DeeB

So you can see why everyone is telling you the flame is too big. This jar is 2 1/2" in diameter. The flame is about 1" high

When it burns down to where the widest part of the jar starts, extinguish it and let it completely cool. Relight it and burn it for about 2 1/2 hours. Check the meltpool it should be all the way to the sides of the jar and about 1/2" deep.

Sorry, didn't know Top was answering at the same time I was. Yep...what he said. LOL!

Vybar helps: the oil bind with the wax, eliminate bubbles, and gives the wax an opaque look and eliminates mottling. It is usually used at 2% per pound. Too much will lock up the FO and you won't get a good throw. Stearic Acid also helps with oil retention and will increase opacity. Usually 1-2 tbls. per pound. Use vybar if you want a opaque candle with no mottling. Use stearic if you want a mottled candle. Preblends will not need either of these additives.

You need the diameter, not the height.

Whoops! Apparently I was typing while you were posting picture. Your flame looks a bit large for a 5 oz jar.

I can't really help you with the zinc wicks, I don't use them....but, if you don't know the diameter of your jar..how did you choose what wick to use? You need to know the diameter of your jar to choose a wick for a starting point. Also whenever I use a new wax I always make a test candle with just the wax...no scent, no dye. Test it and get it wicked so it burns properly..that gives me a starting point. Some scent and dye combinations work with that wick and some I need to wick up or wick down. You have wax poured up into the chimney of the jar. There is usually a 1/2" difference between the chimney and the widest part of the jar so you will need to burn it down to the widest part to determine if the wicking is right. I only pour my wax to the top of the widest part of the jar. You really need to know the diameter of the jar, 5 oz are usually 2 1/2" but measure it to be sure. What to look for: is there a full melt pool, length of time it took for full melt pool, is the flame too high, too low, smoking, when you blow out the candle measure the depth of the melt pool, is it too deep, not deep enough...those are just some of the things to look for. Do a search of the forum, search for melt pool, wicking, melt pool depth, etc. read everything you can find, post pictures of it burning and ask questions.

Vybar inhibits mottling. Stearic will help hold the FO in without inhibiting mottling. I'm sure past a certain point stearic would inhibit it too, not sure, I have added up to 3 tbls. with no problems. The last time I ordered stearic the supplier sent me palm stearic by mistake, rather than send it back I decided to try it and the palm stearic actually seems to help the mottling. 1 tsp is definitely not enough to hold the oil in any wax that I have ever tried.

I add FO at 175-180, depends how impatient I am. I don't use soy but did try 2 different brands and didn't have a problem. Try having someone else smell the candle.

The standard is for the temperature of the container, not the melt pool. In all my searching back in August I could find no regulations on the safety of candles. All I could find was a regulation that the net weight of the candle must be on the label. As far as I know the ASTM standards are voluntary. There was however a petition filed by the NASTM in 2004, it has yet to be acted on. In case anyone is interested: The petition can be found here: http://www.cpsc.gov/library/foia/foia04/petition/peti.html The blank pages are ASTM standards, ASTM would not give the CPSC permission to publish them as part of the document. Testimony at the hearing by the representative for the NCA can be found here: http://commerce.senate.gov/hearings/testimony.cfm?id=1267&wit_id=3680 Status can be found here: http://www.cpsc.gov/businfo/frnotices/fr06/semi.html ASTM standards must be purchased, the fire safety standard is $29.00, warning label standard is $29.00 and the testing method standard for emissions from burning candles is $34.00. I don't know if the jar temperature is part of the fire safety standard or not. If I can't pick up a container with my bare hands if is not good enough for me. I did see something mentioned in the petition that a flame should be no more that 3 inches high. I will not burn or make a candle with a flame that high. I have thrown away many purchased candles that burned with flames like that. Maybe my personal standards are too high?

You're displays are beautiful. Don't change a thing...those doors are great..makes it look homey and inviting! Everything including you're candles look very professional and well done!

Thanks for posting about those 20 watt ones. My neighbor got one from an office gift exchange and wanted to know if I could pour her a wickless candle in the mug that came with it, she thought it would look cute in her kitchen. I don't do wickless candles or use candle warmers so I wasn't sure.

