shawneehillscc

Hi all, Having become a bit more established in my soy candle pursuits, I'm looking to expand into some lotions, liquid soaps, shampoos and etc. Not wanting to have the responsibility (or the whole testing and development process) of creating my bases from scratch, I'm looking at ordering bulk bases from a company, and then adding my fragrance oils, bottling, and labeling them. I ran across Essential Wholesale, and was extremely impressed by their website, but wanted to see what the rest of you all use, for those of you who buy bases and do as I'm wishing to. I have no clue how their prices compare to other places, and just need to have my eyes opened a bit, literally! Didn't notice any stickies on the topic, and not a lot said about various suppliers. Thanks in advance! Al, from the Shawnee Hills of balmy Southern Illinois.

Just to do a test, I took an 8oz I'd made with 464, an ECO-12, and 9% load of Peak's Fruit Slices, and carefully extracted the wick out of it, replacing it with one of my old ECO-10's from Lonestar. It burned much better, never reaching FMP on the first burn, and I was much more pleased with it. It got to the point with the ECO-12 that no matter what scent I burned, it just let off a weak FO scent with a strong chemical smell -- either I have too much oil in there, or the wick is just plain burning it up. Now, question time. Am I correct in my reading and assumption that the CDN has a "natural" coating? I liked the ECO because I can market the candles and wicks as all natural (save the FO) since I use no dye. If the CDN is still natural, then that'll work great. Also, where do you all get the CDN or CD from (your favorite place, or where you've had luck) and is there any real difference between the CDN and CD? Thanks! Al

Are you saying you poured a coconut fragrance, or added coconut oil? I forgot to mention that I also add coconut oil -- no real reason, apart from the fact that I always used to with the C3 wax. You know, that tradition thing never dies. I use 3%, FWIW. Is there a general loose rule about wicking up or down for certain types of scents? I know in the end it depends directly on the results you get, but I would imagine (ie, make a hugely uneducated guess) that the FO's that now have essential oils blended in would benefit from a smaller wick producing less heat. With candles, there are so few things where there are concrete rules and observations -- I'm trying to find them!

Hello all, Newbie here, both to candle-making and this forum, but a long-time reader who has gotten his fair share of enlightenment from using the SEARCH button! Back in my high school years I started making candles and had a nice business going, selling some great products. Then I used mainly Peak FO and Cargill C3. Since it's been reformulated, I've never went back to it -- was attracted to the higher FO load of 464 / 444. So now this brings me to my question. Based on y'alls opinion, insight, or experience, what size / type would you use for one of these 8oz aluminum travel tins with GB464? I guess I'm curious about the size, and not so much the type. From what I've read and searched for here, everybody seems to be using either ECO, or CD / CDN wicks with 464. My problem has been in the sizing. I used to use ECO-10 from Lonestar, and switched to ECO-12 from Candle Science when I started using 464, as that's what their wick sizer "recommends". But that's what it recommends for a 3"-3.5" can, while recommending an ECO-10 for a 2.5"-3" can. So I'm wondering, since this is exactly 3", should I err on the side of their bigger suggestion, or the smaller? I know, I know -- it all depends on testing, and what I've found is that the ECO-12 reaches FMP in all of my FO / 464 combinations in an hour and a half or less. Would y'all recommend anything smaller than an ECO-10, or it's CD equivalent? Thanks! Al, from Shawnee Hills