That’s a good question!
These days, art-related workshops are gaining popularity on social media, and candle making is no exception. But within every art form, there’s a unique ability to promote relaxation when engaged with mindfully.
As part of our Wellness Hub offering, we designed a stress-relief mindful candle-making workshop in conjunction with Stress Awareness Week in November 2024. The workshop left an impactful takeaway for both our participants and facilitators.
How Is This Candle Making Workshop Different from Others?
Unlike typical candle-making sessions where participants are simply guided to create their own candle step by step with the help of an instructor, our workshop emphasizes mindfulness at every stage of the process.
It wasn’t just about having fun or crafting a product; it was about being fully present in each moment, reflecting on the experience, and connecting the steps of candle making with personal insights on coping with stress and life's challenges.
But you may wonder, how does the candle-making process relate to mindfulness and stress-relief?
Most people don’t realize that the art of candle making is much more than melting soy wax, choosing a fragrance, and letting it cool. It’s about moderation and patience. Too much or too little of an ingredient can result in an overly oily candle that’s unsuitable for burning or an uneven surface, which prevents the fragrance from being properly released when lit.
This is where mindfulness comes into play. But what exactly is mindfulness? Many associate it with meditation or "zen" practices. While meditation is one form of mindfulness, the essence of mindfulness is simply about returning to the present. Let’s face it—it’s impossible to remain fully present on a single task all day long.
Our minds tend to wander, but mindfulness is about returning to the task at hand, acknowledging when our mind drifts, and refocusing. By doing so, we immerse ourselves in the present moment and give our full attention to the task.
Throughout the candle-making process, every step was thoughtfully guided by our facilitators to encourage mindfulness. For instance, as participants weighed the wax, they were encouraged to feel its texture, its weight in their hands, and its durability—whether it felt coarse, tough, fragile, or breakable—and reflect on how these sensations might mirror their own challenges. Were their challenges heavy, tough, or fragile, like the soy wax?
Insightful Takeaways
While waiting for the wax to cool towards the final steps, participants were prompted to revisit the steps of the session, reflecting on which aspects resonated most with them and how they could apply these insights to their own stress management.
For some, it was the importance of measurements—the idea that taking too much of an ingredient can lead to an ineffective or unusable candle, just as overloading ourselves with too much responsibility in our challenges can lead to burnout.
For others, it was the fragrance selection process. Since the focus was on mindful candle making, participants were only allowed to choose one fragrance—combining scents would require an entirely different lesson. They were encouraged to select a scent that would evoke a memory of relaxation, anchoring their body and mind in the present moment. One participant shared that, in choosing a scent to help her relax rather than simply picking one she liked, she realized how often we mindlessly rely on familiar coping mechanisms in moments of stressful challenges —without evaluating whether they truly help us in the moment. Sometimes, just like she found a more suitable scent instead of selecting a familiar scent, we might need to reassess and find a better method of coping with stress.
Trust was another common lesson. There were moments of uncertainty and doubt, especially when seeing the fragmented soy wax pieces at the start of the process. The patience required to melt the wax, stir without haste, and wait for it to solidify mirrored the uncertainties and unknown many face when navigating stress and challenges in life. The workshop taught participants to trust that, with patience, everything would come together in the end, just as they could trust that they would overcome and make sense of their challenges in its due course. Final Thoughts
As one of the facilitators, I would summarize the workshop in three words: Patience, Pacing, and Perseverance. Every step required patience—only when we are patient can we fully immerse ourselves and be attentive in the process. Pacing is equally important. Pouring too quickly or using the wrong amount of ingredients can lead to undesirable results. Pacing allows us to approach tasks with intention and clarity. Finally, perseverance reminds us that there is always something to look forward to—even if the path ahead is unclear. Trusting the process and persevering, despite uncertainty, enables us to reap the rewards of our efforts.
Practicing mindfulness by being patient, pacing and preserving is vital when navigating stress and life’s challenges. We need patience to avoid reacting hastily, pacing to avoid burnout, and perseverance to stay the course and grow in resilience.
Stress and challenges, though uncomfortable, are inevitable. They offer opportunities for growth, resilience, and clarity, ultimately building our character.
Connect with us to empower your team's wellbeing!
Looking for creative and meaningful trainings or workshops for your team? Connect with us to learn more about our HRDF Claimable Wellness Hub offerings and discover how we can empower the well-being of you and your team today!
Watch our session throwback below!
Comentarii