Sealing Wax – Types and How to Work with It

Sealing wax is quite often used in various crafts. It is used in the making of photo albums, cards, souvenirs, crafts, boxes, and for gift wrapping.

Sealing wax comes in the form of candles, small pieces, or specifically for glue guns. Which one is better is a matter of habit.

Sealing wax for glue guns, in my opinion, is the most inconvenient because there is always some wax left in the gun, and if you use a different color, you have to wait until the wax color becomes pure. However, it is the most convenient option when you need to make many seals. With candle-style sealing wax, you need to work quickly and be careful not to let it drip onto a card or invitation, which requires a certain amount of skill. For portion-sized sealing wax pieces, you need a special spoon in which it is melted over a candle. The advantage of wax in pieces is that you can mix different colors right in the spoon to get both new shades and multi-colored seals.

There are also unusual techniques for creating wax seals. You can add dried flowers to the liquid wax, paint the raised parts with an acrylic marker, or sprinkle the edges with glitter.

Tips for working with sealing wax:

• If you need to make many wax seals, for example, to pack several dozen invitations, periodically put the stamp in the freezer for a couple of minutes;
• If you are not confident working with sealing wax and are afraid of making a mistake, make the seal on a thin piece of parchment or a silicone mat, then glue it to your project.

If you urgently need to make a stamp but don't have sealing wax on hand, you can replace it with hot glue gun sticks. Simply squeeze the glue onto the desired spot, sprinkle it generously with glitter, pastel dust, or some colored powder, and make an impression. You cannot replace sealing stamps with anything makeshift. They must be made of metal, which allows the wax to cool quickly and not stick to the surface. It is easiest to buy sealing wax and stamps in craft stores or on AliExpress. They have the largest selection of colors and shapes.