sarahmarah

Thank you guys!

I have the PS from Lab&Co and WSP in 464 curing right now. The Lab&Co PS is a nice base for an earthy blend but I feel like I couldn't just use it on its own---it kind of bores me. Maybe curing will make a world of difference. The WSP oil is insanely expensive for me and Im not the biggest fan of it OOB. Perhaps it is the most "true" version but regardless I feel like it may be tough to blend it---not impossible but tough. Im interested to see what a cure will do. The oils are very nice from Lab&Co but I wish they posted reviews on their site---I know you can read reviews on their Etsy shop though you may have to sift through them. I confess I loathe the idea of wooden wicks. I hate everything about them especially the crackle! 😂

I wish I could be more help—I’m putting mine in wax today finally after procrastinating and getting way too caught up in some new samples, containers and wicks. I’m trying Lab & Co as well as WSP’s Palo Santo. I don’t have high hopes for the WSP based OOB but we’ll see...Truthfully WSP is such an odd smelling one that I wouldn’t even know what to blend with it. I know a lot of people add P.S. EO’s to wax but I wouldn’t even know where to begin with that. I have wayyyyy too many questions lol There are also lots of people that expect the BBW White Barn version. Though it’s not “true” PS it’s a nice comforting smell. I’ve used Scentsational Soaping’s Palo Santo (BBW type) and it smells great but I couldn’t manage to get a good CT/HT at 10% FL in my 464 after a 1month cure. I’m thinking that particular version may translate better to B+B products. I’ll keep you posted.

I bought some chip clip things that keep my wick in place but they are murder on my wicks—creating crimps that are not easily straightened. I also suspect they affect the cooling below where they rest...so I’m looking for new ones. I saw the ones below on the Bitter Creek site and I want them but they are a teeny bit too small. I like that they are straight and thin. Anyone know where I may be able to find these? (Preferably just a little bit longer)

No worries 😊

I get my Tom Ford dupes from Scentsational Soaping 😊

No worries 😊

So far the Frankincense + Myrrh wowed me—I definitely want to play with it more and see how it does in C3. I think mainly I love it because I have been looking for that nostalgic “church” smell for a long time and this was it! Smells exactly like a long discontinued GAP fragrance called “OM” and reminds me of having to sit through services as a child. I can see it being a very niche thing as it’s one of those very polarizing smells.

I honestly wish I had used something smokier than Fireside—maybe a touch of campfire or incense blend with the Frankincense + Myrrh. At 8% in 464 in a 9oz with a two week cure It didn’t fill my average sized bathroom as much as I would have liked. That may be a wicking error on my end—I’m experimenting with Premiers and I believe I used the 750 to start. I like the Pink Peony + Nectarine ok but I don’t feel like I would buy it again. It’s a bit more perfumey and less botanical than I like. I also think the nectarine notes get lost in the blend. It reminds me of some of the high end hair care products I’ve bought in the past. It’s certainly not bad just not what I was looking for. I do like the Yuzu + Hinoki better (great throw in C3!) but it doesn’t blow me away enough to where I would be able to justify a bigger purchase. The Palo Santo is very herbal and mildly earthy. It sort of reminds me of dried herbal tea with faint sweet grassy notes. I like that the Sage isn’t in your face. I haven’t put this in wax yet because I can’t think of what to pair it with. On its own I don’t think people would be throwing themselves at it—I think it might need something else to make it interesting. I’m thinking citrus or smoke—maybe a touch of shouldering patch.

Thanks again for all the input. I’m definitely going to try sticking with a 6% FL now in my C3. At 8% this started as nice but took a turn into cloying headache territory real quick. I’m curious about those Cottonwood wicks—I saw they have free shipping on all wicks from Northstar so I’ll definitely be checking them out. 😊

Well I got some significant top seepage with the grainy candle today (day 5 of cure). I’m pretty sure my math was spot on (the .97 oz FO listed in my earlier post was actually .93oz according to my notes) I’m thinking that even at 8% my oil blend may have been way too heavy with the C3. I blended small amounts of Lab & Co., BB and WSP (Fragrance Formulator CC) oils. Most of those are plenty concentrated on their own so I guess I’m not really surprised that happened. I was basically going HAM on some nice samples that I wanted to use up. I wiped off the oil and stuck and HTP 93 wick in and lit it. I’m not sure if that’s a good place to start with C3 in16 oz straight sided jar with an interior diameter of about 3.25–3.30ish? This pic is the 2 1/2 hr mark. I popped the wick in with a skewer a bit off center 😬. Flame seems to be way more steady than I’ve ever seen in all my other testing with ECO’s and CD’s—it only now is developing a mushroom making the flame dance more. Throw is surprisingly good for a candle I screwed up on. should I wick up or down? I feel like in the next burn or two the sides could catch up.

Thank you so much, that’s an amazing resource! I am trying to eventually develop massage/body candles as I have some friends and family that are in the beauty/spa business. I’m definitely interested in learning about them and seeing what I can come up with 😊

Would there be an additive to help with throw and lengthen burn time?

