Suddenly there is a load of publicity about the Power Off weekend, bringing the event to the attention of many, and throwing us a lot of internet activity right before we power down. I cannot wait until tomorrow and we pull the plug. Publicity is good, fantastic in fact, but it does bring unwanted comments and intrusion into our life. Rachel feels it more than I do.

So, there are pieces in the Times, Guardian and Scottish TV, online … and people’s blogs. I will have to wait until the weekend is over to look at it all and reply … so for now, if you want, here are some links:

STV News

Guardian Environment

Times online / J-P Flintoff

Off-grid

Car-less Family

OK – Must dash – people here.

The following are some of their answers, unaltered. I hope it inspires you to take the plunge and join in too! Remember, this coming weekend, starting 23.00 on Friday 19th – flick the switch.

Note – alcohol and fire do NOT mix – accidents will happen. If you are going to get drunk, don’t do this.

What did you enjoy most about the weekend?

The quiet, for both of us, i.e. no fridge, radiator noises, no TV.

Being made to think and value electricity and power rather than just use it because it’s there. We have left the lights off much more this week!

The quiet and knowledge that machines didn’t need to be attended to!

Early to bed and late to rise

All the candles and the secret scent of freedom that comes with no power.

Being released from relying upon clocks and reflexively going online when there are so many other things to do (I read an entire book on Sunday!)

No TV and the peace that came with it. We played pictionary and had fun. Seeing my initially reluctant teenager actively take part. I also quite liked the low lighting from the candles.

Time spent reconnecting with friends, over mulled wine and loud singing and poor guitar playing, oh and devising new ways of doing toast without finger burning. Loved settling in to the early evening with candles and space to think.

The liberation of not checking email!

Difficult to isolate just one thing … I loved the gentle light, I appreciated the daylight more, I loved the calm and quiet, spending quality time with the family without the distraction of the TV, and I really loved the special exciting feeling almost like being on holiday

What did you miss most or find most difficult?

Worrying about the freezer.

Sadly I had to turn the computer back on for work

Heat … I missed heat and hot water.

I really needed to get some work done – so ‘cheated’ by going to someone else’s house to use their power when my laptop battery ran out. So I missed power for my laptop and internet connection the most.

Sometimes balancing the ‘essence’ of the weekend with what needed to happen was difficult – for example we had a flour spill on the carpet during our cooky-making extravaganza, and really there was no choice but to get the dustbuster or else have flour ground into the carpet and strewn about the apartment.

Being able to grab the vacuum when we dropped something, the ability to flick on a light and the convenience that comes with electricity.

Most difficult was finding where I’d left the camera! Didn’t find it too difficult, all in all.

It took a few hours to get used to the lack of immediate light, but that was all really.

I think for me personally I found cooking the most difficult as we don’t have a fire and we were limited to a small camping stove, which was somewhat limiting.

I think the hardest thing was keeping a fire going for heat. I missed my cell more than anything I think.

What tips would you share with others trying this in the future?

Have light sources available for forgetful offspring who come home to a dark house.

Plan your weekend several weeks in advance!

To be honest none – let them find out for themselves.

It’s a good chance to catch up on sleep, or go out and be sociable! Invest in a gas stove!

Begin to make a family aware of activity months in advance – and have resources to run light and heat from non gris sources.

If you’re turning off the fridge/ freezer, don’t go food shopping for at least a week prior. Run out of something in that time? Too bad.

Don’t dismiss it because you can’t do 100% power off. You can still contribute. Something is better than nothing right?

Go for it … lanterns save the worry of naked flames and be sure to tie glow sticks to the dog.

Get a heat source! Our log burner made the whole thing an almost breeze, lots of heat, hot water and cooking facilities!

Organisation is the key, if you plan your meals and empty the fridge and freezer in the run up to the event, you won’t go far wrong.

What advice would you give someone considering doing something like this but unsure if they can actually do it?

Don’t be anxious, don’t take it too seriously, enjoy the experience of living by candlelight etc for a while, finding things to do without electrciity. It’s up to you how you do the weekend.

Go on, give it a go. if you fail like we did you can always flick the switch back on but you’ll appreciate having that switch back on much more than you did before!

Try it for a day, or 24 hours first.

You are in control. GO for it – if it all becomes too much just flip the switch.

Come on – challenge yourself! What really do you have to lose? The benefits far outweigh the discomforts over the course of one weekend.

