drllama

Welcome Dante'! I'm a fairly new member too, and totally missed this thread, so here's mine!

No idea why it won't let me un-bold or de-colour below, but oh well

What's your name?  My name is Bruce, though I often use the handle DrLlama on fora. I shamelessly stole the handle from an old friend of mine who created it originally for the Apple Newton Developer Technical Support Group.

How old are you? On the down slope, 51 this year. They say you're only as old as you feel... which means some days I'm in my 70s, others, I'm about 3 and a half

Where do you live? My wife and I live in Sunny (and way too dry) California, just outside San Francisco.

How long have you been making candles? Uh, about 5 minutes? Well, no, actually about two weeks at this point. I'm waiting (im)patiently for my first scented candles to be ready to test, this needing to let Soy cure is gonna make me crazy, I swear!

How did you get started making candles? I've thought about it from time to time over many years and finally decided to give it a whirl, and I'm having a ball so far! Except for the waiting (I hate waiting, can you tell?)

Are you married? Any kids? Happily married for 17 years, in fact three days from now is the 18th anniversary of our first date!

If candle/Soap making isn't your primary job, what do you do? I'm a geek. I work for Cisco doing software development.

Anything else we should know? In a staggering coincidence, I'm the exact same height as Dante! 6'4", but not nearly coordinated enough to play basketball. My other main hobby is Crochet, when I was a kid I played pipe organ and over one summer while my teacher was on vacation I wanted something to keep my fingers in shape, so my mom taught me and we made a blanket for my then baby cousin. Mostly I make afghans, my wife does minis and she keeps wanting me to make a mini afghan, but those super small hooks scare the heck out of me! I'm also my wife's primary caregiver (thank goodness Cisco is supportive about me working from home almost full time). She suffered a major stroke in late 2008 and though she's come a long way in her recovery, she's still quite disabled so taking care of her keeps me busy.

That's the plan, Shoegal. This first batch is just to give me an "Oo, shiny!" while I get a real batch done and curing

BTW, I like the idea of doing something every day so that in two weeks, I'll have something new to try every day!

Thanks Belinda!

For those keeping track (hehe), I yanked out the C-65 and C-70 wicks and replaced with C-50 and C-55. Major difference! A little bit of mushrooming on the 55, and the merest hint of a mushroom on the 50. After 2.5 hours (the jelly jars are 2.5 inches across), the melt pool on both was about 1/8 of an inch from the glass. Looks like we may have a winner!

Now, can I focus on work and not fire up and pour my first scent to cure while I play with these two?

Maybe.......

Got a pair of needle nose pliers?  If so, get a good grip on the wick and give it a jerk...might have to jerk a couple of times but the wick should come out & you can replace with the next size you want to test. (I'm the queen of impatience)

Even better: Forceps! I've got a C-50 and C-55 in now, let's see how that goes. Thanks! Should have thought of just giving them a sharp tug, lol

Couple of days? What couple of days?  I think they were fully cooled by the time I lit them the first time, maybe.... Did I mention that I can be a tad impatient at times? 

Honestly, the first batch was totally intended to be throw-away, do everything wrong once. 

My next batch will be more serious, I'm going to do up two with C-50 and C-55 and 5% FO (probably Lavender), maybe do four, two each with C-50 and C-55 and two each with 5% and 7%. Those will definitely get the full two weeks cure time, while I slowly but surely burn my first set to the ground in a blaze of glory (well, hopefully not too much blaze!)

Oh, and definitely do the "Poke a hole for the wick so you can pull out one that's over/under powered and try something else without having to repour the whole thing", uh, thing.

What the heck, I'm having fun, and that's the whole point!

Cheers,

Bruce.

These wicks are definitely too big. The 70 is throwing soot, and the 60 had a full melt pool after about an hour and a half on the first burn, all three are mushrooming like mad...

Still though.... my first candles!!! 

I totally forgot about not wicking and poking a wick in to see what works. I'll definitely have to try that.

Woo hoo!

I did it! I managed to hold out until the Presto Pot arrived! I have no idea how I managed 

I'm now (im)patiently waiting for my very first candles to cool to the point where I can light them up and oooooo and ahhhhhhh and whine when they aren't perfect 

I did three for my first ever batch. All three are in jelly jars, no fragrance, one with a C-60, one with a C-65, one with a C-70 wick. I'm fully prepared for all three to end up as disasters, though I'm hoping I get a decent burn from one of them!

