Belinda

I love their Pumpkin donut shop and also their Farmhouse Christmas OOB. I haven't put that one in wax yet but it smells good just sniffing the bottle.

On 10/16/2022 at 1:26 PM, Ernie said:

Mine haven't really been smokey, but I do use one of those Yankee candle tops that keep the wind out of the candle, so my flame is always pretty good. I also found some here that I used Zinc wicks  with pretty good results with slight  mushroom, but that is the nature of the beast with those wicks. Gonna try out igi 1230 pretty soon. I want a wax that can either get great mottle or none at all unlike the 1286. I have added vybar to the 1286 and yah no mottle, but didn't look good.

Do you feel like 4786 is one of the best container waxes? I live in Texas where it gets hot and 4630 and other really soft waxes just won't hold up if I ever do shows during the Spring/Summer and even late Fall months. 4786 seems hard and would hold up well. What are your thoughts on it? I've only used zinc wicks with it.

1 hour ago, SRez said:

Ha! I hear you on that one! I have way too many and trying to narrow down at this point which ones I want to play with. 

I keep saying I'm going to do that too but every time a suppliers comes out with new scents I feel like I just have to try them! Then I go right back to using what I like LOL! 

If you haven't tried Midwest Fragrance Co. they have some really good oils, great customer service and they're expanding all the time. They have a group on Facebook and they're so helpful too. Just sweet people. The owner's mom is on here also. It's her daughter and son in law that started the business and they're just booming!

On 9/29/2022 at 1:40 PM, SRez said:

 

Meaning, if I receive a 1oz sample today that I like and order a 16oz bottle of it a year from now... will it be the same oil / recipe as the sample and will burn the same as the sample did a year prior? 

 

Noting that nothing else will change on my end… same package of wicks, same lot of wax, vessel etc. 

 

I have plenty of samples as well as larger bottles from different suppliers that are working for me.  I would like to order more of what I currently have but also trying to avoid starting from scratch / tweaking because of FO reformulations and the lack of communication to their customers. 

 

Or is it more of an issue with the manufacturers of the oils making changes and not letting the supplier know about a slight recipe change with the lot / batch?  I would assume once they have something down that they would continue to produce the same product to the milligram.  Am I asking for too much?

 

Off the top of my head, I have samples and larger bottles from AFI, Aztec, Candle Cocoon, Candle Science, Fragrance Buddy, Midwest, Nature's Garden and possibly a couple of others.  

 

So… who are your fav’s and go-to and never a letdown?     

Apparently they all could have had changes and I'm just not picking up on it or just haven't ordered an FO that has changed. TallTayl has way more experience and knowledge about all of this than I do for sure. I was going off of the changes that Candle Science has gone through over the last few years reformulating their oils to "clean" scents and people are complaining they're not the same but like she said, all suppliers are apt to have changes due to one thing or another. 

The peach scent you mentioned may have been old when they sent it to you but I've not noticed any changes OOB. I don't use a whole lot of Aztec oils anymore even though I have tons of them. I switched when their Fruit Loops and Monkey Farts wouldn't soak up in aroma beads and didn't have a strong scent in wax. I still order from them (mostly wax) and they still have some good oils, I've just been using other oils that I like better, if that makes sense. To be honest, like most of us on here, I just have WAY TOO MANY TO BEGIN WITH!!! LOL!

Midwest has some great oils and always adding more but they're relatively new. I don't see them changing anything though like Candle Science has.

Nature's Gardens

Fragrance Buddy

Flaming

Aztec

Those have been around a while and haven't changed as far as I know.

5 hours ago, Laura C said:

 

Hi Belinda. It's been a while since I have ordered from them but here's some that I marked as favorites.

Barn Wood

Beach Towel

Moonlight Path BBW Type

Draakar Type

Midsummer's Night Yankee type

Mountain Lodge

Pinecones and Amber

Very Sexy Men's VS Type

Thank you!

On 4/28/2022 at 12:34 AM, Laura C said:

Candles and Supplies is another good FO supplier.

I know this thread is a few months old but what do you recommend from them? I don't usually order from them.

On 9/18/2022 at 7:11 PM, Darbla said:

 

No, I did not know about Buy It Ship It.  Thank you so much for that tip about that and the other two places!  Have you tried any of their FOs?

I have tried a few of their FO's and what I've tried have been good. They're a little pricey though in my opinion. 

4 hours ago, Darbla said:

They used to be the rock bottom least expensive, next to Bert's Heaven Scent, and there were a few standouts from them.  I remember their sandalwood & vanilla was widely lauded on here, for instance.  How are they now, as I'm sure every single FO there has been reformulated to probably a shadow of its former self?  I'm about to order aroma beads from there to make car scent thingies, and of course I'm not going to be able to resist an FO or 20....

 

https://www.candlesandsupplies.com/

I haven't ordered from them in a long time but I just looked and they have some new Fall fragrances darn it! now I might have to place an order.

Have you ever tried aroma beads from Buy it Ship it? I was noticing the beads on C&S are really high, like $12.99 per pound. BISI are $2.99 a pound and you get free shipping. They're good beads too. I use them to make fresheners. I think you can get them cheaper from Stay Fresh With Peanut too and Plastic Pellets 4 Fun. Just thought I'd let you know.

