Stella1952

We also use the Universal Soy Additive from JBN. That's a function of the particular FO, the amount used and the temperature at which the candles are stored and the humidity. All C-3 soy candles do not sweat. In fact, very few of ours do, except during hot weather. In our neck of the woods, nearly ANY scented candle will sweat in the summer 'cause it's so hot and humid here. The droplets disappear when the candle is burned and frequently never reappear.

Yes, but there are several kinds/grades/formulas... http://www.lipidchem.com/our_products2.html

We usually use them on the outside if the mold has a hole. If not, we put them on the inside. Because of the shape of the wick pin, the tops have a nice, concave top regardless of whether the pin is on the inside or outside. The thing I like most about placing them inside the mold is that if a candle is stubborn about releasing from the mold, the wick pin provides something to grab and pull.

Mine is 100% Palm Wax from JBN. "Votives & Pillars - Fine Granulated Beads" The "beads" themselves are cream or ecru in color - not white like soy flakes; but when melted and poured, the candles made from it are quite white. I use palm stearic in mine also. It's white, unlike the soy stearic additive, which is the same color as the palm wax. Totally blew my mind, but they both pour white without coloring.

SIGH... BEAUTIFUL!! Any chance we could see them all lit up?

When we have poured our palm without dye, it doesn't come out cream - it comes out white. I think the crystals give it a frostier appearance.

Warming them (set in a pan of warm water and cover; no heat), setting in the fridge or just waiting a day or two sometimes allows a stubborn palm candle to see things your way. We use palm stearic for most of ours.

Ummm, cleanglow, how did the drilling go? I sure love those spheres!

Those just couldn't be ANYTHING but OCEAN! In fact, I think the colors and style of the candle epitomize "ocean." Fantastic job!

Has it been extra cold this winter where you are? I know it sure has been here! My old house has been extra drafty! Are you seeing frosting also?

I dunno about soy, Top, but I sure wouldn't use palm!

HOORAY! It's so handy! I know you aren't letting wax go into your sink, eh?...

Yeah, but in most places, the indoor air temperature varies from winter to summer. Things stored are generally much cooler in the wintertime than in the summer... For example, I don't need to refrigerate sodas during the winter - they stay very cool even inside the house; but during the summer, I would have to chill them or they would taste like warm spit. Glad you got a chance to crack Webster's - wonderful book!

Could cold ambient air temp have anything to do with this?

You slay me, Top!I think the consensus was that heating too quickly from below causes the hot wax to build up pressure under the unmelted wax and spurt. Poke a few relief holes or use melters that heat the wax at a lower temperature.

...might wanna gently warm the candle also... Who knows... if no pressure is used, it may very well just sail right through with no problemo whatsoever. Drills are like that, yeah.

A few ppm of some chemicals is plenty enough to harm multitudes of people! I think that people are correct in looking into the chemicals used to synthesize FOs... I don't think that our FDA has gone nearly far enough in forcing companies to reveal their ingredients to the general public who have blindly trusted industry not to harm them before... Although I believe that most responsible companies try very hard to keep up on the lastest research into product safety BEYOND the little that is required by law, there are plenty out there who just don't care and only want to sell and make money. I think chandlers are wise to investigate this, draw their own conclusions outside of marketing propaganda and support companies whose dedication to product safety is exemplary and well above average. Demanding MSDS is a first step - every fragrance oil supplier should have MSDS available for their products. "Trade secret" = make the customers pay more.

That entirely depends upon the customer. I think that customers DO care about how a product appears...

Those are SO FINE! I too am sorely afraid about the drilling...

Thanks, Rebecca - I missed that.

