How To Make Tarts and Melts

What you will need:

1. Wax - Aztec recommends IGI's 4794 for a Paraffin wax and Golden Foods LP 416 as a soy wax for tarts
2. Tart Mold - This can be our clam shell molds, a metal tart molds, you can even use a nonstick cookie sheet or muffin sheet (see below)
3. Fragrance Oil
4. Dye - Liquid, Blisters or Chips will work
5. A melting pot
6. Spoon to mix product

Step One:

Melt your wax using either a Presto Pot or a Melting Pot over a low heat. We do not recommend that you ever heat wax in a microwave as it heats unevenly and can pop out and burn you.

Your wax will need to melt to around 130-140 degrees. The hotter the wax gets the more shrinkage you will see but you want to get it to at least 130 so your fragrance will blend into the wax. TAKE OFF HEAT and move to step two

Step Two:

After your wax is off the heat add your dye (dye can be added during heating process if dye blisters or chips are used). You will need 7-15 drops of liquid dye, about 1/10th of a blister, or one dye chip per pound of wax. Make sure it is melted and distributed evenly in the wax.

 Step Three:

Add your fragrance. This is the part that you need to be sure that the wax is off the heat. If it is still heating you might cook out a little bit of your fragrance depending on how long you let it set and how hot it gets. Most people, especially in tarts, will add about 1 oz of fragrance per pound of wax. This is by weight so make sure and use a scale to weigh your fragrance as well as your wax before adding and mixing. Too much fragrance and you will see it start to leak out of the wax and make an oily layer on the top of the tart. Stir your fragrance in and let sit for a couple of minutes to let the air escape back out of the wax that was infused when stirred.

Step Four:

Prepare your molds. If you are using a tart mold you just need to make sure it is clean. If using a tart, baking sheet or other item you can use Silicone Spray to make sure the wax releases from the molds and doesn't stick. If you ever have problems getting the wax out just stick it in the freezer which will cause the wax to shrink and pop right out of the mold.

Some people also use our soap molds. Just make sure you don't pour too hot as they are plastic and can't take extreme high heats. I would use the Silicone Spray with the soap molds as well.

Step Five:

Pour your tarts. For the clam shells it is up to you if you want to fill it to the top or just the top of the cavities. The more you fill it above the cavities the harder it will be to break the tarts apart. For a baking sheet I would say a quarter of an inch is a good amount. You can go up to about a 1/2 inch but once again will be hard to break apart. Tart molds can be filled all the way to the top.

Step Six:

Let them cool. The colder the wax is the easier it will be to get out of the mold. Also if you are using a baking sheet you can take a pizza cutter when it is soft and precut small squares or use cookie cutters as well or just wait till it is hard and break them into uneven pieces.

Step Seven:

Remove from molds and enjoy. If you are using the clam shells you can just leave them in there until use or sold. For the metal tart molds I flip them upside down and drop them from about a foot in the air on the table and they come right out (if you used silicone spray this will probably not be necessary) for the baking sheet just flip over and press down on the center and the wax will pop out.

You can pack your tarts in any type of bag, use ribbons, a label on the clam shells looks great and enjoy  in any of our electric melters!