donna4909

They no longer do samples?! The lady on the phone told me this whole sample thing was a new program. What the... ? I placed my sample order online, and also gave them the business name. She told me they only sell directly in 25 kilos, but they do repackage in smaller amounts for other companies to sell. She also asked what I'd be using it for, who do I normally buy supplies from, yadda, yadda. I guess I won't be getting any samples either. Kinda pisses me off... I registered & requested them last week.

I'm currently trying to get samples from them and it's like pulling teeth. I sent the request in, and got an e-mail saying: Thank you for your interest in ISP and our products. Your request for samples has been reviewed through our screening procedures. We are currently unable to fulfill this request based on insufficient information and require additional information. At your convenience, please contact me at xxx-xxx-xxxx. If we do not hear from you within 3 business days your request will automatically be deleted from our system. And I have called them for the past 4 days. No answer. I even left a message, and they never called back. I finally got an answer today, and I still don't even know if they're sending the samples. The woman said that she'd look into it, and if there was a problem, she'd call me back this evening. Ugh... All this for 3 small samples?!

1/4 = .25 oz 1/2 = .5 oz 3/4 = .75 3/8 = .375 5/8 = .625 It's realtively easy to figure, just divide the top by the bottom. Like for 1/4, 1 divided by 4 = .25

Pam - the reason my cost is higher for the 8 oz. jelly jars is because the supplier is an hour away. I incorporate gas costs into my cost. Also, they are in the same state as me, so I pay nearly 10% tax. This is if I get almost everything locally from Tennesse Candle Supplies: 8 oz Jar - $0.48 7 oz wax ($1.59 per pound, J50) - $0.70 Dye - $0.10 Warning Label - $0.04 Candle Label (printingbydesign) - $0.20 LX Wick - $0.07 Wick Sticker - $0.02 0.45 oz FO (4 oz bottles from JS, average @ $2.25 per oz) - $1.02 So that's $2.63. Add a bit for an 70 mile drive, and that's my cost.

Daniedb - with my soap, it was CPHP. The soap was in the crockpot, but the crockpot had been turned off for a while. I poured the FO onto the soap, and it just came right back up in a cloud of steam. The soap was probably around 200 degrees or less.

I have actually seen (and smelled) a scent burn off, so I know it can happen. However, this was with soap, and I never checked the flashpoint of the FO. I can't even remember which scent is was, as the soap has no smell to it. *lol* Not much help, am I?

Greenleaf, I sent you a PM about the cucumber melon.

With J223 wax, LX wicks, glue dots, containers, FO, & labels: 4 oz. jelly jars - $1.70 (buying glassware locally) 4 oz. tins - $1.77 4 oz. hex jars - $1.91 6 oz. tins - $2.33 8 oz. jelly jars - $2.72 (buying glassware locally) I don't sell all of these sizes, but I did figure up the costs for all of them. I only make candles that I can sale for $4-$5, because people in my area will not pay any more than that. I can easily see a 16 oz container costing $5 for me, but then again, I'm a "little guy". I don't buy in bulk. The most I usually buy is 48 containers at a time.

It was probably sent airmail letter post. I know anything I send out of country goes letter post, if at all possible. If it's under a certain weight and size, you can send boxes via letter post.

I'm pretty sure that's the way it's supposed to look. Does it look like clumpy vaseline? That's CPHP for ya. You can't really make it any smoother. It's just the nature of the beast. Glop it into your mold, bang the mold on the counter to get some air out, and glop more soap on top. You can put some plastic wrap on top and use a pot holder to press the hot soap into the mold. The firmer you pack it, the smoother it'll be. I found that my cphp never looked all fluffy like the tutorial on here.

Why do so many people use goat milk in soaps? Is there something about it that makes it better than cow's milk?

I got the cucumber melon with my wax sample. I haven't put it in wax yet, but OOB I don't like it very much. It's more floral than fruity. I've never smelled a cucumber melon FO like this.

Found this post about the peacock dyes: http://www.candletech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8965&highlight=peacock+dye Bummer.

I use FO & color at light trace, and I usually to pour at a thin trace too. It just makes it easier for me. I don't have a stick blender, so I alternate with a hand mixer and a whisk. A thick trace takes too long to do by hand.

Iodine is mostly used as a softness indicator.

Has anyone tried the liquid colors from NG? They say they're specially formulated for CP, and that they don't fade. http://www.naturesgardencandles.com/candlemaking-soap-supplies/item/sda-01 Liquid coloring is so expensive though.

Well, no, not necessarily. If you want to sell it, yes. You must let it cure. The soap will be much better after curing. It'll be less drying, have better lather, and the bar will be more firm. I do CPOP, and I use mine the next day when I cut it. Just do the tongue test, and as long as it doesn't zap you, I'd say go for it. I'm impatient too, and there's no way I could wait to use my soap. If you're doing plain ole CP, I'd say wait 4 days, then try it. I think a lot of soapers are impatient, so we're not alone. There was recently a thread about this at the soap dish: http://www.soapdishforum.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=28567

Beautiful swirls!

Me too!!! I think I made 3 batches of CPHP before I gave it up. Latch, I feel your pain! You should see my first few batches. Ick... I keep them around as reminders in case I ever get the idea to try HP again. :rolleyes2 I can't cook food to save my life, and I don't know why I ever thought I could cook soap either. LOL!

I'd do something like: 34.38% olive oil- (11 oz) 15.62% coconut oil- (5 oz) 50% lard- (16 oz) 4.4 oz lye & 12 oz water - if your scale isn't very accurate, you could do 4.3 oz of lye. That will give you a 7% superat, to add more "cushion" to the recipe.

Lard and castor are my favorites. Lard makes a nice firm bar of soap, and castor is awesome for bubbles.

Some people use cosmetic grade soy wax instead of beeswax. I've heard they're greasy when made with soy though.

Paraben free lotion bases are extremely hard to find. You'd probably have to have one specially formulated. Multibases are all I've found so far, without parabens.

I have 2 of the molds that tlc posted. They're nice, but they make a very wide bar of soap. I believe they're 4.5".

WSP has them on sale right now. I'm getting ready to buy 48 of the 4 oz tins. http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com/Product.aspx?Tab=4&CatalogID=9&GroupID=560&CatalogTitle=0&CategoryID=300&CategoryName=Silver+Deep+Tins