I've started my candle making journal, to record lots and lots of notes about these.

Now for the next challenge: Holding out long enough to give these guys a chance to be tested before digging in and pouring a set with FO...

It's official, I've joined the loonies here! 

Cheers!

Bruce.

Thanks everyone! The waiting for the Presto Pot (arriving tomorrow) is killing me!!!

Leftovers will probably go into a coffee can to become a big citronella candle out on the balcony, since we don't know anyone with a fireplace, or fire pit to put fire starters to use.

Counting down!!! hehe

It's here!!!

hehe, now I just need the Presto Pot that's coming on Monday.... I'm so tempted to drag out the Crock Pot for a first batch anyway...

Maybe over the weekend.

Don't ask me why, but soy has to cure and it's best to wait 2 weeks to test a fragrance (as you have already noted), and around 3 or 4 days to test a wick. Sucks, I know, but it is what it is. If you don't wait those cure times, you will have inaccurate test results.

Enjoy the journey!

But but but but but! 

Instant gratification, and stuff!

All kidding aside, knowing myself as I do, what I'll probably end up doing is make my first batch and have one or two that I know I'll be lighting 'way before they're ready just to sooth my impatience while the real test candles will get a full two week cure.

Cheers,

Bruce.

P.S.: Where's that darned UPS guy!!!????? 

I am in So. Cali. but sometimes I eat the shipping so I know I'm getting the best. To your south is "General wax" in Los Angeles. I have not used their wax though. You already know about "Peak". I am not familiar of any up North Ca. way but there is a sticky on the forum for suppliers.

Thanks Sixx,

I did find General Wax and another who's name escapes me in North Hollywood, so I told my wife we need to leave space in the car next time we head down to Disneyland so I can pick up a case or two... :-)

I must have overlooked the suppliers sticky, I'll go look for it now!

Cheers,

Bruce.

Test! Test! Test! your Wicks. For yourself and or for gifts, you must test burn for every different scent, jar and color. I've been addicted to the madness for 16 years now, and I still facepalm on a daily basis.

Thanks, that message has come through loud and clear from all sorts of threads!

My plan is to stick to one wax, one jar, and just a few scents. Maybe maybe switch to another container for a christmas candle I'd love to make once I'm confident enough (which I'm guessing is going to be in time for Christmas 2016, not 2015)

Cheers!

Bruce.

Oh! One thing I forgot to mention/ask: Where is a good place in Northern California to get supplies, especially wax? Some of the shipping charges from various places have me a little spooked.

Thanks!

Bruce.

So.... where the heck to start??

I have this habit of diving into a new hobby full throttle, then end up with boxes full of junk because I got every gadget and gizmo and most of them were useless.

Not this time! This time is going to be different! Probably, maybe, we'll have to see :-)

I'm actually sort of a second generation chandler, my dad used to make candles 'way back when. He used an ancient electric frying pan with a small layer of wax in it and his melt pots sitting in the pool of wax... not the best strategy I don't think.

I've decided that I want to mostly make jelly jar containers, using Soy (just to be different). I'd like to get to the point where I can make some as gifts, but mostly it's for my own fun and so we can have some nice ly scented candles around the apartment. My wife is fairly sensitive to scents (go into a candle shop for more than about 30 seconds she comes out with a headache), so I figure this is a good way to find scents that don't bother her, and to tailor the throw so they're not smacking you in the face.

What I've got or am getting is the Soy Container kit from Peak, and a sampler of FOs to try out, and a Presto pot. I figure that's a nice simple starting point, and from what I've been reading I should plan on sticking to the EcoSoy wax until I've got it all sussed out, which makes a lot of sense to me. The shipment from Peak arrives today, the pot not until Monday... it's not going to be easy keeping from playing with the new toys over the weekend!!

Anyhoo, eager to get started, looking forward to the journey, no idea how the heck I'll be able to leave a new candle for two weeks to cure, I'll want to burn it NOW NOW NOW!!! Yes, I know, patience... lol.

So, having read everything I can get my mitts on, any other handy hints? What do you wish someone had told you when you were first starting out?

Thanks heaps!

Bruce.