Baby steps. Stat with something – anything – and build on it.

If you can’t do it all then do what you can. You’d be surprised.

48 hours can be a whole lot of fun. Be creative, get others involved, bring a candle parties are handy – after 48 hours you can say I did it and you will be sooo proud.

It’s two days! What’s to lose?

Go for it! Keep an open mind, be creative, don’t be defeatist and have fun!

Here’s the brief clip and some challenges Tom has posed to us:

Power Off Weekend BBC Scotland Tom Morton

Tom, here’s answer #1:

Simply crank the handle and you've got electricity-free radio!

No worries, Tom. We’ll simply crank the handle on our handy-dandy wind-up radio, and we’ll be able to listen to BBC Radio Scotland all we want.

As for your other worry that without electricity, we’ll all be crashing into one another…hmm. I think we’ll be just fine with the lantern and candles — and of course the lamps made from scallop shells.

Our scallop shell lamps in December, last Power Off Weekend

Others are using torches (that’s flashlights for the Americans) and some may just prefer the light of the moon. Whatever works.

Never leave a naked flame unattended, always have smoke alarms, fire extinguishers and never put things like candles directly on top of flammable surfaces like plastic or wood. Accidents happen if you don’t make it safe.

One risk we will not be exposed to is electrocution, so we’ll be listening to the radio in the bath, with romantic candle light.

Hope that puts your fears to rest, Tom, and thanks for mentioning us on your show.

The Power Off weekend is 48 hours, from 11pm on the Friday night to 11pm on the Sunday (19-21 March 2010), without electricity.

Playing board games by candle light, surprisingly wonderful fun!

Power Off is all about having time to have fun, play games, talk to people, have friends and neighbours round, spend time with your children – and all the other things that suffer as a result of 24/7 computers, emails, TV, games, chores, noise, 24 hour bright light and one endless season inside your artificial world, called home.

It is also a wake up call to how much we now use electrical items, how much we rely upon electricity generated far away by carbon guzzling technologies, how heavy our footprint and how little time we have left.

Keeping warm and reading by daylight, mid December Power Off

Power Off weekends are like mini-holidays at home. There are so many things you cannot do (and you might initially twitch at the prospect) but once released from their continual demand you are free, on holiday. It is fun, different, memorable, challenging, good for you and good for the planet.

Everybody’s situation is different – where you live will determine weather, alternatives (wood burning stove, summer in the southern hemisphere), support (neighbours) and limitations (like living in a block of flats in a city). However, this makes everyone aware of their relationship with electricity (especially those things hardest / impossible to give up). That is no bad thing.

Best of all, everyone who has done these before has been glad they did it, for some of us it is now a regular thing.

Our temporary kitchen and heating during the Power Off

So please, why not join us? It feels great to do this with like minded people, all over the world. Together in spirit on an adventure in our own homes.

We are aiming for at least 200 people to sign up.

Even if you cannot do it yourself, please forward this to everyone you know, sing its praises and maybe join us the next time, or just think of us on the weekend – March 20-21.

To sign up either email us at malcolm@touchwoodproject.com or go to our Facebook event and group for the Power Off Weekend and sign up there! Tell your friends, local media, and help this grow.

To find out more about previous Power Off weekends, discover hundreds of suggested things you can do, FAQs and lots of pictures, go to our earlier Power Off posts - and don’t miss the Radio interview!

Power Off Weekend - March 20-21, starts 11pm on the 19th

Greetings!

I figure, since this is my second guest post, I should probably introduce myself a bit.

My name is Kerrilee, and I met Malcolm & Rachel on my six-week travels this past summer. They were awesome, and let me stay longer than I had originally asked to stay.

So, now that I’ve been back home in New York, teaching preschool and hanging with my girlfriend (Melissa) and cat (Pan), I’m happy to say that they’re still awesome and inviting me into their lives and this project.

Here’s a play-by-play of what Power-Off Weekend looked like from this side of the Atlantic.

Setting the scene

Where we live: a 900 square foot, 4th-floor apartment, 15 miles north of Manhattan, with a view of the Empire State Building from the bedroom window in the winter when there’s no leaves on the trees.

We have a fireplace, steam radiators that sound like angry birds, and oddly placed electrical outlets (the building was constructed in the 1920′s… the original brochure advertised the “amazing cross-breezes” for those renting apartments before air conditioning. As someone too lazy and uninterested to walk an air-conditioner up four flights of stairs twice a year, I can confirm it’s a valid selling point. But I digress.)

