MrDan

@Trappeur Thanks! Nice to meet you as well!

12 hours ago, Hopie said:

Yep, old school cool...LOVE that! Aren't MrDan's owls cool? I remember that style... owls with the really big eyes...from way back when. I'd love to see a revival of some of that stuff, and some new ones, to boot   Of course, I"d never burn those, lol!

This little owl is so cool to burn though! Once the flame gets to the eyes is when it’s the coolest! The wax starts dripping from the eyes, and then eventually the head splits open like a flower blooming or like the Demigorgon from Stranger Things! It’s a little gruesome, but then I remind myself it’s just a candle, lol

@Scented I recieved almost a couple dozen of the old Pourette molds, as well as a few of the old metal ones.

Unfortunately, the tin had come off in so many place on the metal molds that they were rusty, pitted, and leaking. 

With the plastic molds only 9 have survived, and some barely because I need to preform some surgery on them before I even attempt a pour! It’s a shame because there were some really cool ones in the bunch, like this big 5 lb sun with a face. Beautiful candle, but when my step father was making candles he didn’t really take care of his stuff. Not too mention the 30+ years all this stuff was just shoved in a couple paper bags in the rafters in the garage. 

Im actually surprised that any of them lasted!

41 minutes ago, Jcandleattic said:

 

A little crude and not really a tutorial, but this is how I use my Presto. When I'm doing more than 1-2 lbs, at a time, I melt more wax and pour in a bigger pour pot that is on a tared scale and weigh the wax as it's coming out of the presto. 

Hardly crude, and a perfect example of what I was looking for! Thank you @Jcandleattic !

@bfroberts  Seeing it explain like that, it makes a little more sense. I’ll admit it, I was trying to find video tutorials of people using the Presto pots and coming up empty! I can see the advantages in something like that. And the small size pot is plenty big for my needs, and pretty inexpensive too!

Thanks!

Maybe I’m just not understanding how you can pour cleanly with a Presto Pot. Is this pot being physically lifted to pour the wax, or is it being scooped into something else to be poured? Are the dyes and fragrances mixed in there as well?

I looked at the pots and I can see where it could be really useful, but I also noticed the lowest setting was for 200 degrees on most of these pots. Isn’t there a good chance I’d just scorch the wax?

Oh yeah, the water jacket heater is way beyond what I’m looking at for now, lol. 

It’s a nice enough piece of equipment, but I’m definitely staying small for the foreseeable future.

38 minutes ago, Sarah S said:

 

They had so many great molds! I really really want to get a wizard and a couple 'shrooms, but my hubby is a cop and definitely not down with that scene, lol. Well, the wizard would probably be ok! I need at least a couple more days to look through everything! 😄 I didn't see the parrot, but I will go back and find it!

I had sent Hopie a message about this one, but I’m hearing and reading very bad things about getting orders from that company, if you’re even able to get in contact with them!

14 hours ago, Hopie said:

Does anyone use candle paint? I'd like to know which ones to buy before I waste money on the wrong ones. Can you burn them safely? What about the metallics paint? Ever use that stuff? Thanks in advance for sharing your knowledge.

I haven’t tried it myself, but I’ve read that you can put just a drop or two of Dawn dish soap in your everyday acrylic craft paint and it will work just like the store bought wax paints. 

Might be worth a try!

@TallTayl

I had looked into the Presto pots a little, but, frankly, they seem like more trouble than they’re worth.

I didn’t even think about having a naked flame around the wax; probably best to stay away from that.

I’ve never heard of a water jacket heater, but that sounds similar to using a Crockpot filled with water, or something along those lines.

I highly doubt I’m ever going to go bigger than a couple of pour pots at a time, so maybe I’ll just stick with a hot plate.

Thanks!

I’m lookin at turning the back end of my garage into my little candle making workshop, so I’m looking for opinions!

I’m stuck on heating sources though. Should I just buy an electric hot plate or two, or should I go ahead and buy that Coleman gas camping stove and hook up a propane tank?

What do people like to use as a heat source? Is one any better than the other?

39 minutes ago, Hopie said:

 

Holy MOLY! Those are big 'uns! I guess all you can do it see if they have any holes before pouring, it would be a great NIGHTMARE to have paraffin all over the place! I personally place molds inside a rectangular cake pan before pouring, that way, not as much to clean up a leak mess. Love that seahorse!   Somebody get me a...BIB, I can't stop the drooling, LOL!

