Lovejoy444

@Lizzy, is the Pro Blend 600 more on the white side since it has more soy? I really dislike the semi-opaque yellowness of the soy-paraffin blends I've tried so far. I just think they're ugly. LOL I really love the creamy white of the cocosoy, and would love to get it to work for me.

@Karen Ov, I'm so sorry that I forgot to mention, there are no wicks yet. I'm just pouring jars of wax for later wickless testing. I thought I mentioned that in my original post. Oops. 🙃

@BusyBee, a lot of makers and suppliers say fugly tops after burning is normal with soy--not guaranteed to happen, just within the realm of normal. Even CandleScience says that in their troubleshooting guide on soy wax. I'm very glad that you've been able to find a solution, though! The first batch of 6 candles that I made never had any problems with fugly tops after either curing or burning, but then my second batch did. And subsequent... 🙄 So... I dunno. LOL And I'm sorry I forgot to mention how hot I heat the wax: yes, 185. Thank you so much for the tips on stirring and pour temp. I will definitely be adding your ideas to my lengthy list of things to try! 🤪

@AdeleWilk79, you should probably start a separate thread with your specific glitter question so that people will see what the topic is. Sorry, I don't know much about glitter in candles other than it's generally not recommended. Fine glitter can clog the wick (get drawn up into the wick along with the wax) and cause the candle not to burn well or to extinguish itself from lack of fuel. Also, most glitter is made from plastic materials that gives off toxic fumes when burned. You could probably get away with applying glitter to the outside of a pillar candle, though. Anyway, that's my two cents. But again, starting a new thread with your glitter question will probably yield better results. You can also do a search to see if this question has already been answered.

@Lizzy what wax do you use now? I have read that parasoy tends to have more wet spots, so maybe that's just unavoidable when using 6006? As far as a too-tight wick causing the crack, I'm not even using wicks yet! lmao I'm just trying to get a decent pour & cure so I can do wickless wick testing. Most of what I"m seeing says this particular circular crack is that the candle is cooling unevenly, so I have to work that out... somehow... *sigh*

My test candles KEEP cracking in a circle around the wicks. The very first batch of candles I ever made about 6 weeks ago were BEAUTIFUL. But EVERY candle I've made since then (for wick testing) gets that damned crack around the wick. I'm pulling my hair out. Everything I've found during research says air bubbles in the melted wax or cooling too fast or both. If there are air bubbles in my melted wax, they're microscopic, cuz I see NOTHING. I stir gently. I tap the pitcher before pouring to release any invisible bubbles, then I tap the vessel after pouring for the same invisible bubbles. I pour slooooowly so as not to create bubbles. I've tried heated containers, unheated containers, foil around the vessel, no foil. I've poured at 170 degrees (CandleScience recommendation), 165, 160, 155, 150. (Tomorrow I'm gonna try 145 and 140, a Flaming Candle recommendation.) I've cooled them on a wire rack (which CS recommended on their troubleshooting page). I've cooled them on a wooden cutting board. I've cooled them in my kitchen where there *might* be a draft or two just from people walking past, but I've also cooled them in the spare bedroom with the door closed and a Sterilite container inverted overtop of them. I've used a heat gun to melt the top 1/8" or so. The temperature in my house is a constant 73 degrees while I'm doing all this. And STILL cracks. That first flawless batch was 100% GW 454 soy coconut wax. The second batch, when the crack started to appear, was also 454, and one of those candles cured with a fugly top. Since I also didn't like the fugly tops after soy candles burn, I decided to add a bit of parasoy. So now, my personal wax blend is 80% GW 454 and 20% parasoy (Blended Waxes brand BW 910). No more fugly tops now, just, ya know, that fucking crack. 🤬 So, if anyone has any advice at all, I'd welcome it. Cuz I'm fresh out of ideas beyond just continuing to try cooler and cooler pour temps--and eventually, I'm gonna reach a temp that's not pourable. LOL I can't be a chandler if I can't get decent candles. How can I be so deficient at this? I've made nearly a dozen candles (one at a time) over the last week, trying one thing and another, and they crack every single time. Thanks in advance for any help you guys can offer. ❤️

I am almost two years late to this party, but for anyone checking this thread from here on out, I wanted to second what lovelyscents said. Higher wattage warmers will blow through the FO faster than a lower watt warmer. My tabletop warmer that uses a round 20w bulb kills wax melts much quicker than the plug-in warmer I used to have that used a small 15w bulb. There are a million other things that affect scent, too, but consumers' individual wax warmers can have a big impact on the performance of otherwise identical melts, which may be a good reason to test your melts in both higher and lower wattage warmers. You can then offer up a range (e.g. 8-20 hrs) for the life span of the melt instead of a flat number, as well as educate consumers on the science of wax melt life span--and that poor performance isn't necessarily the fault of the creator! LOL

I'm so sorry I can't read, TallTayl. 🤣 I don't know why I didn't notice that that crazy prize was for the UL document, not the ASTM. 🙄

I'm an utter noob to candle making, and have been wondering about the ASTM standards. I was actually surprised to find that this set of safety standards we're encouraged (by the courts!) to abide by in order to CYA in case of litigation are... secret???... behind a pay wall??? WTF? I don't understand this at all. Why are the safety standards of the industry hidden from those who need to know and follow them? Am I just naive...? I was confused by your price quote of $716-$1567, TallTayl. To buy ASTM F2417-17 from the ASTM site itself was $54. This obviously did not include any updates done subsequent to 2017. What is included in the very expensive document you referenced? Sorry I don't have any input for you guys, but thank you for starting this thread. 😃 Laurie

Sorry, I'm not an Etsy seller either (yet... it's in the works), but as a buyer, I've got thoughts. 😃 I DO pay attention to shipping costs cuz some folks charge way beyond what is reasonable. Like you (the OP), I also take into account the TOTAL cost to me as a buyer, so all things being equal, I'm most likely to buy the thing that costs me the least overall (price + shipping)--given that the cheaper shop has good reviews. And yet... you can't discount the psychological impact of seeing "FREE SHIPPING!" Just because *I* don't fall prey to the free shipping marketing tactic doesn't mean it's not a good tactic. LOL As far as the $35-free-shipping thing, it might be a corporate gimmick on Etsy's part (and yes, you'll have to raise your base prices a bit to cover the cost of "free" shipping) but if someone has $31 worth of merchandise in their cart, they have two options at that point: stick with that $31 and pay the shipping, OR buy another item to bump them over 35 and NOT pay shipping. If they choose the second option, you stand to make a bit more profit. The trick here is to convince them that adding another item to their cart to trigger the free shipping isn't just a meaningless impulse purchase, but is value-added in some way. You're never gonna be able to properly trigger all the different shopping mentalities people have with one pricing/shipping strategy, so just do what feels most sensible to you--and tweak as you gain experience and data points. I feel like in 2022 (or whenever anyone in the future reads this!), consumers are pretty savvy about the pros and cons of free shipping. The seller/business isn't gonna screw themselves, they're not being altruistic, and people know this. As usual, TallTayl has very good advice. And yes, Etsy will be taking their cut. (Something to keep in mind as you build your business is to consider maintaining your Etsy shop, but also have your own web site later on. You can use your Etsy shop to drive traffic to your main site, selling in both places.) Good luck!