The great Cooky Party

On Friday night, one of our best friends came in from Philadelphia for the Cooky Party Melissa and I were hosting on Saturday. It’s a non-holiday specific party where our friends get together, bake cookies, and then gorge ourselves on the sweet treats, alternated with something salty, like Mexican food. A day of friends and food… couldn’t be better.

a preview of the Mexican feast.

Everyone knew that there would be no lights and no KitchenAid mixer at this year’s party (but we would leave the fridge on). Upon arrival on Friday night, our friend reassured her husband over the phone that she had indeed charged it before she left, and it would not die before she returned on Sunday.

Turning off the electricity

At 10:30 Friday night, I started playing with circuits while Melissa and our friend called out what turned off.

Until that day, it had never even occurred to us that we had a big ‘ole circuit breaker thing and that we could use it to turn stuff off without unplugging it. The process went something like,

me, standing on chair to reach circuits: ok, what now?

Melissa and friend: Ummm, the light’s out on the stereo.

me: got it. [label circuit, flick next circuit.] ok, what now?

Melissa and friend: Nothing?

me: [flick next circuit] and now?

Melissa and friend: … still nothing.

Turns out, we have a lot of useless circuits. Half of them, actually. Also, three out of our six rooms are on the same circuit, and the bathroom isn’t on any circuit. Good to know. Lights out.

Waking up Saturday morning

So, now we’re at Saturday morning. I get woken up by a bag of coffee beans in my face. Melissa wants to make coffee, and the coffee grinder has one of those pesky plugs.

I suggest the mortar and pestle… but Melissa and our friend decide to hit Starbucks on their way to pick up a few last minute items for the day.

While they were out, Melissa calls me to ask for a store’s phone number (she was getting her new iPhone that day). Nope, can’t use the Internet to look it up – call 411! [the information equivalent of the emergency 911 number here in the States.]

At 11 am, friends arrive for the all-day baking fest. Our oven is gas, so we’re not technically cheating (yay!).

Showing off those icing skills.

Hard at work on gingerbread.

Everyone had a gingerbread initial... we couldn't help but spell with them.

However, disaster strikes: Melissa goes to take out the flour, and the lid slips off the container, spilling flour all over the carpet and one of our guests. Oh no!

Breaking the rules

We’re faced with a choice: get the Dustbuster, or have flour ground
into the carpet and spread all over the place during the course of the day. So, the Dustbuster became our one moment of breaking our own rules over the weekend.

Later, a guest who has been at previous Cooky Parties commented, “You know, it’s nice – without the KitchenAid, we can hear each other better.” And that was even with the holiday music, provided by a battery-operated iHome!

Evening sets in

As the sun went down, the last cookies were rolled out by “flashlight” (aka torch-light).

Rolling out the last of 'em.

After everything was baked, we lit the candles for the 2nd night of Hannukah, some other candles for extra light, and a fire in the fireplace, and read aloud from a book parodying Twilight while we feasted on tea & cookies.

My own moment of forgetfulness about the lack of electricity came when we were setting up for the two friends who were sleeping over.

One friend called the couch, and for the other, I said, “Oh, we’ll blow up the air mattress…” and got as far as having the plug in my hand before I realized that we could not, in fact, blow up the air mattress. Instead, we stripped all the cushions off the back of the couch and the one cushy chair, and made a makeshift mattress to put underneath the air mattress. It ended up being quite comfortable after all!

Sunday morning

The next morning, our French press, mortar and pestle, and I worked together to provide three cups of coffee.

Then our friends departed, and Melissa and I spent the rest of our day in a very relaxed state of electricity-lessness.

While Melissa watched “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” on the battery power of her laptop, I half-watched while I rearranged the two power strips in the living room into “always” and “sometimes” stuff, so that when the power returned, we could leave the power off to the things we used less often (like the Wii), and only turn that strip on when needed.

When the movie and rearranging were finished, we both read for the rest of the day.

As it got dusky, I used a flashlight/torch jammed into the hood of my sweatshirt as a reading lamp, and then we used our most reflective candleholders to read in bed (sorry Malcolm, there isn’t really an abundance of shells and reeds in Westchester! if only). We, too, went to bed without flipping the circuits back on, and only did so Monday morning.