I like cinnamon buns from Midwest Fragrance Co. NG also has a good one. I like apple pie from NG. They have one called apple dumpling that's good. Indiana has some good apple scents also. Their cinnamon buns is good too.

On 8/27/2022 at 6:12 PM, Jcake90 said:

Out of bottle is there any chemical smell or you know that base smell some oils have, not all though.

I don't detect a chemical smell at all.

19 hours ago, Jcake90 said:

Does the one from fragrance buddy have that ooey gooey melted marshmallow rich vanilla scent?

It does to me. I love it. I've not smelled their toasted marshmallow though. I'll see if I have a sample to sniff. 

22 minutes ago, Jcake90 said:

I have Toasted Marshmallow from RE, I am one of the rare people that doesn't care for it. I haven't tried Marshmallow Fluff from fragrance buddy, but I may.... I read Trap say that WSP has a good gooey Marshmallow but the reviews are mixed on that one.And then Lizzy said that Maple Street has a good one too. So I'm trying to decide where to go.

Marshmallow Fluff smells a lot like VBN to my nose but it's not the exact same but along that line. They also have a toasted marshmallow but I"ve not used that one. ICS has a toasted marshmallow and I have it but have never put it in wax.  LS has a good marshmallow that's different from anybody else's. I think I would go with Fb though unless you order from LS anyway and just want to get a sample.

8 minutes ago, Jcake90 said:

That helps! I'm hoping it will hold up well in a roll on! thanks so much for your rec, do you recommend any of that companies other gourmandy oils?

I haven't tried the one from MS but the marshmallow fluff from FB is really good. Lone Star's marshmallow is the most unique one I've ever smelled though. I'm not saying it's the best but it's different. But I would choose the one from FB. I"ll have to sniff the one from LS again and compare it to a bag of marshmallows.

47 minutes ago, Jcake90 said:

I'm thinking I might have to do the same thing, I'm new to blending though, I don't have a perfect Marshmallow yet.

Have you tried Toasted marshmallow from RE or Marshmallow Fluff from Fb? They're both amazing!

46 minutes ago, Jcake90 said:

Looking for one that you can smell each note in, the graham cracker,the marshmallow and the chocolate. I like multi noted scents, something really unique and delicious smelling. 

I've never poured a smores scent but I think I have a couple of samples. I was thinking of trying to blend my own with graham crackers, chocolate and marshmallow FO. I haven't done it yet though.

I like Fragrance Buddy's pumpkin fragrances too. I love pumpkin sugared donut, pumpkin vanilla marshmallow. For spicy I like Pumpkin pie spice from Rustic or Pumpkin Harvest from Cierra. I don't think I could narrow it down to one. Pumpkin chai from Candle Wick is so good too!

On 8/20/2022 at 7:37 AM, Tlmanty said:

Awesome thank you for that suggestion in blending. 
I will check out that Northwoods Christmas. 
 

Also wondering if anyone knows what tart wax give the best hot throw. I am trying the GW 464 but am open to a blend if they have better fragrance throws. 
 

thanks again for taking the time to reply 😊

If you want to use at least some soy you can get the tart wax that's 50/50 soy and paraffin from Nature's Gardens called Pillar of Bliss, Virginia Candle tart wax, Flaming's tart wax (they have one that's all paraffin and also the 50/50 soy and paraffin), Rustic Escentuals (also have all paraffin and the 50/50 blend), and I've used both and they both have a good scent throw in my opinion. 

On 8/20/2022 at 8:48 AM, Tlmanty said:

So I just looked up the description of Northwoods Cabin - full bodied aroma of fragrant pine, fresh leaves, sweet berries and trees of the forest - 

does that spark any suggestions to try?

 

thanks again - happy Saturday 

Here's the description from Bitter Creek Candle Supply. Maybe it's similar! 

6 hours ago, LilFirecracker said:

I think once you just say "I'm doing this!" it'll bring back the motivation. I noticed in these last 3-4 months, my motivation has waivered a couple of times - once was really drastically, but a lot of that had to do with stress and feeling hopeless that I would never get it together and get things going as I had planned. I finally kicked myself in my own ass so to speak, and shook it off. That got me back on track quickly, and I vowed never to let myself get that low again because if I allow it to get the best of me again I will fail and so will my business. Yes, I did get that low just recently. It was almost as if the devil was trying his best to make me fail and I almost let him win. Never again!!!🔥 I do believe you can be fully motivated again. Having a little support group, such as this forum, can help tremendously! 🥰

I usually get motivated when Fall comes around but by then it's almost too late LOL! I have a few days off coming up so I plan to straighten up my wax room and get in there and pour some things. Fall and Christmas always put me in the mood to create. I just wish I was in that mood the rest of the year! Thanks for the talk!

2 hours ago, Lovejoy444 said:

@Lizzy, is the Pro Blend 600 more on the white side since it has more soy? I really dislike the semi-opaque yellowness of the soy-paraffin blends I've tried so far. I just think they're ugly. LOL I really love the creamy white of the cocosoy, and would love to get it to work for me.

