Forrest

That is odd, were they exposed to the air? Any scented item that is not in a sealed container is likely to lose potency. I have two candles that are over 18 months old that are supper strong. That may not work for every wax/FO combination, but from what I have seen the curing process continues, but decelerates over time.

The only label was on the bottom. It had the company name and the warning information. I suspect it also had a number to identify the fragrance. I think a better way to achieve the same thing is to give candles names that do not relate to their scent, Volcano doesn’t smell like molten lava. This would probably only work if you had a limited number of scents.

I was in a store and one of the lines of candles they offered did not name their candles. All the labels were the same, but the fragrance were different. I like this idea because the name isn’t giving you a preconceived notion of the scent. Also you have to smell them to know what they are. Clearly this would not work for internet sales, but if you are doing shows or selling in shops, and had candles with good CT, I think it might work.

My daughter texted to tell me how great the candle she was burning was; it was one I gave her last Thanksgiving. That got me to thinking; if I aged a candle and then re-melted the wax would it be as strong as before I melted it, or would it be like starting over? I ask this because blending the wax and FO and then storing it would be easier than storing a bunch of candles.

It probably didn't help that my house was at 65 degrees. I'll warm the jars, pour at 160, and find a way to slow the cooling.

Around 165.

I'm using 6006, so I was surprised that I had so much trouble.

I made my first batch of candles in jars and clearly I need to do something differently. I made six candles and all of them had serious craters. I have read on this board about heating the jars before pouring, but how hot should they be?

I was in Boston Tuesday and Wednesday and I saw a number of different T-shirts with these same words on them, sometimes using the phonetic, Bostonian spelling, and sometimes using the English spelling. To me the meaning was clear; someone used their intelligence to choose the proper wick for their candle. Of course there could be a different meaning, and as this one was across the street from Harvard I suspect the alternate meaning is what they intended. All that got me thinking that Wicked Smart would be a good name for a candle company.

I've had both of those problems recently. I've changed my process to increase the blending temp, keep the FO from being too cold, and stir longer.

Wow! great info, I'll need to read it again after I finish my coffee.

Let us know how it does in wax. I'm planning to make next year's Christmas candles in January and let them age.

Fall for you is when the license plates begin to change colors

Well, I don't think anyone wants to buy my stinky socks, so I'll stay out of this one.

I wish I could live in the back woods of Cherry Log

Because I bought them before I knew what I was doing, so I have them, and I know the wicking for them. Most of my extended family likes wicks, but they'll take what I give them.

Well that would indicate that it is both soy and paraffin that benefit from long cure times.

Did you use soy or a soy blend? I'm wondering if this effect is true for paraffin also.

The one I found spent a year in the garage and I can't say it was pretty, but the HT is great!

This may only apply to candles made with 6006, or soy, but I’ve noticed something that I find interesting. I recently lit an 8oz Tureen with 6006 and CS Oak Moss and Amber that I made in June of last year, the HT is amazing. The candle is clearly over wicked and at the time I made it I was far less educated than I am now. I had a similar experience with a well-aged candle a while back. When I was looking for tins last Friday I found a tin with CS English Garden that I made in April of 17. The CT is far stronger than anything I’m making today and I lit it a few minutes ago and the HT is great. The thing is it is a 464 candle; I gave up using that wax because I couldn’t get any HT. I’m guessing here, but I think the curing process goes on for a lot longer than two weeks. I suspect our candles cure the most during the first day and each day after that they cure a little less than the day before. So, the difference between two weeks and three weeks isn’t that much, but the difference between two weeks and 52 weeks is big. If I am right this doesn’t mean much to professional candle makers, unless you have a lot of storage and just want to get ahead of the game. But it could mean a lot for a hobbyist like me. There is no reason I couldn’t make next year’s Christmas candles in January and store them under the bed. For me this would change the way I do things. Has anyone else experienced anything like this? Oh, I would like to point out that although it took 18 months I have finally make a good soy candle.

I changed my process yesterday while pouring some tins. When I’m doing one off candles I weigh my FO in a small beaker and mix in a larger beaker. Between the FO and the beaker the temp of the mixture was dropping below 180 before stirring. So I turned the oven on to 220 and heated the beakers before using them. I cut a strip off of a silicone hot pad to handle the hot glass. After that there was only a small temp drop when poured the wax into the beaker. I stirred vigorously for 90 seconds; I don’t worry about bubbles in my tins, and pour as soon as I’m finished stirring. I have been concerned about the HT in my last batchs of tins, and I’m hoping this will help the situation. I guess I’ll find out in two weeks.

That is a great idea! I've been writing everything on the label and in a book.

Really? I wish somebody had told me that when I was a teenager, might have kept me from doing a lot of stupid things.

As far as hot throw, I don't think you can know without extensive testing. The first problem is HT is very hard to quantify. The second problem you run into is that some FOs may throw better in one wax and some in the other. As a general rule you the higher the percentage of paraffin the better the HT, but I know there are FOs that can throw better in soy than they do in 6006. If I had a lab that was properly configured, a few thousand dollars for supplies, about ten volunteers, and six months I could probably get a definitive answer, but that's not happening. I read a lot on this board before switching to 6006 and I don't think you'll do any better in a para-soy. You may find one that works better for you, but all you can do is keep trying different ones. I find 6006 easy to work with. As for being messy I would add that it is also easy to clean up. What I have learned from the experts on this board is that if you're having HT problems it is more likely to be process or wicking issues than your wax. I picked up my last order from Flaming and saved a bunch of money, nice people and easy to work with.

Welcome. I switched to painter's tape and it has worked great for me, but I've never heard of Washi tape, I'll have to check it out.