aptommo

Other than Etsy and Ebay the Amazon Handmade Marketplace is the option I'm going with. I think Facebook Marketplace could be useful as well.

Well I can tell you first that I did not need as much dye for this wax for some reason, so they turned out much darker than anticipated which is not a horrible thing. They pulled right from my silicone molds so fast it's like I blinked and they were hard. I did wait a good 6 hours before attempting anything to be sure. The 415 had to sit overnight before I could even consider it. I only did a small batch to test but here's my hazelnut test! I'm going to do some more testing today but so far so good, these were a snap to remove. The real test comes today with the 3D bear molds I have!

Thanks for all the great replies! I did order a few 1oz or 2oz bottles from WSP, Candle Science, Candle Source, Rustic Escentuals and Candlewic. A few of the same so I can see which I like from each vendor but a few random ones that just sounded good from each to try. I'm so scared to waste money but I can already see that plan fluttering out of my grasp! I've never heard of half of the suppliers on that list but now I'm curious! You might be enablers but I'm very weak minded when it comes to being frugal so I'm truly screwed! I don't even have my shop ready on Etsy so this is all just pay out and nothing coming in yet!

Oh sorry! I have to get better at searching then. I'll go find the threads on each one and see what's said. Is VA Candle not a fav? I don't see a lot of mentions of them here but they were the first I ever ordered from and that Lavender Vanilla is my personal favorite.

If only putting her in another area of the house would be the least bit acceptable to this spoiled 13 year old. 😾 I was considering a HEPA air purifier in the room plus a window fan blowing air out as well as the fan above the stove. In the winter she'll mostly lay in the living room in front of the fireplace so maybe the above would be enough for her? It's not been an issue for now because I've been making such small test batches and it's been nice enough to keep the sliding door open but winter is just around the corner so that's not going to work.

I've noticed that fragrances seem to react different from vendor to vendor. The Lavender Vanilla I purchased and loved from VA Candle smells completely different than the one I got from Nature's Garden. Do I really have to test them all? That list of suppliers is really extensive. So who are your favorites? Who has the better product and the better prices? (just on fragrance for now)

Okay thanks for that link!! I assume, if I thought this than a lot of customers of mine will too. Maybe I'll use a blend but for now I have the 415 still to use but I did grab some of the 444 and beeswax as well as some stearic acid just to play around and see what I can do. I have too much of the 415 left to waste. I do however have the GW for wax and tarts on the way to me too. I'm not sure I'm quite experienced enough to weigh in on the differences but I can tell you if it works in some of my 3d molds that the 415 was too soft for!

I've only bought pure soy so far because I keep reading about paraffin being bad because of the carcinogens it releases and I'm curious if that would extend to melts or if it's just something in the wick? (sorry I'm new!)

Curious about this as well. I have some on the way after realizing the 415 wasn't the best for molds. I would like to know how it does versus the Ecosoya PB for tarts too.

I'm sorry to latch on to this thread but I've been thinking about this for myself but more so for my kitty. Is there any special precautions I should be taking for her while I'm making melts? Thanks!!!

Hi there! Just found this site by google searching why my melts were coming out bad and I'm overwhelmed with information and excited at the same time! What's your name? Amber How old are you? 39 Where do you live? Ohio How long have you been making candles/soap/whatever? 2 weeks? I made candles a few times like 15 years ago and they were great so I think I just got lucky then because I'm a ball of confusion now How did you get started making candles/soap/whatever? Tired of buying melts from others that I never end up loving Are you married? Any kids? No just me and my kitty! If candle/Soap making isn't your primary job, what do you do? I do voice overs for radio Anything else we should know? Probably I had no idea there was a cure time for melts. I also had no idea there were 100 variations of soy wax and that I was using the wrong one and that's why my ears on my kitty mold break every single time! I'm here to learn and I hope you all will be patient with me!! So far I've ordered from VA Candle, Nature's Garden, Candle Science and Amazon lol. I was using 415 soy which is probably why those 3D melts were not coming out as I hoped. I don't think I've been using nearly enough FO either and some of my tarts seems to have next to no throw when melting unless I put my nose directly over the burner. Funny enough after reading about cure times I just pulled out the second batch I ever did 2 weeks ago and it's starting to melt and I think I'm smelling it already so maybe I didn't do as bad as I thought. I want to make fancy melts. Cute molds, herbs instilled in the melt process, lots of glitter. My target audience is 20-35 year old college kids and the people that frequent my mom's tax office all winter! Okay I've rambled enough but I'm happy I've found this site!