted wax from the heat, and let sit for three to five minutes. Add the spices as desired and mix until well combined. Pour the mixture into the container, being sure not to disturb the wick, and let cool. Once cool, remove the chopsticks, snip the wick, and your candle is ready.

Discover more cozy candle recipes in Willow and Sage Winter 2026.

Danielle Williams is the managing editor for Willow and Sage, The Natural Home Issue, Mingle, and Art Quilting Studio. She lives with her growing family in Orange County, California.