jancita

I have sold on Etsy since March of this year. I also use Square for POS at shows or for folks who order directly from me and want to pay via card. I disconnected Etsy from Square after I did an online show that I couldn't even connect to my Etsy site and used Square to send invoices. Etsy charged me a listing fee for every item I sold, including items I've never even listed there. 😡 

So recently, I finally got around to putting all of my expenses and income into Quickbooks Self-employed. I was shocked at how much Etsy is taking from each sale! Good to know about the affiliate program, but I'm thinking of setting up shop on Shopify or another platform. For those of you who have a website, what do you use? 

After looking at my income and expenses, I am very discouraged overall. I know this wasn't the best year to start any kind of business. I didn't get to do an in-person show until the end of October so I was selling to people I know. I also had to invest in a lot of equipment and supplies that I still have in stock and of course make sure I had the very best fragrances by ordering some from just about everywhere. Still, I'm thinking I'll have to at least increase my prices or else I'm really doing this for free. I hope this gets better.

15 hours ago, TallTayl said:

https://www.northwoodcandlesupply.com/products/green-tobacco-premium-fragrance-oil?_pos=2&_sid=863098474&_ss=r

 

Or this one? 
https://www.northwoodcandlesupply.com/products/fragrance-creator-tobacco?_pos=1&_sid=863098474&_ss=r

 

have you smelled this one?  I am about to order a sample.

Thank you so much for this!

 I do have the tobacco, which is rather sweet, kind of like pipe tobacco, but not the green tobacco oil. I think that one would fit the bill. I also am pleased to see they have coconut apricot wax in stock, which I use for my luxe line.

11 minutes ago, NightLight said:

Also make sure you are spot on with pour temp. It can affect adhesion. I like to have fresh clean glass as well..

Is you work area temp controlled? If the temps fluctuate, or you keep candles somewhere that get cold, it will happen. If you are using 20 per cent coconut wax with 464 that’s way too much and could be the cause, reduce that to 10 or less with 464. That’s a very very soft candle with that wax. Different with c3 which is harder. 464 May not be able to stick because of that coconut wax load. Do not pour low temp with 464. Try a higher temp. If you pour at 120, 130 you will have adhesion problems.

 

This is very helpful info. I really appreciate it. My work area is temp controlled while I’m working but my husband likes to keep our 105 year old house colder on a regular basis. That could explain why I’m having this problem worse now that it’s getting colder. I understand what you are saying about 464 vs c3 and my coconut wax load. The only weird thing is that I get better results with the 464 than the c3. In other words, I have fewer candles that pull away from the sides. I know c3 needs to be poured hotter. I love that I almost always get beautiful smooth tops with c3 and perfect adhesion at first, but after a day or two, about half of them pull away from the sides. So frustrating. I’ll try some of your suggestions including reducing my coconut load. I’m about to run out of it anyway and can’t get any more any time soon due to supply problems, so I should cut down for that reason alone or just try pure soy for a while. Thanks again. 

On 11/6/2020 at 5:48 PM, NightLight said:

Yes you can adjust your wax with coconut wax. Do test candles and see. Try pouring hotter than you think, and cooler than you think. Work from there. Which soy are you using? Not all of them adhere nicely. Sorry my bad you’re not using paraffin. Sometimes it can be the type of glass you are using. For example I have a parasol formula adheres fab but when I put into little containers the adhesion is terrible, so had to change formula for those.

I am using GW464. I had switched to C3 when it first started happening, so I thought if I changed back, maybe the problem would be solved. Not so much. Most of my candles adhere fine, but at least 1 of 4 lately pulls away from the container partially after several days. 

40 minutes ago, birdcharm said:

What about adding a little bit of coconut oil to the mix ... would that have any benefit?

I haven’t done this because I’m already using 20% coconut wax, but maybe this will give me a different effect. Thank you!

13 hours ago, TallTayl said:

As long as it is not loudly rattling around nobody seems to care

 

i have tried heating jars, and can succeed with some apricot wax or some coconut but it really doesn’t seem worth the time. Many soy will just frost super ugly. 

Thanks so much, TallTayl. I know from being on this forum for a short time that you're a guru, so I appreciate the reassurance! ❤️

1 hour ago, franu61 said:

"it shrinks like a frightened turtle!"     (sorry, I couldn't help myself)   🤣

Kind of like Mitch McConnell. So sorry. Couldn’t help myself. But in all seriousness, so buyers accept this Shrinkage?

Please help. I have been selling beautiful soy/coconut combo candles for almost a year now, and have never had a problem with this, but lately my glass container candles have been very unreliable in terms of glass adhesion. I heat the glasses and heat the room to at least 70 degrees. They are beautiful at first with smooth tops and perfect glass adhesion, but then after 12 hours or so, some of them Shrink and pull away from the sides. I am using 80%soy and 20% coconut, which has always worked in the past. I have tried every tip about preventing this. Does anyone have any ideas why this is happening now, right before an in person show? 