A bit of reflection

As the end of the Weekend drew near, Melissa commented, “Awesome! Now I can stop automatically reaching for the lightswitch and have nothing happen.”
Meanwhile, I found myself thinking about how nice it was not to know exactly what time it was. The time was divided into “day, dusk, night,” and there was no pressure to know the hour. I also thought, when a lull came over the Cooky Party, how easy it must have been to be on a ‘farmer’s schedule’ before electricity; we all seemed to get tired around 8 PM, and only pushed to stay awake because our group of friends does not get many opportunities to spend time together and it would be silly to squander it. Between the ease of going to bed when it’s dark, and the expense of using candles for a lengthy period in the evening, it makes sense to rise early and retire to bed early.

Alas, nothing to do but eat cookies.

Coda

A few days after the Weekend, Melissa and I we were talking in the bedroom – but not going to bed yet – and since we weren’t reading or doing something that required light, I turned off the bedside lamp. As the light from outside filtered in, Melissa noticed the pattern of the planes taking off from LaGuardia. It was “rush hour” for transatlantic flights, so we spent the next 10 minutes peacefully watching the different flight patterns created as many planes flew over our area. We have lived in this apartment for three years, knowing we had a view of New York City, and never noticed this before, simply because we were never looking at the right angle and with the right light (in this case, none of our own).

It’s little things, small baby steps, that make all the difference in how we experience our lives.

Esther Pawley sent us her almost haiku-like notes that we just had to share…

Official candle lighting time – 5.23pm

Feel like Wee Willie Winky carrying my candle about. Such a beautiful warm glow – should use candles more often.

Frustrating – need internet connection – but can cycle to work to use their connection – when they’re there (long story don’t ask)!!

Thank goodness for gas and the fact I’m not too fussy about warmth – long history of freezing houses and wearing lots of clothes inside the house. Don’t be fooled by location – no central heating and plenty of healthy drafts.

Enjoying the warmth from my laptop, acting like a reptile..

Discovered my torch gives off heat – great. Mustn’t over use, can’t recharge….

Should have lit fire while it was light. Haven’t done it before.

Hot food never tasted so good. Sleep – highly underrated.

Bloody freezing – psychological? Think not, the air temperature must have dropped. I don’t have any less heating than usual. (It was true when I checked the internet on Monday).

Overfilled teapot in semi-darkness. Balls. Drinking water a scarcity.

I love electricity, it’s so useful…. promise not to use it excessively again…

Decided to go out and hold a dinner party elsewhere, with lighting.

While cycling back watched shooting stars with a friend and shared the lane with a barn owl flying alongside me. Amazing!! Nearly fell off my bike when it veered off.

See, I wouldn’t have had that amazing experience if I hadn’t have been forced to go and share food elsewhere due to lack of power at my house.

The weather helped, with sunshine and no wind. At night, stars mesmerised me as the scent of wood smoke drifted down to my eager nostrils. Joy! The time has just flown by, and to be honest life was so enjoyable without the electricity that we are only re-introducing it selectively – I call that a success!

First day of the Power Off weekend, embracing light and the simple pleasures

We rode our bikes to the local Stenness store, only a 5 mile round trip but something was special, we were really enjoying the day, soaking everything up, like we were on holiday. We kept the open fire lit with driftwood, boiled water using an old coffee jug and embraced the smoky flavours! People called by every day, bringing gifts of food, warmth and friendship. We feasted on plentiful supplies of food, cooked over the fire, we read stories out loud and relaxed.

Oh dear, the freezer has defrosted, I'll have to cook all these sausages!

I’d say we gained more than we gave up. As the last evening drew to an end, we wondered what the time was? It was past 11pm, so we could have turned the power back on! Instead, we took the lamp to bed, luxuriating in the warmth of the flickering flame. I began a new book to read and we decided, next weekend, we’ll do it again.

This is not for everyone. However, for those who have missed out, I can now reveal, this was just the preliminary event. The next one is in January – but it will be slightly different. Watch this space!

For now, let us replenish the stores of vegetable oil, candles, gas, wood, and tea, and reconnect with friends and family. Life without electricity has a magic and ‘energy’ all of its own. Try it! It is such fun coming up with alternatives, and to be honest, we spend too much time on our backsides (looking at TV and computer). Real life has something special to offer, something we have lost sight of perhaps, blinded by the bright lights of modernity. After this weekend we can see a way to have the best of both.

