Tealight candles inserted into silver salts are a great idea for bath time or the dining table

The Background Associated With Candle Making is fascinating as the needs and use of candles has changed from generation to generation.

The art of making candle lights has been around since primitive times. Of course, as time passed candles turn out to be a lot different in design than they were back then. In the early days, candle lights had been essential for heat and light. These days they function as decorations, incredibly addding to the aroma and smells in our houses, and offer mild perfumes for romantic meals and baths.

The first known utilization of candle lights isn't completely known,but clay-based candle holders that date back to 4 BC have give us the data that they have been used for many years.

Candles had been also used in ancient times in both The far east and Japan. These candle lights had been made of polish obtained from insects and seed products. Candles are not recognized to have existed in the United States until 1 AD. When settlers found New England, they made candles from bayberries. Numerous contemporary candle manufacturers still use that procedure to make bayberry candle lights.

Tallow was the product used to make candle lights in the 1600s and 1700s. This is made from pet body fat. The process unfortumeately gave off a bad smell, especially when it had been burning up. Bees polish and paraffin polish each had been launched in the early 1800s, and tallow ceased being used.

In the 1800s, candle manufacturers knew the wick was the weakest part of the candle. A braided wick was developed in 1825 that seemed to greatlyto enhance the burning up of several types of candle lights. By 1830, a process was in being to make candles using paraffin and molds. These candles were of good quality and burned nicely.

These days, candle making is a common art form. There are many businesses who produce wonderful candles with some really unique scents. There are also smaller businesses that still make their candles at home within their kitchen . Making candles is a great pastime and fun activity for the entire family to engage in.

Candles are now used more for luxury and enjoymentthan to light or heat. The candle industry keeps growing with new kinds of candles becoming launched all the time. The quantity of colors, scents, and types of candles to select from is absolutely incredible.

View our selection of sterling silver candlesticks

When compared to buying a new silver gift it does not use up valuable resources and is the original form of recycling. It is the only way for "Guilt Free shopping". Antique Silver items are still around today due to the quality of their manufacture. Ancient skills have been combined with years of craftmanship by Silversmiths to produce practical every day items which are still a pleasure to use today.

Antique silver should be used daily with pride.

Always try to use antiques at home for their original purpose. Antique Silver has already been handed down from generation to generation and therefore its carbon footprint has long gone and can become your own family heirloom of the future.

Another major credential of antique silver is its value as an financial investment. At times of financial turmoil precious metal prices always rise as will any investment in antique silver.

What is seldom realised by many today is how well antique silver fits in with todays modern lifestyle. With imagination and flair modern couples today can create a dining environment totally unique and "eco friendly".

In todays environmental and financial crisis buying antique silver will be the guilt free solution to that perfect investment or gift.

Visit our antique silver website to see how you can help to save the planet today. (well almost).

Antique Silver is an "Alternative Investment" and a very good one. Our Antique Silver website sees a growing number of visitors turning to antique silver as a safe haven for their money. We are not the only ones to think so. There are now many Financial Experts reporting the same. I came across this entry below in Financial News.

Alternative Investments: Arts & Antiques

While many people put their money into stocks and bonds, one way to enjoy growing your wealth is to get in on the alternative investments of art and antiques. Not only do you get to have fun of hunting for hidden gems, if you know what you are looking for, you can almost certainly sell your finds for a profit......................................................

Click here to read the full article

As silver scrap metal prices rise we find in increasingly difficult to source quality silver items at reasonable prices. Buy now while its still a bargain. Visit our antique silver for sale website to get even keener prices than our ebay store.

Heres an interesting question which I often see asked.

http://www.workwasters.com/break-room/what-is-the-difference-between-antique-and-vintage/#comment-56790

The simple answer is anything over 100 years is antique. This definition has been established for may years. Vintage can be a somewhat grey area without the same clarity.

Antique silver is silver which is at least 100 years old

Whilst not strictly antique silver specific I came across this interesting article of value for all antique collectors. You can click the link below to visit the article and its full of useful information such as...  the family historian’s Hippocratic oath is “do nothing you can’t undo.” On the surface, this seems simple enough: You don’t amputate a page of the family Bible because it’s dirty.

It also lists what it calls its tested prescriptions for preserving 10 common kinds of family heirlooms. No matter what antique you collect its worth a read, just click the link below.

http://www.antiquetrader.com/article/preserving_your_family_heirlooms

Many periods through our history have produced very distinctive styles.

The Queen Anne period from 1702 to 1714 saw a minimalist style in design but much decoration in the form of armorials,crests and motifs.

Baroque is classed as the period from the 17th Century to the 18th Century. It is distinctive for its grand heavy forms,bulbous and often with abundant decoration with elaborate carving and often rich gilding. This period is usually associated with Louis XI, Charles II and William & Mary.

Rococo is credited to the early to mid 18th century. Once again very decorative works with engraved rustic scenes and light gilding.

The late 1700's into the early 1800's saw the influence of North America into Federal designs. Most famous Silversmith for these designs was Paul Revere.

The Victorian Period is very popular among collectors today. From 1837 until 1901 Queen Victoria presided over the growth of the British Empire and wealth creation on a grand scale. This led to the rival of historical styles and extravagant ornamentation. It also saw the first volume production of silver items.

The Art Nouveau period ran between 1890 and 1915 and saw the move waay from the Victorian extravagance towards a more aymmetrical form with curving lines typically made famous by Liberty & Co and Tiffany.

The Art Deco Period followed from 1918 to the 1940's. Streamlined geometric forms with a strong Egyptian influence led to distinctive work from Christofle and Jensen.

The modern day period has been influenced by mass production with distinct work standing out from silversmiths such as Stuart Devlin.

Whatever style takes your fancy there are many factors to be considered by the collector not least of which will be price. Modern silver will be tomorrows antiques and therefore may be a wise starting point in any collecting career. Foe a wide selection of antiques silver and modern silver visit our silver2treasure store.

Whilst many people are aware of the value of Gold as an investment very few realise how safe and secure antique silver is to invest in. The current price of silver scrap has led to the value of antique silver items to rises steeply as well as the selection offered for sale reduces as owners flock to sell treasured items off as scrap where it is melted down and lost forever.

The easiest item to scrap is silver flatware. Silver forks and silver spoons are usually heavy and easily achieve a high scrap value. This will mean locating antique silver flatware will become ever more difficult in the coming years. For those trying to build up a canteen of antique silver cutlery this task will soon become much more expensive. The good news is that as it gets more scarce its value will continue to grow.

For those just starting out on their collecting career it is wise to learn about the various silver makers marks. These marks make it very easy to accurately identify the date of manufacture and by whom. This information is vital in dating and valuing antique silver.

Whilst the more common Silversmith items will be melted owners with any sense will hang onto the more collectable Silversmiths such as Hester Bateman and Paul Storr to name but two.

With all the financial turmoil in the world today investing in antique silver makes more sense.