I have very little experience with dyeing my soy candles. I made one light pink a while ago, which turned out beautiful but I’ve been trying to make a dark purple this Halloween that just keeps frosting no matter what I do. I’ve used c3 wax so I can pour at a higher temperature and tried both the wax tablet method and the liquid dye method. They look beautiful at first and then develop frost all over the top and sides. What am I doing wrong?

10 hours ago, bfroberts said:

I've never found a true tobacco scent.  I have searched and searched and never found anything close.  The closest I've been able to come is to blend a tobacco with a barn wood scent.  Not at all the same as actual tobacco, but fairly reminiscent of tobacco curing in a barn.

That sounds interesting. Where do you find a barn wood scent?

Recently switched from 464 to C-3 soy wax for my 80/20 blend with Coco 83. Was initially thrilled because I had no sinkholes or wet spots. Beautiful. I warm the jars and pour pretty cool.  The problem doesn’t happen until several days later when for many of the candles a good portion of the wax shrinks and separates from the glass. See photo. Very frustrating! Does anyone have advice?

I am trying to create a candle for a friend who grew up on a tobacco farm. He wants something that smells like tobacco with nothing else. I can’t seem to find a pure scent. Does anyone know of any? Sorry to ask this again, but I got no responses the first time. 

I have been looking for a pure curing tobacco scent. Those of you who have smelled this know it's not like most of the tobacco candle scents that are available. Most of those scents have vanilla or bourbon or bay leaf added, but I am looking for the pure smell of curing tobacco. Any suggestions anyone?

Thanks so much, Birdcharm 

This is the one I’m using. Birdcharm, could you tell me what small heat gun you use. I can only find the minis 

Is there any way to avoid this? I feel like once I use the heat gun, my smooth tops are over. Perhaps I am using too much heat, as you suggest, Birdcharm. I have thought they look like they have been overheated or cooked. 

I use a combination of mostly soy GW 464 mixed with coconut wax. I achieve mostly smooth first pours but always leave some extra scented wax in case I need to do a second pour. The problem I had recently with a batch of 12 oz straight sided libbey jars was lack of adhesion or wet spots, which I believe were caused by a cold room. I fixed these successfully with a heat gun, but the top is not to my usual standard. Mine usually look like the top image but whenever I hit them with a heat gun, they end up looking rough and uneven. Am I doing something wrong, or is this just part of the process?

Has anyone tried Brambleberry’s pumpkin spice?

I have tried probably twenty pumpkin spice/chai/name-your-pumpkin-dessert candle fragrance oils for my fall line. All left me wanting and questioning why pumpkin spice candle scents have to be so sweet and artificial smelling. I happened across a kitchen store today that had just gotten in a new shipment of the Nest Pumpkin Chai scented candle. Why, oh why, is Nest able to get this beautiful spicy, but not sweet fragrance oil. I already know the answer. They have the buying power to custom order, but why do none of the scents available to smaller candle makers believe that someone may want a less sweet option? One without vanilla and butter and graham cracker. Why just why do FO manufacturers do this to us?  Makes me want to make my own scents, but I don't know how. Sorry for the rant. 

I have been making candles for several years and starting selling them in 2020. In that time, I have collected 100s of sample fragrances from Candle Science, Northstar Country Candle, Candle Cocoon, Flaming Candles, Rustic Essentials, California Candles, Brambleberry, Wooden Wick and more. What does everyone do with all these 1 oz or less bottles of fragrance oils when you decide not to add them to your collection. Do you create one-off candles with these scents and try to sell them in person? Do you just pour them out and throw them away? Do you just keep them for reference? Is there an exchange where I can sell them (for a reduced price, of course) to others? I know I should have more self-control when buying this, but I don't, and I know some of you have expressed being in the same situation. What do you do?

On 7/11/2020 at 9:33 AM, kandlekrazy said:

a CO-OP is where you get pre-orders from people, mine was on another forum.  They prepay for the items and then when the items arrive the host has to break down, package and mail items out.  I think I did one here for clamshells once, and I've purchased on many.  Look under Co-Op Announcements here.

I've looked into Alibaba as well. The problem with Alibaba is that you most often have to order in increments of 1000, and not only can I not afford to buy this many of the same thing, I'd also have nowhere to store them. I have suggested a co-op on this forum so we could collectively buy interesting candle vessels from Alibaba and distribute them among the group. I didn't realize there were co-op announcements on here. Thanks for that info, Kandlekarazy. 

13 hours ago, TallTayl said:

Old school here, I use word, placing graphics in text boxes.  If complicated, or layered with clear graphics I make the image in PowerPoint and copy/paste into word. 

The text box worked like a charm. Thanks, TallTayl!

So I received the labels from Purelabels.com today, and they are beautiful. Exactly what I was looking for. However, the template available from their website in .doc and .pdf form is just horrible. I can't insert my logo properly for anything in word. What software programs do others use to create your labels? I use Onlinelabels and their Maestro design program for my other labels.

Has anyone used an Epson P700 for printing labels?

Thanks, BusyBee. These look great!