Thanks so much! I just about fell off my chair when I saw the Chemistry Store's price! Dee

Are there different grades that affect the quality and effectiveness of squalane? The Chemistry Store price for squalane is $92.00 for 16 oz. versus Soapers Choice $19.00 for 16 oz. That's a whopping big difference in price! Thanks :smiley2:

Here is an excerpt from my my daughter's notes for a biology project she is doing on soybeans. Soybean oil extraction is performed on a large scale in the US. The soybeans are cracked, adjusted for moisture content, rolled into flakes and solvent extracted with commercial hexane. The oils are blended for their applications or hydrogenated. The oil is partially hydrogenated into shortening or more fully hydrogenated into soy wax using a catalyst, Nickel being the most economical and common catalyst. Currently 80% of all soybeans cultivated for the commercial market are genetically modified. About 10 years ago Monsanto introduced "Roundup Ready" soybeans that have a complete copy of a gene from the bacteria Agrobacterium sp. Straom CP4, inserted by means of a gene gun, into it's genome that allows the transgenic plant to survive being sprayed by this non selective herbicide. Doesn't sound too natural to me...someone pass the Benzene please.

This is what I use. HTH. http://www.bittercreeksouth.com/accessories.htm

This may sound like a dumb question, but that lip balm sweetener is just saccharin. Couldn't you just use Sweet n Low powder from the grocery store? Sweet n Low is saccharin.

Cheapest is probably Walmart or AC Moore. AC Moore has them on sale from time to time for I think it was .40 cents, maybe cheaper and they always have cases available for purchase. You could also talk to someone in the craft department at Walmart and they may be able to get you cases. I have ordered bolts of fabric from Walmart, so I'm sure getting something else in bulk wouldn't be a problem. Just be nice to the person in charge..LOL! The price of most places I have checked online are from .54-.56, add on $11.00 shipping and they are close to a dollar apiece.

santa mad Oh my, someone will be getting coal in their stocking! Just kidding, they're very cute! Dee

The word is out and bears everywhere are coming up with some pretty creative ways to avoid being dipped!

:laugh2: Waxidermy!

Aaaaawwww..poor little guy..good thing you talked him into coming in, he might have caught a sniffle. Hope you gave him a big mug of hot chocolate and a great big hug. He's probably traumatized for life by this thread. Good thing for him when you sat him by the fire, that he wasn't dipped in wax! Dee

As a physical therapist, I see no benefit what so ever with this type of therapy. Just a gimmick in my opinion. True my specialty is not skin, but we use paraffin therapy for arthritis patients. A melter designed for this purpose and a paraffin wax blended for us to have a melting point of no more that 126. The melter is designed to keep the paraffin at or no more that 3 degrees above the melting point. And we do not use it on children or anyone who has been burned in the area that needs therapy. As a chandler I have never actually measured the temperature of a melt pool but I think that it might vary with wicking, environment in which it is burned, etc. that could be dangerous and could cause burns I would think because the wax would hold the heat on the body and may be too high to be safe. It seems to me that a medical grade wax melter would be a better option. You could use soy or paraffin. A patch test however would have to done on the patient because some people are allergic to soy and some to petroleum products. On burn victims and children a better option would be warmed oil. Jojoba, hemp and shea come to mind. Covering a child with melted wax and also the use of those ear candles baffle me, why would anyone in their right mind want to drip molten wax into their ear, sounds a bit sadistic to me, sorry if I offended you. And Top thought covering a teddy bear in molten wax was bad! Dee

Did you try putting some of the silk petals in the tub to see if they float without the soap? My reasoning being that they are fabric and will absorb water, real rose petals would not get saturated with water hence they float. I would think that no matter what soap you use, the water would dissolve it, so no matter what soap you use if they won't float on their own they won't float with soap on them. And the glycerine in the melt and pour soap may actually help them absorb more water and cause them to sink. I've not seen the ones you are talking about so I don't know if the picture is of real petals or silk. Dee

Very pretty! Dee