Thanks everyone for all the input! I certainly have a lot of experimentation on my hands. *In your opinions would an additive be helpful or more trouble than it’s worth?* I don’t care about frosting whatsoever as I do not color my candles—I just want good throws. I’m all stocked up on CD and ECO wicks. I also just got sample packs of Premiers, LX’s, HTP’s and CSN’s. With 464 I really struggled with CD’s so I’m just wondering where I should start wicking? I know it wicks UP a few—but I don’t know if there are some wick types that handle C3 better than others?

Thanks, I’ll try that! For a 13oz fill I did the first one at 6% FL— 0.74oz FO to 12.26oz (348g) wax The second was for a 12.5 oz fill at 8% FL— 0.97oz FO to 11.57oz (328g) wax. This was the grainy one. I can’t remember when I added the FO but I think it was around 160–maybe that was too low? I took a shot in the dark lol

Oud Wood (Tom Ford Dupe) Tobacco Vanille (Tom Ford Dupe) Issey Miyake (RE) Black Sea (CS) Oakmoss and Amber (CS) Woods + Earth (FC)—this one is love it or hate it.

I just got a 50lb box of C3 because I like to complicate my life 😂 I have a pretty good handle on 464 and now I’m realizing that it’s not applying here. I’ve checked the forum archives and found some interesting tips on ‘tempering’ C3 but when I tried it just came out grainy? I’m wondering if my wax didn’t properly bind to the FO? Or maybe I used too much FO? I tried a 6% FL in a wickless test candle —followed manufacturers instructions and got a big ol’ sinkhole in the middle. I even jacked up my thermostat to make sure the ambient temp was 73 and let it cool on a rack. Next one I added an 8% FL to a wickless test candle adding FO at a lower temp to avoid fuel smell (blood orange) and poured at a low temp—120ish. Granules everywhere—even after I used the heat gun they came back. What am I missing?

Aztec has the molasses syrup. It gets mixed reviews but I’m curious 😊

Hi—I’m new to the group and soap making. I’m waiting on a few books on CP from Amazon so that I can read up when I’m not studying the archives here. I’m starting to shop for supplies and safety gear and getting pumped to learn. 😊 I was looking at the premium molds from Nurture and I love that they have covers and liners. What’s a good size to start with? I thought I’d like bigger than the 2.5 but I’m not sure how much is too much for a beginner. I just didn’t want to keep upgrading—I’d rather grow into something than quickly out of it. I’m not worried about making somewhat of an investment and not liking CP. I usually dive in to new things that interest me. Any advice would be so appreciated! TIA

Basically anything like this. Burn safe and easily pourable. I would be fine with tin but I’d be open to other options.

I just got the samples I ordered From them when they were doing their post holiday FO sale. I ordered: FRANKINCENSE + MYRRH - 2 oz. PINK PEONY + NECTARINE - 2 oz. YUZU BLOSSOMS + HINOKI - 2 oz. PALO SANTO + SAGE - 2 oz. SAFFRON + TOBACCO - 2 oz. WHITE SANDALWOOD + SMOKE - 2 oz. LILAC + MIMOSA - 2 oz. CASHMERE + VANILLA - 2 oz. APPLE RIND + CINNAMON - 2 oz. BLACKBERRY + SAFFRON - 2 oz.*** ***They screwed up and gave me Rhubarb + Saffron instead of Blackberry + Saffron. I’m a little annoyed because I hate the smell of rhubarb with the fire of a thousand suns but I can’t be arsed to formally complain either. The only one I’ve put in my 464 wax is Frankincense + Myrrh at 8% and It’s still curing. CT is weaker than I would have liked but I suspect it’s something on my end. It still smells amazing and reminds me of my favorite throwback perfume (Gap OM). White Sandalwood + Smoke is literally the same thing as mixing at 50/50–CS’s Driftwood with Fireside. Cashmere + Vanilla and Saffron + Tobacco are extremely light OOB. I do like the modern florals that I got very much as well as the earthy Palo Santo and I’m excited to see how they behave in wax.

Does anyone have any leads on where I can purchase spouted candle containers of any material? Alibaba is not really an option at this time. There is such a growing market for this and it just baffles me that I can’t find anything.

Thank you Sarah—Math isn’t my strong suit lol. I guess I’m a little confused—like If I was making just a single test candle and I knew my container fill line was 8 oz. I would figure it like this 8 x 0.08 = 0.64 8 — 0.64 = 7.36 So I would measure out on my scale 0.64oz FO and measure out 7.36oz of wax from my melter. Combined they would give me 8oz. Is that right? Since I measure out everything I thought I was doing it by weight—am I still of the mark? 😬

Has anyone tried the Molasses? I don’t want to mess with another supplier but I’m looking for a good Molasses...

Thank you— I’ve never thought of melts! I suppose I’ll have to get a tart melter thingie 😊 I’ve decided to just do it the other way and see how it goes. I’m trying to factor the extra in... we’ll see lol. I swear I could completely complicate a free meal 🤦🏻‍♀️