I decided to check them as I was repacking them, and Santa and one of the large spheres were cracked. Santa looks like he’s been puttied up in a few different places. 

Since I’ve been using only small molds I use a baking sheet I got for 89 cents at Walmart! 

I think that seahorse would definitely be one of those “show pieces” instead of an everyday for sale kind of thing! But that’s the beauty of using paraffin with these kinds of molds! They just look so gorgeous in the end!

Thank you Hopie!

I’ve already learned that I love and hate this thing we call candle making, lol. But I am addicted! I’m currently taking a break from measuring my garage for a work bench and shelves! Hopefully my wife will actually let me build them! lol

I’ll have to check out that supplier; thank you for that! I’m always looking for less expsenive ways to spend all my money on a hobby! 😆

@Sarah S 

The collection was a whole lot of bigs, quite a few of which didn’t survive the years. The Santa is 9” tall, but his belly is big enough that I’d say he’s a 2 pounder. The seahorse is 11”, and remarkable thin; I’d say 1.5lbs. The biggest problem is that these weren’t taken care of that well. A lot of them still have wax on them from the 70s! 

Notice the price tags on some of these. The Santa and seahorse are marked at $3.95, and both spheres are $2. New molds aren’t all that much today (usually less than $10); it’s interesting that the prices haven’t gone up all that much.

I also wanted to share these that I found in the bottom of the step father’s never ending bag of candle stuffs. They’re about a foot tall, and I’m guessing about a pound when complete.

I don’t like to commit so much wax to something this size, since the smalls sell better, but I think I might throw them for funzies!

@Hopie

Please keep me updated! If they actually email you back I’d like know (because I’m still waiting for a response), but also because my owl is nearing his end I’m afraid. Still, he’s hanging on pretty well for a 40+ year old piece of plastic!

1 minute ago, Hopie said:

 

Sarah, here is the link to get the owl molds. That was why I was asking here about the Pourette molds, I had come across this. LOTS of other designs, as well. They do seem to pose a bit of a hassle, but I think if you clamp them off correctly, you'll get some pretty cool candles. You'd also need a tool to trim the seams.

 

These take me back to the 1970s when we hung around a "hippie mall", it was a really cool place filled with young entrepreneurial shop owners, one being a Wax Factory candle maker. Others included glow in the dark posters, black lights, head shops, hippie clothing, jewelry, and ohhhhh....the smell of INCENSE permeated the air. Place was huge! 

 

LINK: http://www.spiritcrafts.net/twowcamo3ht3.html   

 

 

Those guys are the little brothers of mine. It’s the same design but smaller. That company bought all the Pourette master molds when they went under. I’ve actually been waiting to hear back from them concerning the manufacture time on the plastic molds: no word yet.

@Hopie I just remembered that I’ve seen a couple of the candle supply places sell metal clips for the plastic molds. It seems like they would be really useful for preventing leaks but they look like they would also produce excessive flash. The more time we spend trimming, the less time we have to pour!

These guys are all paraffin, and these ones are vanilla scented. I tried working with soy wax in the pourette molds but it ended up being more hassle than it was worth.

Plus, I just enjoy the colors I get from paraffin; they just can’t be matched.

Sorry, no. The other ones I have are larger, but this little guy is just under 5 oz, about 3.5” tall. People are really loving them!

This is what I’ve been making with a mold I inherited from my step-father. It has to date to at least the late 70s or early 80s.

I have others that I haven’t used yet, but that’s becuase they’re close 4 or 5 pounds!

Yep! I tape the wick down, and maybe the top, then I just clamp the sides and bottom.

I’m using pillar formulated paraffin; I’m able to get by without release agent, but different waxes, different results.

I’ve been using some old Pourette molds for months now and I only rarely have a leak. You just have to make sure and take the time to clamp the sides and all that. 

Hello everyone.

The name is Dan, but I go by Mr.Dan. I’m 37, with a wife and child, and living in Central Washington.

I’m fairly new to candlemaking. I started with one of those make your own soy container candle kits; I wanted to do something crafty for the family Christmas gifts along with the scarves I made. I enjoyed it so much that I was given my mother’s husbands old candle molds from the 70s and 80s. 

I’ve played around with different waxes, but I’m prefering paraffin for the molded candles and pillars that I work on.

I very much intend to turn what has become something of a serious hobby into a small home business, and hopefully sooner rather than later.