SpaceGirl

Genwax is where I got the red pots -- they're the only place I've found that carries the colored pots -- at least in red. So I bought them (under protest!) because I had this vision of red flowerpots and I couldn't compromise. LOL! I'll have to hit all the clearance shelves this year after the holiday so I'll have more variety. The pots aren't cheap -- I think I paid ~$1.60 each (before shipping) -- and they aren't red glass, they are coated (didn't realize that before I bought them). The "accents" in the pictures should look familiar to some of you as well...

Well we'll see how my first attempt at posting pictures goes..... :rolleyes2 I have no idea what will happen. Finally got a new digital camera, so today we tooks pics of the valentine's day candles. Should go up on the website today (yipee!) First ones!! (what can I say, I move slow....lol!) Every other sale has been at a craft fair or to co-workers. There's only 2 scents and 2 containers (started small - didn't want to get overwhelmed right after Christmas). LoveSpell and FrenchVanillaAmber, which I renamed to just AmberVanilla. Both are just plain white in the red flowerpots (4oz). The LoveSpell is a light pink and the AmberVanilla is a much darker pink - almost red - in the frosted tumblers (3oz). Comments and feedback are welcome -- I'm still playing with the labels and the layout for pictures. Thanks for looking!

Hmmmm... Serene Scents XYZ, for a touch of serenity (don't know what should be there instead of XYZ) I kind of like Serendipity -- it has always sounded like a word with mystery and potential

AMAZING! no other word for them.... I remember seeing those sold (mostly in tourist traps in Florida) years and years ago and was so fascinated by them. The fascination's still there

oooooh - I like those colors and the tilted layers..... Those almost make me want to go back to pillars again............ someone smack me!

Don't you just love it when all the factors come together like that?? Makes we want to do a nice boogie dance when that happens! LOL! Congrats on finding a combo that works! ('Specially when it's with a pesky containers -- that makes it even better)

Agreed -- I use a blend (GB-415 and IGI 4630) and so far CD's and ECO's work the best for me. I like the HTP's but they are being too unpredictable -- the size I expect to work ends up being totally off and increasing my testing time (not to mention really bad mushrooming sometimes and then none another time). With CD's and ECO's I hone in on the right answer a lot faster. SG

Well good-ness!! Here I am stressing about the pictures that I take -- haven't put anything up on the website yet because the pictures still suck.... turns out I should just be stealing ones that I like! How silly of me... :rolleyes2 For those of you who have been here a lot longer than me (almost everyone ) does this happen often? Do you really see stolen pics on websites popping up every few weeks? It just blows my mind.

Thanks for those suggestions, ladies. I stopped window shopping at genwax and discountcandles because I got so irritated at how much they charge me for shipping, but FO weighs a lot less than wax or glass. Guess I'll be oredering some samples from them and the place Dani mentioned!

Hi all -- I've got a coworker whose wife loves a particular candle scent -- Oriental Spice from Bridgewater candles. I've looked around and can't find a dupe listed. Checked FragranceOilFinder and I usually check every supplier I come across -- have turned up nothing so far so thought I'd ask the experts! Anyone ever gotten this anywhere or know of a scent that's close? BTW -- I checked out the Bridgewater site when I was looking for a fragrance description and I had to chuckle at some of the marketing -- like how air pockets / bubbles and uneven coloration were signs of quality candles. I showed it to my husband and he went "huh?" Thanks in advance!

Those look really gorgeous! But I do have one complaint..... Y'all are turning me into a complete SOAP HO!!! Up until a month ago I cared only enough about soap to use it to get clean and I was a B&BW person. Now I've seen all this awesome stuff and I can't use as much as I want to buy! So guess what all my friends and family are getting for gifts this year. LOL!

You can try two things to help with the cracking around the wick. One is to do 2 pours. When I was pouring votives it worked for me to do the first pour right to the lip (or just under) so that the surface became concave when it cooled. Then do the second pour so you get that nice rounding on top. Only doing the first pour to the lip helps keep the second pour from overflowing (in my experience). The second is to try pouring a little cooler (140 to 145 maybe?) and see if that helps. Hope that helps.

That's awesome! I'm not quite sure why that thought never occurred to me. But it is kind of theraputic to take a chisel and hammer to that wax.