I haven't used that one yet but 6006 sometimes has a yellowish tint to it to me but the batch I have right now is white. It seems like it's sometimes tinted just a little bit when I get it from Aztec which has the best pricing but I color my wax so I'm ok with it.

Congratulations! Good for you! I wish you the best of luck in your new business!

On 8/19/2022 at 10:43 PM, LilFirecracker said:

I think if you would've had the mindset from the beginning of it being your mission to start a business, you probably would've taken notes. If I had started doing this without knowing I wanted it to be a business and I was just seeing what I could make or just making for myself, friends, and family - I'm almost positive I wouldn't have bothered. 

It was always my intention of this being a business but I was working 12 hours a day the first 9 years and have only recently retired. Now I'm just subbing at the school instead of being in the classroom and on a bus every day.  For some reason I thought I'd remember on my own which doesn't make sense beings I can't remember what I had for breakfast sometimes LOL! 

I just wasn't serious about it but always intended for it to be a business. I just planned on really getting serious with it after I retired and now I feel like I don't have as much drive to do it. I defiantly need to get motivated and hopefully I will one day soon. 

10 hours ago, the purple pony said:

How long do the beads last in a jar after making your colors and fragrances? Say if I want to make several jars at a time the do my baking say a week or so later? 

I bought my beads from "buy it ship it" and the only one that is taking a long time to soak up is a fragrance called Cinnabon by Eternal Essence. I've added beads several times, so I obviously added too much fragrance to this particular batch and now the batch has basically doubled in size. I used a different fragrance from the same company to the same amount of beads and they were ready in about 3 days. I did have to add some beads, but not as many as I have for this Cinnabon oil. 

I quit using jars and started using plastic jugs from Dollar Tree. Make sure they have a 5 on the bottom. They're much easier to me to use. They're wider in the opening and they are easy to hold on to and shake.

Buy It Ship It have good beads and good prices. Another place I just ordered from is Stay Fresh With Peanut. From what I've read his beads are the small round ones too. They offer free shipping also.

I have been using about 1 1/2  ounces of oil per 8 ounces of beads unless it's leather and then it's an ounce to 8 ounces of beads. You can always add a little more oil if they soak up fast. 

Like pcbrook said they last a long time after they soak.  I have beads in my jugs that I soaked months ago and they are still strong. I might add a little more oil and let it soak up for a couple of days to freshen them up before baking but I don't think I'll have to. They still smell strong out of the jugs.

Also, don't color your beads until you're ready to bake them. Pour what you need into the cutter or mold and then you'll know how much you will need to color for that particular mold. I put them in a small bag, put my dye or mica in and shake them until they're all coated and then put them in the cutter or mold. For silicone molds I bake at 300 for 18-20 minutes depending on the size of the mold. After I take them out of the oven I wet a paper towel and push the beads down into the mold to make sure the definition is on the front good. Then I remove them once they cool completely. For cutters I bake at 350 for 9 minutes.

10 hours ago, LilFirecracker said:

Belinda when I first started testing a year and a half ago, I was all over the place too! I started with the 4794 and was so disappointed thinking I was doing something wrong. Some might remember my melts looking like "brains" lol. With a little process of elimination and troubleshooting, I think it was TT who said it looked like too much vybar. Going on that and digging a little more, I went with that theory. There was still the longevity problem too. It had great throw, just didn't last but maybe 6-8 at the most. So my next order I dove in head first and ordered 4625, 4630, & 4633. Shortly after I tried 4786. Since then, I've been playing around with those 4 for a year!!!! I had it just about perfect once. Last December. I was thinking I was finally done! But after having my testers sitting around for a couple of months a couple of feet from a heat source, I realized that they weren't gonna hold up in the summer. Back to the drawing board early this spring! I have found one that by far surpassed any of my formulas. Only problem is it's a little too hard and will break into 3-4 pieces when trying to pop it out of the dish with a butter knife. I tried tweaking here and there by just 5% at a time and it just messed the whole formula up. I have almost 2 full notebooks of notes already. But I tell you one thing, if anyone thinks they don't need to take notes - they should think again. I'd be right back where I was on day one had I not taken any notes! I might not understand half of what I have written down 🤣 but it has saved me many times. 

 

Long story short - you're not alone! I'll never be finished testing. The day I'm finished testing is the day I'll be closing up shop for good! I have a wonderful formula now, I'll just always be looking for better! I'd rather be the way I am than be like some of these that test for 2 months and have a "perfect" candle and they're "launching" 2 weeks later. Facebook, I'm looking at you!!!

I agree! I think it's good to always want to improve your product for sure and testing is a must. I see people launching too and I am just not that ready yet. I feel good enough about melts to sell those but candles is a whole other story. I have sold several but those were tested so I'm ok with those. Hopefully one day I'll know my product well enough to really go all out. 

And you are so right about taking notes. I am not a note taker and wish I had from the start. Oh I wrote down things here and there but didn't take it seriously like I should have. Now I take better notes on things but still not like  I should. I admire people that take specific notes. I wish my brain worked that way!