LilFirecracker

BINGO!! Thank you, Belinda!! I never thought to try putting it in the freezer for a while! I was so ready to dig into it I wouldn't have wanted to wait either lol. But I'll definitely try that with the other half of the slab. It's a beautiful wax, and I'm so happy I didn't have dips in my cups. That was the one thing I was worried about. I usually like to wait a day or 2 after pouring before I start testing but impatient me couldn't wait. I started with my first tester straight and it's been going strong now for over 12 hours. I also mixed it 75/25 and 50/50 with 4630 and 4633 to see if I can gain anything from it or if it makes a difference either way. They all pop out easy. Now I want the throw to beat all throws!!! LOL don't we all!!! Thanks again for the freezer idea!

Thank you! 😃

What happened to the edit option for posts? I wanted to go back and correct the part where I said it took one more round of squeezing to get it out of the cup than the other waxes. But I just popped another out and I didn't even finish squeezing the sides before it just fell right into my hand. I guess they weren't completely cooled when I tried last night. I'm very impatient! ETA: Well the edit button showed up for this post. But it's still not showing for the other one. Is there a time limit for editing? I can't get rid of my laugh/cry emoji either...it just follows me. I can't erase it!!! 😂

I finally received the last wax I'm gonna test (yeah, right!) yesterday. Last night I went to work making melts in the portion cups. I did some straight and then 7 other combos with it. I was very surprised I didn't have a dip in the center since it's not a one-pour wax. It's just ever so slightly concave, but if you're not looking for it you won't see it. Comes out of the cup clean - takes one more round of squeezing than the others. I haven't tested any for throw yet, but I have a feeling it'll do great because it gave me such a hard time busting it up. Too hard to cut with a knife, almost too soft to bust up with a hammer. Tried the electric car ing knife - I would've been at it for hours. I brought it outside and tried busting it at so many angles against the concrete until I finally had it in enough pieces so it would fit in the Presto. Here's a few that I made straight!

Thank you! That's my goal is to try to stand out... especially living in the middle of nowhere! My things will be unique like ME!😃

I want a little better than handwriting because mine sucks!! With the exception of my business name logo I've been working on. I had my 12 year old niece over the other day and she gave me some ideas along with what I already had in mind. What I wanted, you can't find in regular fonts. This is roughly what I've come up with so far. I know it's a little crooked but this was just freehand...

@CandybeeThank you so much! You've given me some great options! Like I said before, I'm all over the place with ideas that keep popping into my head. My brain's filing system malfunctioned a couple of months ago from overload. In desperate need of a back-up system! 🤣

When making your melts geared toward sales, do you try to formulate yours to work in ALL warmers? Like the low-heat Scentsy ones that a lot of people have? I actually found a 2pc warmer at Wal-Mart that doesn't heat up much when I was expecting it to get pretty hot. I was going to return it until I realized that it's just about the same as the Scentsy warmer so I can use it to test. It still throws, yet I can pick up the dish and stick my finger in the wax like they say you can with theirs lol. Don't laugh but when I get bored I'm now obsessed with covering my fingers in the wax then peeling it off when cooled, which takes all of 10 seconds! I do make sure the one that's in there at the time is a skin-safe scent first!🤣 Anyway...I got off topic a little. I've been trying to get my combos with as low of a melt point as possible. I know averaging the 2 doesn't give you a true MP, but it's close enough of a guess I assume. A couple of my best combos are 130 and above. So I'm not sure which way to go with it. I do have a couple of people with a bunch of Scentsy warmers testing for me. I just sent one lady a mixture of low and higher MP testers. I have the testers coded so she won't know which is which. So do you try to go for the lowest MP while not compromising throw?

A PLAIN FLAT LID!!! Man I've been wanting to find lids like this for the 2oz cups!! I'm glad you show me these so I can check out the price. I was looking for something a little nicer to hold the larger amount of melts, but this will work if the price is right!

That's good to know in case I ever decide to go waterproof! I didn't realize that. I wish I could just go black and white, but the side of me that wants to stand out just won't let me! I will have color, but I'm thinking of just going with inkjet in the beginning. Then if the business takes off I might invest in a laser printer later. Sounds like a good compromise! 😃

Thank you all for your input! Doesn't make my decision any easier LOL, but at least I know that either one could work for my needs!

Thanks so much! That gives me a little hope that it might work for one of my options. My brain has been working overtime lately and I'm on idea overload while sitting idle testing, testing, TESTING! 😃

Just wondering which do you use and how cost effective is one over the other? It's not set in stone yet, but I might have a lot of black on my labels...not sure which route I should go.

