Beth-VT

With lead, you can't blow it out of proportion. Any amount is bad. Period.

And.......I'm pretty sure Top was kidding.

Well if ya find one, let me know would ya???

Friend of mine has some adorable snowman candlestick holders she got from Party**te and wanted to know if I could make her tapers to fit them, as she can't find any (no, not even from PL, go figure).

I searched around and all are 7/8" or smaller. Stores stock 7/8" or smaller tapers. Had zero luck finding a mold with a base that large

ETA: Meant I was looking for a taper with a 1" base dia.

2. Blending thoroughly could be a problem. You wanna blend the daylights out of it...best suggestion is to go to home depot or some paint store and get yourself a metal (not plastic) paint mixer that hooks onto an electric drill. They come in different sizes so you can use your judgement on which to get.

Sorry......but WTH???? That is about the biggest waste of time, money and effort I've ever heard of. It is absolutely 100% not necessary. And talk about a PITA. I don't think a single one of us would still be here making candles if that were needed.

To make sure your oil is blended well, you need to make sure you add oil at a high enough temperature and stir well with something with surface area to actually move the oil around throughout the wax. Paint sticks, large spoons, etc. Lots of options, but a drill powered paint mixer is not one of them.

Ah, this is the tricky part.

The problem is lack of oxygen. Once you get down low inside the jar like that, the two wicks are struggling for oxygen. There's no really simple answer other than playing around. Try and find wicks that are hot enough to burn good at the top, but not too hot once you get way down inside the jar. Wicks that are too big can also drown out because they require more oxygen, and there's just not much there.

I think she's referring to the flat type boxes that have the self-adhesive strip, and to open them you pull the cardboard tab.....The other ones you have to tape and I"m sure that's not a problem, neither is re-using them. The squarer ones that is, maybe not the flat self sealing ones (I never re-use those anyways. )

But i read that flashpoints over 141 F can be shippied internally via USPS and over 200 F abroad.

Yes, IF packaged accordingly.

It's not just shipping oils between 141-200....it's the packaging required, the limit on one primary container and dealing with orders that may include FP's in all three area's. Customers are bitching because they won't ship USPS anymore, but they'll bitch when they have to have an order shipped in 2 different boxes because of the restrictions. Not to mention the fact that the increased packaging would probably add enough weight to increase the cost enough to make UPS rates equal.

Yes it's a bummer for samples.....so we'll just have to add them on to an order worth shipping UPS. International orders will see the biggest impact, not much to be done about it.

These regs are nothing new.....just newly enforced. Maybe BCN, and every other supplier should have realized this a long time ago. Fact is, the law is the law and I don't fault them for their decision. I will be more upset with suppliers who ship inappropriately.

On the down side.....this will certainly put a crimp in the FO co-ops around here, lol.

Thank you, Leisa. I wasn't going to respond to this thread again, but I did want to thank you. I initially didn't want to post again, but the Board is just way too exciting not want to be a part of it.

You could have PM'd her then.

Do not push it down with your fingers....geesh. Unless you want fingerprints, or smears. Sorry, but I wouldn't want to buy a candle that someone had done that to.

It IS caused by the wax shrinkage. Your wax level is higher when the wax is hot, as it cools, the level lowers and sometimes pulls away from the wick as shown. It is NOT caused from your wick being too tight.

Simply re-heat the top and level it out.....problem solved.

You can get them at TVG.

I use BCN's KLP and it is kick-ass strong. Their supplier upped the manuf. cost and BCN was going to discontinue rather than pass that kind of increase along, but too many people wanted it back even at a higher price.

It's probably one of the strongest FO's I've ever used, from any supplier.

Thanks to everyone...........huge help!!

For a quicker fix, get some Bag Balm!! This stuff heals anything, and fast. Put it on your hands before bed, cover up with some thin cotton or latex gloves (cuz it's pretty greasy) and you'll be amazed in the morning.

Winter up here wreaks havoc on your hands, dry, split and bleeding, finger splits, etc. Bag Balm is the only thing I've found that works overnight. HTH.

For those that host with GoDaddy.... how do you determine which Server Operating System you should use, Windows or Linux?

If I were to use straight HTML, or say Dreamweaver, can anyone tell me what the difference is? I know I can call their CS, and probably will, just thought someone might have an easy explanation. TIA.

I'm not doing anything that is that hard. I checked around, ordered the best and the candles are great.

Well everyone, that explains it. I guess we're all the idiots.....thinking this actually took some sort of knowledge or something.

I'm quit sure that FHG doesn't have a clue of what to even look for in a good or bad burning candle. The only comment she can make (and repeatedly at that) is that the candles are burning evenly and slowly......Hmmmm. I can make any candle burn slow and even, that doesn't mean it's made correctly though.

Makes me wonder if you have any clue about melt pool size, wicks, flame height, etc.

(Sorry Bruce...had to quit the club for this one).

I think it has more to do with the inks. This printer has specialty inks, and they probably just aren't (as she mentioned) gonna stick/absord/adhere to vinyl labels.

Make sure you are using ink-jet labels, then maybe try using the transparency settings?

Glo, you are correct on all counts

And kudos to you for shipping according to the regs. I get miffed when I receive oils that are just put in a box with a few peanuts and that's it. Many people with oils in plastic bottles think it's ok to just cram as many in a box as will fit :undecided

I swear, this ought to be a sticky somewhere ....

Here's the reg's for USPS and shipping oils Read Here

Yes, you can ship oils with a FP above 141° via Priority. There are requirements, however on how they are packaged (ie: secondary containment, etc).

IMO, there's no way that 8lbs. of oils will fit in a flat rate box....if they are packaged to the regs. Most co-op organizers AND most suppliers do not package accordingly. Can a few lbs. fit? Absolutely. But you're not supposed to cram the bottles in and call it good. JMO.

But now I will walk away because this thread is utterly useless. And like Bruce, I will start to bite my tongue.

Joining this club... :tiptoe:...

...and I hope God has his checkbook at the ready should your "perfect" candles burn someones house down.

There's more to candle making that just making one that smells good. Even though some may be burning nicely, that doesn't mean they all will. Every scent you make needs to be tested all the way down. Every change you make, from FO% to additives, needs to be retested.

I have no problem with your obvious faith, but I do with your obvious ignorance over the fact that YOU are making the damn candles, that YOU are laible for their safety, and that SOMEONE ELSE is in danger if you are not doing it properly. Is God going to be there to make sure everyone gets out of the house safely when something goes wrong?

Lead core wicks are still out there, many imported candles use them. Not made by US manufacturers anymore.

Funny thing is, zinc core wicks are the coolest burning of all wicks. LOL.

Dani, have a couple q's for ya. I'm looking for another laser and have been looking at the HP 2600 (although I swore years ago I'd never buy HP anything, lol).

I've seen the way the cartridges are set up, and based on the print times, does this act like a one pass? Or do the color cartridges each have to rotate through per printed page?

Also, how close can you print to the edges? My Minolta 2300 only goes .2" from the edge and I need something that does at the most .125.... borderless would be even better. (My 2" rounds are full color to the edges, and my label sheets are die cut at .125 from the edge, which means the 2 outer columns are useless :undecided ). TIA.

The top? You shouldn't have to touch the top, since the bottom of your mold ends up being the top of your pillar. It should be nice and smooth.

For the bottom, heat it on a non-stick pan to level it out.

IMO....Color wins. Hands down.

You're pretty much wasting your time by not adding FO, as it will change your results drastically.

Add your FO and try double wicking with 2 smaller wicks. HTH.