As the nights were getting longer, I was intrigued about natural ways to bring light to camp. I’d collected some clay from Pippin Wood and wanted to make use of this too. A plan for my next experiment was forming.
I started experimenting with making tallow candles.
First step was to make thumb pots out of the clay and air-dry them. The clay lumps I’d collected previously had already air-dried by this stage. So we ground up the hard lumps of clay and added water from the stream, to get workable clay again. Getting the right consistency took a bit of work, but we got there after some very messy moments!
-
The finished pots -
Covered in clay -
The pot coming along nicely
-
Wild Alcohol & Foraging WorkshopPrice range: £55.00 through £495.00 -
Leather Pattern & Sewing with Dr Theresa Emmerich KamperPrice range: £86.00 through £430.00 -
Progressive Basket WeavingPrice range: £80.00 through £425.00 -
Fleece to Felt CoursePrice range: £50.00 through £400.00 -
Deer Skin Tanning with Dr Theresa Emmerich KamperPrice range: £70.00 through £350.00 -
Autumn Foraging and Preserving Two Day Course£225.00
Spring Foraging Day
£95
Learn to identify and cook seasonal wild foods. Our instructors will take you on a stroll to gather our plants in the afternoon you’ll cook up a delightful celebratory meal.
Basket Weaving Day
£95
Create your very own willow basket. We take you through the entire basket weaving process from how to harvest your willow to how to care for your basket.
Track and Sign
£95
Spend a day with our highly knowledgeable instructors. Develop a deeper understanding of the wildlife a mix of habitats including chalk grassland, hazel coppice, plantation on ancient woodland.
After air-drying the pots, I prepared some wicks. The first wick I tried was a piece of dried Birch Polypore, a bracket fungus. This had worked well with a coconut oil lantern. It wasn’t so successful with the tallow, being more viscous it didn’t flow up the wick so well, and my tallow candle regularly went out after just a few minutes burning. The second time, I used Rose Bay Willow Herb as the wick, and this worked very well, my candles burning steadily and bright, with both tallow and coconut oil. Both times I dipped the tip of the wick into the fuel before constructing the candle.
-
Tallow and Birch Polypore -
Burning well with Tallow and Birch Polypore -
Setting the Rosebay Willow Herb in upright.
I used both tallow and coconut oil as fuel. My tallow was from left over cooking fat, lamb casseroles and breakfast bacon. Rather than composting it, I thought I would try and put it to a good use. It works and burns well, but isn’t really advisable for use on a dinner table inside. The coconut oil however is a good option whatever the situation, creating a lovely tropical aroma around the candle.