BURNING SAFETY: Burning candles is a responsibility! When in doubt, put it out! On the bottom of every candle we make is a burning instruction label on the bottom of our pillars and jars, as well as tart melts. Our other candles come with our printed instruction sheet (for first time customers). What do the warning labels and instruction labels mean? Keep wick trimmed to 1/4 of an inch and centered in the candle. Keeping the wick trimmed will decrease smoking and soot. (Some highly-scented candles will produce soot if not properly maintained). 1/4" is the optimal length to get a perfect burn each and every time! Occasionally a wick can drift off center which can cause a candle to burn unevenly. This can lead to dripping candles and can even crack a jar candle! If you don't own a wick dipper and wick trimmer, fingernail clippers make good wick trimmers! They are easy to reach into jars. 2. KEEP OUT OF: Keep out of drafts!! A draft such as an air conditioning vent or an open window or passing traffic can speed up the burn time and produce smoke as well as cause the wick to off center in your burning candle. It can also cause your candles to burn unevenly and cause pillar candles and tapers to drip. 3. KEEP WAX FREE of matches, wick trimmings and debris. These small things can catch FIRE and produce a MAJOR FIRE HAZZARD! KEEP OUT OF reach of children and pets. Liquid or molten wax is of course, VERY HOT and will burn the skin. It can also cause fire to hair and or clothes. For safety of your loved ones as well as yourself, Please keep out of reach! 4. AND NEVER AND WE MEAN NEVER, LEAVE A BURNING CANDLE UNATTENDED! (under NO circumstances). 5. PILLAR CANDLES: Did you know that your candles have a memory? When burning a pillar candle for the first time, it is of the utmost importance to give it a "memory burn". You should burn the candle for 1 hour for each inch of it's diameter. For Example: Our biggest selling pillar is our 3x4.5" round pillar, the proper memory burn for this candle would be 3 HOURS (since it is 3" across the top) to establish the perfect "memory burn". This allows your pillar to establish a FULL melt pool (also increasing the scent throw) and should leave a shell about 1/4 to 1/2" thick, so no wax can drip over the sides. This ensures that you enjoy your entire candle while saving you from that dreaded dripping candle as well. 6. WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF I DON'T GIVE MY CANDLE A PROPER "MEMORY BURN"? If your pillar candle is burned for less than the required burn time, it will "core burn" or it will burn straight down the center and never burn past that improper "memory" that was set at the first burn, therefore you will not get a great scent throw. On the other hand if you burn your pillar for more than the recommended burn time, it may burn to the outer edges and drip or leak down the sides causing a fire hazzard, burn hazzard and damage to furniture or whatever the candle is sitting on. 7. VOTIVE CANDLES: Our votive candles are designed to burn for 10 to 15 hours if burned properly and in an appropriate votive holder, votives will totally liquefy in about a half hour if not burned in an appropriate votive holder, leaving a big puddle of molted wax. 8. JAR CANDLES: Jar candles also need a memory burn. You should burn your jar candle for 1 hour for each inch in diameter of the jar (just like the pillars) so that they too can set up their "memory burn". This allows the jar candle to establish a full melt pool, releasing all that triple-scent! This also allows for ALL the wax in the jar to be consumed or at least 95% of the wax should be gone at the end of the life of the jar. When candle is exhausted our jars make great containers for other items! And again, Thank you for your candle purchase! LITTLE HOUSE CRAFTS & CANDLES.