Basically what I'm trying to find out is if the PET jars will hold up with wax melts since some of the clamshells are made out of PET. I really don't know how the clamshells really hold up though, so I'm clueless when it comes to the PET jars. Can't find Polypro jars anywhere ☹️

LOL yeah storage is a problem for me right now no matter what I decide to use. We need a new shed really bad so I can clear out the spare rooms and stop having to use them as storage sheds lol. Actually I'd really love to have my own little portable building as a shop, but financially that'll never happen at least in the foreseeable future. It would be so nice though!!❤️

That's what I'm leaning towards. It'll match the portion cups. I'm just hoping they don't look too "cheap." That's what I'm afraid of with my mini-melts. Technically it'll be a lot cheaper cost-wise, but I don't want them to look the part lol. I still have time before I get to where I'm happy and ready to sell, so between now and then I'm sure I'll decide on something! I'm just so in my element when I'm working on my melts, it makes me all giddy talking about it. I've always wanted to start my candle business back up that I began 20 years ago. But I'm not even thinking about candles now. It's the melts I'm so passionate about. So I guess as long as I'm working with wax and FO on some level, I'm at my happiest! 😃

I thought about doing the snap bar molds and things like that, but I keep going back to the bag problem. I wanna steer away from bags even though the PP zip top bags were my initial choice with my mini-melts. Still looking for a cheap container alternative. I love the tins with the clear window lid, but I'd like to go for something less costly. I'm actually thinking about the bigger cups with lids made like the 2oz portion cups to start out then maybe graduate to the tins later. Idk... So many ideas running thru my head I'm on overload!!!

Hi everyone! I read that years ago IGI used to send you samples of their wax if you'd call to request one. Has anyone tried that recently? Just wondering if they would still do that. I want to try 4627 in my combos for melts before I make a final decision, but I can't make myself buy 23lbs when all I need is a couple of lbs to test. Hope to hear from someone who has tried recently...TIA!!!

I've been looking at different ideas for packaging my mini-melts when I'm ready to start selling. I've been back and forth with poly bags, round or square tins with the clear window lid, and jars. I'd love to do glass, but that can start getting expensive and I'm trying to keep packaging costs as low as possible. People around here don't really care how nice the packaging is. The majority aren't willing to pay the extra - they just want their goodies. Anyway....plastic jars. Most that I find are PET. I've only found a handful made from PP and not even in the sizes I would need. I know that most clamshells are made from PET or PVC. In your opinion, how do you think wax melts would fare being sold and stored in PET jars? Has anyone tried it? I just keep thinking that if PET clamshells can hold up, these should too. But I also wonder how long the PET clamshells last before they do start slowly breaking down from the FO in the wax - if they do break down at all. Help!! I'm driving myself nuts over this packaging thing that's still a little ways away. I always like to plan and be prepared way ahead of time. One of those little OCD things with me.... 🤣

LOL great way to expel a little bit of frustration with that stabbing!😂 Right now I'm having a bit of trouble with the hundred combos I'm testing. I have a couple that'll slide right out of my little plug-in warmer with no effort at all. I have a 25 watt bulb warmer that barely melts the wax no matter how low the melt point is, but they'll slide right out of that dish (metal.) I have another 25 watt ceramic bulb warmer, but it's a square one and the throw isn't all that great in that one either. I'm tempted to put a 40 watt in it. The only one I love is my 2pc electric plate warmer from Wal-Mart so I'll probably go invest in another one for testing.

I've read a lot of great things about 4786 being used in candles and it seems as though it has a wonderful hot throw. But those topics are buried deep in this forum - mostly back to the mid to late 2000s. I see it as "the forgotten wax," mainly because it's a 2-pour. Has anyone used it for melts alone or blended with another wax? I'm definitely gonna order a slab and test it, but I wanted to also hear from anyone who has tried it. Sounds like it was the go-to wax back in the day before 4627, 4630, & the J waxes came along. What about 4826? Lone Star sells it as a tart wax, but it has a MP of 140 so they really don't push it as a tart wax - they push 4794 when someone asks what to use for tarts/melts. Has anyone ever tried it? 140 is high to use alone, but I use 4625 with container waxes and it's a 142MP. Just wondering if it would be worth testing as my pillar/votive part of the mix, or should I not even bother with testing it? Thanks to everyone for your input! Your opinions and knowledge has helped so many, and in so many ways. I hope soon that I'll be able to be one to give advice on here along with everyone else! ❤️

You and me both! That's the first thing is test for is consistency and release. I test in both clamshells and my mini-melts in a silicone mold. They have to stay firm when squeezed between my fingers. I'm loving 4625 for keeping things firm!

Since I've been trying to go for a lower MP combo to work in the lower wattage warmers, I don't think I'll have a problem with them hardening too much in the dish. Trying to find that happy medium between having to pop it out with a spoon or knife and having to scoop it out like a thick peanut butter 🤣 I'm finally gonna be putting that Dragon's Blood in wax today.... I can't wait!!!! ❤️

LOL!! That's easy to do when I get on that subject with that naughty "S" word 🤣 Your reply to my other post is what made me start thinking about this subject and it's importance in the finished product. I'm getting some killer scent throws right now, but these are the ones that take a little coaxing to get them out. There's still a chance one or 2 might end up popping out by the time I'm finished. I'm having absolutely no trouble with them sliding right out of the clams... Score!! 😃

Ok question: What exactly does "pop right out" entail? Are we talking flip it and it just falls out? Push with your fingers and it slides out? Or take a spoon or knife and push it into the edge and pop it out that way? I know this seems a little trivial, but it's important to me.