Candles are very popular this month with the holidays and need to brighten up the long hours of darkness around the time of the winter solstice. The holidays of Hanukkah and Kwanzaa involve  lighting candles over multiple nights. Though hopefully nobody still uses candles to light Christmas trees, candles still play an important part of most household Christmas decorations. Holiday candles lead to candle wax drips

With all those lighted candles, wax invariably drips on the candle holders, the surfaces that the candle holders are on, and any other surface nearby. Metal screwdrivers and kitchen knives (sharp and flatware) are often used to remove the unwanted wax, but the metal can scratch the surfaces being cleaned. Fingernails are also used for scraping, but they often aren’t sturdy enough, and the wax has a nasty habit of building up under the nail, which feels awful. A better solution is to use a Scrigit Scraper cleaning tool to remove the wax. The durable plastic pen-shaped tool is just the right hardness to quickly and safely scrape off the wax without damaging the surfaces being cleaned. The size of the tool with a different style scraper at each end make it easy to get into tight spaces and clean flat surfaces, curved surfaces, edges and grooves.

The Scrigit Scraper can also be used to remove the remains of an old candle from a candle holder so a new candle can be inserted. For smaller candle holders, such as ones often used for Hanukkah candles, the sides of the flat end of he Scrigit can be sanded down slightly with an emery board or sandpaper to make the tool narrow enough to fit inside the candle holders.

If the wax on any hard surface is difficult to scrape, use a blow dryer to soften the wax to make it easier to scrape off. Do not liquefy the wax. Any remaining waxy residue can be removed with rubbing alcohol using a paper towel or rag. If the wax falls on fabric, such as a tablecloth, or on a carpet, scrape off what you can with the Scrigit. Putting ice on the wax or putting the whole tablecloth in the freezer to chill the wax will make it easier to scrape off. Then cover the area with several layers of paper towels or a section of a brown paper bag. Put an iron set to the temperate appropriate for the fabric on the paper towels or bag just long enough for the wax to be absorbed into the paper. Move the paper around and repeat the process until no more wax is absorbed. For tablecloths, any remaining wax should come out in the wash. For delicate or antique tablecloths, have them professionally cleaned.

Scrigit Scrapers are handy for cleaning up wax and many other holiday messes. They also make great gifts.