Cleaning candle (votive) holders
 

I burned some candles in some small votive holders and they got the typical dark smoke waxy buildup on the sides. Does anyone know a good way to get rid of this?

Liquid dishwasher soap -- the kind you'd use in an automatic dishwasher is usually pretty good at getting out those stains.

to prevent them from appearing to begin with -- put a piece of aluminum foil over the top of the candle holder - poke a few holes in it for air... and leave it on when you have the candle lit... it also gives you a nice even burn on the candle (this is especially great on those jarred candles that never seem to burn evenly)

Alcohol will dissolve most waxes if the soap doesn't work.

Years ago I was asked by a local church what they could do to eliminate or reduce the soot buildup on walls and ceilings over the votive candle areas. After some research, I found that candles made from pure beeswax do not soot like other grades of wax made from petroleum byproducts. They cost a little more but save on cleaning and restoration costs.

Yeah the alcohol thing works well.... Windex.

You can also run them thru a dishwasher if you have access to one.

Salt water works like alcohol as well. Ive found that it tends to work as well if not better than alcohol at times.