Dustpuuppy

I'd guess that some of those were for display.

Richard, You do realize that you may have found a niche that you could fill, in the import market? If you could buy a large enough shipment of a couple of jars to get your price and shipping down, you could sell off the excess to some folks over there. You can't do it as a CoOp, through this board but there are other ways. Especially if you had someone who could pick up the jars and ship them to you. I'm betting they could get a better price than what some suppliers offer.

The tabs are easier and safer. The websites you mention will probably wind up getting sued out of existence, as will you, if you follow their advice, most likely. Glueing the wick to the bottom of the container means that the candle will burn all the way down and the flame will come into direct contact with the glass. This could shatter the glass and release a flaming gelatinous mass that will ooze across Aunt Edna's antique coffee table. The wick tab extinguishes the candle before it can get to the glass. Thus preventing the slow roasting of Aunt Edna. But you don't HAVE to use them.

Almost every candle board is hosted or sponsored by a supplier. Also, at or around the time that crap all went on, the owner of Peak's was pretty active on the board. And he gave a lot of us a lot of help. Some of us who have been here a while get a little protective. The biggest problem, though was the CoOp thing. It was a violation of the board rules. New people aren't allowed to run a CoOp, so that scammers don't come in and rip people off. You have to be here a while and be known to us. This doesn't guarantee anything but it shifts the odds of the hostess being honest, in our favor. So a newbie was badmouthing a freind of ours, then violated the board rules, then got mouthy with the mods, when they called her on it. Note that her remarks about FOs weren't removed. She wasn't censored by the sponsor or the mods. It was mainly the other board members who tied into her. In short they were giving THIER honest opinion.

Try searching the archives of this board. I seem to recall a lot of people were trying it out, several years ago. I could be wrong, but I got the impression several were disappointed.

That can vary from brand to brand. You'll have to let us know what brand or where you got it and how much wax you're adding it to. I'm guessing you tried cutting your dye blocks in halves or quarters? Also, you could melt a dye block or half of one, into a small amount of wax, then chop up that block of wax, so that you only have a small amount of the dye in your candle. With the liquids, you can start with a couple of drops, then put a drop or two of the wax on a paper plate and let it cool to see what your color is. Add more if you need to and repeat the test.

Actually, a lot of us do layered candles in metal molds. It's not as hard as you think. I just stand a ruler up beside the mold. Amazing how close you can get it, just by eyeballing it, that way. Also, you may be able to polish out some of the mold damage with some old pantyhose/stockings.

I checked the C&S website. They sell the Wenesco melters. That would be all the blue ones. You might want to look at that page. They have 2 models that sell NEW for around $300. No sense in spending that much for one that's been used for 3 years, if you can get the new one, WITH A WARRANTY, for the same price. Check the sizes and models to be sure this isn't the case.

Hmmm. Never thought of that. Certainly would solve my problem. I knew I would either splash water into my wax or forget to refill the darned thing.

If it helps, you're on the right track. About the best thing a newbie can do is pour some wax, then see what problems they run into and look for a solution. Nobody's first candle ever comes our quite right. If your first candle seems to have come out perfect, you've probably done something horribly, horribly wrong.

Make sure you can still get parts. Heating coils and such. Just google the brand name.

Frighteningly enough, it does make sense.

Might try the sand paper, then spray with WD 40, then clean them VERY well. The WD40 is highly flammable and you won't want to leave any in them. I'm thinking you could spray them down with silicone, before you put them away, after each use. I think, though, I'd just be looking to replace those with aluminum.

We used to have someone on the board who made silicone molds. I think it was Creative Gems ? Maybe she'll chime in.

I've been drooling over these, for years. I always knew I'd forget to put water in the water jacketed variety, which would ruin it. I'd have LOVED to have had the 31 pound one, but frankly, for that same $450 I could set up 20 Presto pots. Even the 13 pounder is nearly $300. That's 15 Presto pots. I just never could justify the cost.

That's all referring to how they extracted the essential oils. The 'code' is the scientific name of the plant. Steam distillation, is the most common way of extracting the oils. Origin refers to where the plant grew. I think 'class' is the medium they used during the distillation process. ( I think. ) They make these oils, basically, by squeezing the plants and boiling them, at the same time. Here is some more info. Not sure which ones are safe for candles.

I don't think she would be one of those despicable people who went around flogging videos and books filled with regurgitated self help/marketing/financial cliches mainly plagiarized from bumper stickers. Wait. Yes I do.

I always thought there should be a sign over the door of the men's side of the formal shop that says: "Abandon hope, all ye who enter here."

I do believe you've missed the point. :rolleyes2

Nah, just tell her that you can't help her but you know someone who would be a perfect match for her needs, then give her the number to Wal-Mart, without telling her what it is. Let her find out, when she makes the call.

Bitch early, bitch often. If nothing else they'll give you what you want, just to get you to shut up. A little trick I learned from my ex-wife. :rolleyes2

I still see candles like that in some small Spanish grocery stores. They're called blessing candles or some such. They have several different types but that's one of them.

I'm actually surprised that I never did anything like that. I've always poured in order from lightest to darkest. When I first started I had a couple of incidents where I got a little red dye in a green candle, or some such, because I hadn't cleaned the mold quite well enough. After that I always poured all my reds together. Or greens or whatever. Not sure how I avoided doing what you did.

I used to work in a large print shop. One of the running jokes we had was to put a dab of ink on the back of a knob or handle, on someone's press. They'd get it on their hands then get it on another handle, then another and another... etc. A half hour later they'd notice that ink was all over everything and go nuts looking for the source.

More info, here. Pretty geeky stuff. Bottom line is that a fluid ounce used to be based on the volume of water that was equal to one ounce in weight. Obviously this was too easy, so it got changed over the years. Also, a fluid ounce of FO will be heavier than a fluid ounce of water. And some FOs will be heavier than others. A fluid ounce of water now weighs 1.04 ounces by weight. An ounce of cinnamon FO might weigh 1.06 ounces by weight, and vanilla might weigh 1.08 onces by weight. Don't know if those weights are accurate, except for the water, but you get the idea. So if you use measuring cups and spoons, your recipes won't be consistent from one fragrance to another.