Reading by the flickering flame of lamp and candle light

It has become so easy to work and shop on Sundays, with no rest. The churches have lost their hold on many of us, replaced by supermarkets, television and the internet. Weekends have become time to ‘catch up’ and get jobs done. Too busy. Maybe a little self-imposed simplicity would not be such a bad idea? A day or two without electric lights, the computer, the TV? Maybe a day leaving the car (if you have one) in the garage and dusting off the bicycles? The freezer could stay on. A few rhythms and variety seem like a good idea. It just seems we need a helping hand, a little bit of encouragement, to stop ourselves from slipping into more consuming and mindlessness. Some sort of mindfulness is one gift that comes from choosing a weekend different from the norm. Special moments and a sense of magic, of life, of who we are.

The act of turning off the electricity switched something in our heads too. We relaxed and embraced the time, behaved differently and so didn’t miss what we gave up. You know that holiday feeling? So, we consumed less energy, we spent far less, we found more time because we imposed limits on our own use of the internet. We lived in the moment, we smiled a lot, we rediscovered something precious. I’ll try in later posts to put my finger on just what this weekend has done but it is somewhat intangible – a feeling, a sense of life. Whatever, it is good!

We are asking participants to take a survey before and after the event so that we would like to understand a bit more about:

• why people are participating
• what they’re worried about and
• what they hope to get from the weekend

If you’ve signed up to turn off the electricity this weekend but haven’t yet taken it, please take the survey now (it’s quick) here:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/XJP2H5B

We’ve gotten some great replies already, and I’d like to share what people are writing.

Why are you doing it?

We asked people to choose the single biggest reason they’re doing this. 62% chose “for the environment”, 25% “for fun” and 12.5% as a “personal challenge”.

What are you worried about?

The funny thing is, people don’t seem to be worried.

We asked people to rate on a scale of “Not at all” to “Extremely” in terms of how they feel about the upcoming weekend, and 62.5% said “Not at all” for “Anxious”, with 25% “A little” and 12.5% “Somewhat”. No one put down either “A lot” or “Extremely” for anxious.

In fact, people felt “Extremely” “Free” (37.5%), “Excited” (62.5%), and “Proud” (50%).

To be honest, I expected a little more anxiety and a little less enthusiasm, but I’m so glad that there’s such a feeling of optimism and excitement.

It’s like we’re planning a big slumber party and can’t wait for the weekend.

What do you hope to get from the experience?

Here’s two of my favourite quotes so far:

An understanding of how we use electricity in this house and where we can easily cut our usage to offer economies both financially and ecologically. I hope that it will be an exciting adventure and may bring back some fond childhood memories. I am sure it will be a fun experience for all the family.

It will be a challenge to do without the convenience that electricity provides and the entertainment and means of communication that it powers. Living on my own this is pretty important to me, but I hope to be inspired to reduce energy usage from now on and to be more sociable.

What are you doing to prepare?

I’ve just gotten back from party at the grocery store, having seized the opportunity of a lift offered by my friend Victoria. I’ve got butteries (a Scottish pastry kind of like flat croissants), bread and cheddar for making toasted cheese sandwiches, and more chocolate and peanut butter to make a new batch of Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls for all the guests we’re having stop by this weekend.

We’ve got at least 3 different families coming by to check out life without electricity, and from what I’m hearing from other participants, it’s become quite a social hub for many.

Here’s what some others are doing:

Made sure the alladin lamps have kerosene, brought up plenty of firewood, gased up the generator and launched a Power Off campaign at Frankston isd…Looking forward to painting, reading & snuggling by lamplight- it’s been awhile.

Running down on frozen food.
Getting candles in.
Dusting off some old board games.

I have been busy preparing meals from the stuff in our freezer that will be easy to reheat on our camping gas stove. Organising candles and oil lamps. Chatting to people about the challenge to get their ideas and thoughts. Planning games and activities to keep us amused.

We’re really pleased, proud and excited to have so many people doing this with such imagination and flair. Thank you to all of you for making this event a success before we’ve even done it!

December 11 - 13, 2009

Please will you all follow this link and complete the quick 10 question survey:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/XJP2H5B

Thank you.

Please, will you also make notes of your experiences during the weekend, keep a diary, take photos and complete a final questionnaire afterwards?

Best wishes!

Malcolm

[Note from Rachel: These also make great presents, so this is Part 4 of my Frugal and Green Christmas Gift series. You can find all the projects by clicking on this tag (also on the righthand side of every page): Christmas.]