I just happen to have one that is developing some frosting (it's 3 weeks old). Pink dye with Red Hot Cinnamon FO, NatureWax C-3. These are extreme closeups - the frosting on the top is just now developing - you can see it just under the surface in the area of the square... From the side, you can see the frosting developing clearly. The darker area is not a "wet spot" - it's one of the headaches of photographing glass...:rolleyes2 This candle does not look THIS bad in real life - the camera's eye is totally unforgiving! It even "saw" a scratch on the glass that I didn't see until I was resizing the photos... and I had a heckuva time finding it on the jar when I went and looked! Anyway, there's your frosting pictures...:embarasse

So why not discuss your concerns with the vendors? Talking about them here will not resolve anything... just my 2¢ worth... Trends in art and decor have made the "rustic" look to become popular. People have different ideas of what "rustic" actually is... Some folks think that a candle with significant frosting is simply awful - it doesn't look "perfect." Same thing with lumpy tops... Just like smooth shiny fudge vs. matte, lumpy fudge - they both taste FINE! The lumpy-topped, frosted candle still may smell and burn just as well... While we enjoy all of the unique characteristics of soy wax, we strive for as little frosting as possible and flawless, velvety smooth tops. Those visual aspects do not affect the quality of the burned product, but the craftsmanship is more refined. While appearances are not everything, they do matter to many folks. IMHO, inattention to craftsmanship details make me wonder if the chandler has paid as much attention to the quality of the container they are using and the scenting and wicking of their product - things I will not know until after I purchase and use the product. So I generally will pass on a candle that appears poorly crafted, even though the aspects on which I am judging may not affect the burn or hot throw... I might forgive a slightly off-center wick in an otherwise perfect appearing candle, but I would not forgive it in a candle with excessive frosting and a lumpy top. I don't want to give my customers a chance to pass on my candles because of their appearance... Before we sell a candle, we always open it and examine it for frosting, weeping, "wet-spots," centered wick, etc. If one has frosted up, it goes into the discount box of "seconds," rightly or wrongly. People enjoy bargains, too!

We use 8 oz. wide mouth (squat) round genuine Ball jars. The ounce unit of measure is a little confusing to a lot of folks. If they are filled to the brim, they hold 8 fluid ounces of liquid as opposed to 8 weighed ounces (dry measure). One is a liquid volume measurement; the other is the actual product weight (without the weight of the jar). We fill them to about where the threads begin. This is roughly 5.5-6 oz. While our product information lists these as 8 oz. jars, we also state (on the label) the actual weighed amount of wax contained in the jar so as not to mislead people to think that they are purchasing 8 oz. of wax in the jar. Kinda like ceral boxes, which state, "Product is sold by weight, not by volume." Even though there are jars whose design we like better, these are readily available at WalMart and other canning supply sources. The reason we use them is because they are manufactured in the US to the heat and shatter resistance standards recommended. Glass manufactured in other countries is often less expensive but is not made to the same standards. Over the years, I have cracked a few Ball, Mason or Kerr canning jars (always near the bottom as others have experienced), but the lion's share of the glass cracking has happened in containers not manufactured in the US. Although I can't get my mind to believe it, our 6 oz. tins (same thing - 6 oz. liquid volume capacity, but still 5 oz. net weight) hold roughly the same amount of wax as the 8 oz. Ball jars! They appear to be much smaller, but that's the illusion from the thin-walled tin vs. the thicker-walled glass. We never fill them all the way up because the lids would smash the wick over and we like to trim the wick to roughly 1/8" and leave it sticking straight up, ready for lighting without any trimming or adjustment by the customer. HTH:grin2:

I am not sure that the wick size has as much to do with the hot throw as does the wax itself and the FOs used. My suggestion would be to try some scents from another supplier. Others here who use the same wax that you use can let you know whose scents work best for their wax. We have found that after curing for 48 hours, if we are not getting much hot throw, it isn't gonna throw significantly better with another week or two of curing... We will go as high as 1.5 oz. per pound, then if we don't get the hot throw we want, we X that FO off our list. What wax are you using?

Cindys, that is just SOOOOOOO goodlookin! I think 'canes are addictive!