waxwonders15

You're % of FO is too high.  Try lowering it to 3% or 4%.  Your scent throw will be the same, and not over-powering.  

I go through Yaley only for my metal molds.  Otherwise, I agree, they're too expensive

I'm not sure if this is the correct category for this question, but anyway... I order some of my candlemaking supplies through Yaley.  I know there has been fires in that area of California and think Yaley must have been effected.  Does anyone know?  Their website is down and everything.  

I have 3 friends testing my finished candles for me, as I am currently trying different percentages of FO.  Do you think 3 is enough or should I go with more? 

We came up with Flickering Palm Candles.  How does that sound?

Thanks for the advice Quentin! 

I did notice what you're describing with the votive that I test burned.  The pillar candle is about 2 inches down and slowly burning more toward the side.  I'll continue burning and see what happens.  Thanks for the advice!  

My husband and I have been trying to think of a name for our business.  I came up with Forever Yours Candles, but he thinks that doesn't sound right for a candle business name.  We make palm wax candles and we're trying to come up with a name to keep the eco-friendly theme going.  Does anyone have any ideas to toss around?  We could really use some help!  Thank you!

I've been testing out Eco-12 wick (from candlewic) with my 3x3 palm wax pillars, and have discovered an issue.  The pillars burn down the middle instead of to the edges.  What can I do about this?  

After I wick my molds while the wax is melting, I heat them on an electric griddle so they are not cold when I pour my candles.  Also, I do not use jars.  I just make pillars and votives currently.  No offense to people who do pour into jars, but I chose to be different and not use them.  

11 hours ago, TallTayl said:

That looks like a direct heat melter. What I discovered when I had one is that it created very hot wax at the bottom while the top 2/3 of the melter remained solid. It scorched beeswax which needed only 145 to melt.

 

For volumes of wax I much prefer water jacket melters. The heat is more evenly distributed around all of the kettle surfaces.

 

A presto pot is also direct heat, but heats a much smaller mass.

 

How much wax are you looking to melt at one time?

I typically melt about 6 lbs at a time.  I do not water jacket it, just straight into the presto pot it goes.  I had to do a remelt b/c the wax never came up to temperature...then I realized the extension cord I'm using is bad, so I bought a new one.  Hopefully this will fix the problem!

I have a really cool camera that takes awesome pictures, but none of them are able to be posted to this website.  The files are apparently too big.  Can anyone tell me how I decrease the size of the files so I am able to upload them?  TIA 

I currently use a presto pot to melt my wax, but it takes a long time to get the wax to the correct temperature (205 deg).  I found this other one on eBay https://www.ebay.com/itm/42-LB-STAINLESS-STEEL-WAX-MELTER-SOAP-MAKING-MELTER-LID-DIGITAL-THERMOMETER/232601478616?hash=item362820e5d8:g:C0AAAOSwJ-pbBcKo

 The description says it only heats up to 200, but I obviously need slightly higher.  Are my temperature settings off...should I be melting the wax to a lower temperature?  I'd like to purchase the above melter, but only if I can make it work.  What are other palm wax makers using?  Personally, I'm getting tired of waiting on my presto pot!!

I am trying to upload photos of some candles I made, but get the error message that my photos are too large.  Does anyone know how to shrink the photo size so I can make this work?  thanks in advance

I read somewhere that I am supposed to use 5% of FO per pound of palm wax; when I make my candles, I automatically add 1 oz of FO per pound.  How do I know what percentage that would equal?  I've always just made my candles this way and have never had a problem.  Thanks for the help

My boyfriend and I took a break from making paraffin candles and started making ones from palm wax.  We've had nothing but good results!  The scent throw, hot and cold, is fantastic.  We buy ours from the Lone Star candle supply website.  It is IGI R2779A Feather Palm.  Currently we are just testing the waters with it, burning them at home only, but do want to expand out.  They burn fantastic as well!  We don't use jars, making just pillars, votives, and tea lights.  It would almost be abusive to put a jar around this candle -- the patterns turn out so pretty!  I made a couple candles tonight and will post pictures ASAP.  

On ‎5‎/‎12‎/‎2018 at 9:21 AM, TallTayl said:

When you get it, resist the urge to crank that dial up. It is very responsive. I set mine generally between the “w” and “a” and stir often. Setting to 200, especially on small amounts will seriously scorch your wax. 

 

Those pots are awesome, 

I am having a similar problem.  I also use palm wax, but my presto pot is taking forever to get the wax up to even 200 F.  I melted close to 5 lbs of wax tonight and it took over 1.5 hours to get to 210 F.  Do you know if there is a quicker method even than a presto pot?

Both Dr. Oz and Dr. Phil are misleading.  Neither of these men have done anything (IMO) to really help anyone.  No one should believe everything they see/hear on TV/media.  We obviously all have a computer of some sort because we're reading this, so after hearing potential "facts", do your research!!  Okay, venting done

Thank you for the advice!

I want to start making gel pie candles, but came across conflicting information.  I thought I would use a pie tin (used for candle making) to make them in, but the site I am using for instructions (candlesandsupplies.net) says to use a 5 1/2" compote dessert bowl.  Does this work better?  Where can I buy them in bulk?  Wouldn't it just be easier/look better if I used a pie tin?  Thanks for the help! 

To moderator: The point in using 4 presto pots is to have a place to store and reheat the already used wax when there are leftovers.  Can I ask, what do you do with leftover wax, if you have any, especially if you're making layers?

I recently bought 4 presto pots with the intention of being able to pour the same wax (scented and all) back into the pot when I have leftovers.  However, I noticed on a different topic in this forum that other people are not adding the FO and color into the presto pot.  Is it a bad idea to do it the way I want to do it (I have not started making candles since I bought the presto pots)?  I am using palm wax right now, but plan on switching to paraffin when I start using the pots.  Each pot would have its own FO and color.  Thanks for the help.​

My name is Danielle and my husband's name is Dave.  We started making candles as a hobby/craft and decided to turn our works into a money maker.  We make hand-poured candles using molds and star palm wax.  Everyone we've sold/given a candle to loves them!  Just wanted to introduce ourselves and say Hi! to everyone on this forum!  Thanks for the advice and stories.

Over the past few years, I've been to quite a few different craft shows.  I am curious -- why is it that crafters are prone to selling container candles over non-container candles?  I make palm feather pillar candles, no container, and have not seen any pillar candles of any type at the show.  Because of this, I can't find a reasonable way to figure out pricing on my candles, especially in a more "fair" way, being that I don't use a container.  Can anyone give me advice?  Thanks