Decorating the fireplace for Christmas

This I believe to be one of the earliest of human inventions and in all honesty, it is superior to the man-made, metal equivalent.

For one thing the parts are white and shiny, so reflect more light. For another there are many flutes thus allowing multiple wicks and thus variable brightness (the world’s first ‘dimmer switch’). Oh, and they are free, recyclable and beautiful.

Waiting for dark to be lit

Recycling a Scottish tradition

During the 17th – 19th centuries, and probably long before, traditional cruisie lamps were used to burn fish oil.

The upper bowl can be tilted to keep the wick wet so it doesn’t burn down

These were generally made of two metal dishes mounted one above the other, on the wall or hook. Now we are going to update this old lamp for the 21st century.

What you need

Rushes grow all over boggy fields

• scallop shells or similar containers
• vegetable oil or any oil that burns
• rushes or cloth, string or matchsticks

Readying the shell

Eat your scallop. Clean the shells, especially the insides, so there is nothing to ‘go off’. This also helps with reflectance.

The flat shell will catch any drips

The flat half of the shell makes an ideal base, to steady the upper shell and catch any oil that may run down the side of the shell. It also helps you tilt the curved shell at the right angle to keep the wick in oil.

That is the shell done!

Making the wick

You can use anything that will soak up oil, including cloth, string and matchsticks. I use the traditional wicks made from the soft rush (Juncus).

Gathering the rushes

Rushes grow all over boggy fields

The soft rush has been used for rush lights and wicks from long ago. As it is nowadays treated as a weed or plant of waterlogged and overgrazed land, it seems a good plant to use.

Gather a few stems of soft rush by cutting low to the ground. It is the soft, white pith in the centre that you want.

You can try peeling the dark green outer fibres as you would a banana, but for high quality wicks and speed, try this:

How to make the wicks from rushes

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Insert a nail, key, bone or similar hard object into the rush, leaving an inch or so of rush to grip (with your teeth). Note, the nail goes right through the rush stem but leaves the outer fibres intact on either side of it.

The green rush is pinched with finger and thumb against the nail. One hand is holding the nail, the other is pinching the rush sides against the nail.

Insert the key into the rush

Now, keeping the fingers pinching the ‘nail’ at all times, push both hands down the stem, whilst holding that inch of rush firmly between your teeth.

Beginners will want to choose only a short length of rush, maybe 4-6 inches, to start.

You will find the white inner pith is pushed out by the hard ‘nail’, as it cannot pass either side of the nail because of your pinching the sides to the hard object. The pushed out pith will then magically extend, like a concertina.

An alternative method is to strip away one half of the green outer fibre (as per the banana skin method, then use the back of your thumb nail to push along the inner of the remaining fibre, thus pushing the white pith forward and out, like a snow plough.

Either way, you are looking for nice, plump wicks. They can be used straight away or kept dry for storage.

Add the oil

Traditionally the oil could be coming from fish, seabird, seal, whale or animal fat (as tallow). If it burns, you can use it.

The easiest to use, and handiest in a power cut, is vegetable cooking oil. You usually have some of this in the kitchen, though it does give of a bit of smoke and the smell depends on what it is. You can add scent with essential oils.

Be safe

Burning oil can cause other things to catch light, so be careful.

Whilst the shell itself is low-lying and thus pretty stable, it can be knocked, spilt or spread. Do not light your lamp when it is set upon something flammable. Wood and plastic objects burn. Things like tables, televisions, stereos etc. All serious fire hazards.

Do not leave a naked flame unattended. Do not let pets near (the vegetable / fish oil is very edible).

How to use

Fill the shell with oil, place one wick in the fluted groove of the shell (perfect isn’t it), leaving half an inch protruding over the end of the rim.

Get the wick tip covered in oil too.

Lighting the rush wicks

Keep the oil level high and close to the rim by repositioning the shell on it’s flatter, lower partner. Take care to get it stable and not having oil dripping over the edge.

Light with a match or similar flame.

Lighting the rush wicks

Take care, please

Please take care! Ensure all fire, flame or heat is safe and out before you go to bed or leave the house. Accidents happen by their very nature when not expected. That said, many fires are started by electrical faults.

In this case, the safety is up to you. Fire and alcohol do not mix.

Final point

There is no point trying to replicate the light of a 100w lightbulb with candles or lamps. Instead, enjoy the calm and soft light of a natural flame.

Now run that bath and set up your lamps, with essential oils added, and relax. Who needs TV?