Not to hijack this thread -- but if coffee and roses doesn't sound as weird now -- has anyone ever tried chocolate and roses? This thread got me thinking about what I had in stock. No coffee, but I do have some strong dark chocolate and victorian rose FO and thought about mixing those together. Any opinions on that combo? I'll probably pour it anyways just to see for myself, but thought I'd ask y'all.

Are you poking relief holes before you repour? A pillar shouldn't need that many repours. One first pour and one repour is the most I've ever done. As Georgia pointed out, the hotter you pour, the more the wax will shrink as it cools.

Are you making pillars? Containers? Which wax?

LOL! Thanks for the feedback on the Midsummer Night and where to get the really good stuff There are some scents out there... well, as long as they're close and smell good I won't stress about an exact match -- but my Drakkar better be JUST RIGHT!!!

Those twisted / spiral ones would look GREAT as a centerpiece for a wedding. A nice, elegant alternative for people who like a funky classic look but don't like the more ornate pillars that you usually see. And lest I forget the most important thing - those are awesome!!!

LOL! How many women have a "Drakkar" story just waiting to be remembered? I got the sample size of Midsummer Night (I believe) from Peak's -- supposed to be a Drakkar-type (anyone have any opinions on that? Smelled pretty close OOB but haven't poured it yet - waiting for new wicks!!). Hubby is getting a little tired of "Aaaahhhhhhh, Drakkar" look that I get on my face when I go sniff it (like an addict! ) I'd love to see it a black with red swirls -- ooo la la!!

Barely crossed the line over to business -- still extremely small cuz I can't support anything bigger! But business was the end goal from the start. I've got stuff in my garage, bottom floor of my house in the "extra" area -- there's a fireplace that we can't use becaue of all the boxes in front of it and a futon we don't sit on because of all the crap around it! LOL. I keep the small stuff like wicks and tealight boxes upstairs in the kitchen area. I am so lucky that my hubby is tolerant and supportive of this "habit" -- otherwise me and my stuff would be out on the streets! He hasn't had a whole kitchen to work in for months! Everytime I pour something new I have to clear off counterspace. :embarasse

Those are neat! I always admire wine glass candles when I see them but just can't get motivated to make them myself. :undecided How are the hearts attached? Just wondering if they'll stay on once the glass warms up when the candle is burned. SG

Looks great! Like you've put a lot of work into it. I'm picky, so my feedback is mostly nit-noyed type stuff. Home page -- you've got "We hope that you enjoy your visit." twice on the same page. Once is probably enough - twice is too much sugar. For your milk bath - how many uses are in the bottle? Just one? I'd like to know if I was buying something that was single serve or would last for a couple of uses. Also (here's where I get anal) be careful when you are using "its" or "it's." If you mean that something is possessive, then use "its - Like its scent is heavenly." If you mean it is, then use "it's - It's our pleasure to provide you with quality handmade products." You've got "it's" when you mean "its" on the sugar scrub page. I had a really good English teacher in high school and places that use its, it's, your, you're, etc... incorrectly immediately turn me off. :rolleyes2 Good luck with getting the site ready to go!! SG

You're probably not heating the wax up too much -- you want to go past the melting point so you can incorporate the FO into the wax completely. You can make a candle from what you get at HobbyLobby - some don't like to admit it but you can. It will meet the minimum definition of a candle. It'll burn, melt wax, create light and heat, yada yada. But as you've already discovered, it's hard to make a really good candle with HobbyLobby supplies. There are a lot of good suppliers that are listed here that you can get starter kits from - find one that's close to you and go from there. While I don't buy wax, FO, etc.... from HL, Michael's, Joann's - I do buy my pours pot there with a coupon! As long as it doesn't go *in* my candle, I'll buy from there.

I use it as the 75% part in my own 75/25 blend and I really like it. Adding just a little paraffin really helps with smooth tops -- I just have to use the heat gun the tops because of sinking / nippling / cracking around the wick. It does adhere better to jars if they're warmed, so no room temp glass when pouring for me. I have noticed that while there is a cure after ~2 weeks, it's really after a month that the fragrances hit their stride and I can smell one candle through the whole house (with high ceilings, even).

French Vanilla Amber today... probably LoveSpell on Sunday. Tomorrow I have to dig out and go to work.... so no more pouring until after that.