Jcandleattic

That's why this wax is so good for firestarters! It doesn't matter if the wax is all icky and gross, because you (or at least we) put them in the wood pile of a fire pit, and it doesn't matter. LOL (I don't sell my firestarters - they are all for personal use when we go camping or my hub goes hunting)

Your clay work is absolutely gorgeous!! Sooo talented...

I do the same as Chefmom - after thoroughly testing and making/keeping copious notes about them, I turn them into firestarters. Just melt the wax out of the jar into cupcake liners mixed with dryer lint, old leaves, twigs, etc, with a cut wick that is too small to add to a candle, and viola - instant firestarter! However, I don't have near as many failed testers now as I used too, but as Candybee said:

I did that like 2-3 times when I first started making candles (also my spigot leaked sometimes even when it was closed), so said to hell with it and got rid of the spigoted presto and now only use ones without. Luckily I never colored my wax in my presto, so I never had that misfortune! Thank goodness!!

I've compiled a list of all of the ideas so far. And am still thinking and will add as we go along... Anybody can add ideas. This will be ongoing. 1. Single Oil Soap 2. Holiday Inspired Soap 3. New Swirl Technique 4. New Recipe 5. Spa Inspired Salt Bar 6. Children’s Float Soap 7. Scent/Color Theme 8. Landscape theme 9. Mimic a painting theme 10. Create a unique scent blend 11. Make and Use Embed theme 12. M&P mixed with CP 13. Do a technique never done by you (HP if you only CP., CP if you only HP, etc)

Oh that's pretty! I love it!

I get mine from either Levine.com or Tartburners.com (they are the same thing, one is just a wholesale site and the other a retail site)

I haven't used the hybird wax, but I have used their pre-production pillar wax and I LOVE it for my pillars. It's a "no-fail" wax for most of my applications in pillars, and the HT is amazing. I've put my extra wax that is too much for the repours into tart molds and used in our burners, and they are great for this also.

I had to pull the candies out. Just like I was warned (after the fact) they bled very pretty - but very wrong for this application - green. So all around the beads is like an emerald green halo. :-/ Oh well, I pulled them off, planed the soap and will use little M&P droplets for the buttons. I think in my excitement, I used too many buttons one each "shirt" anyway. 3 was all I was planning for each one and got carried away. LOL

Only something I tried blending myself. It was okay but needed - IDK something to make it "pop" and I haven't found that magical ingredient/scent yet. I did Pumpkin Pie Spice (NG) mixed with a bit of Amish Harvest (Peak) and an Apple Cider (it was Aztec but don't remember the exact name)

Do you want a straight paraffin? Because 6006 is a parasoy blend and 4625 is a blended paraffin (blended with additives, but is still paraffin) If you want a straight paraffin, you could use 100% 4625 or go with a container wax (since 4625 is a pillar wax) and use 4786 or a blend of 4625 and 4786.

if you make soap, you ARE making antibacterial soap. Soap by it's very nature is antibacterial. Commercials and marketing just make it seem as if making that claim makes their soaps better. However, due to FDA regulations you cannot claim that your soap is anti anything...

An hourglass might be kind of hard, but I can try. I'm loving all of these ideas.

Found it. I think I will try this method (even though it kind of looks like a PITA) and try and do a lace pattern, embellishing with candy pearls. (start watching at about the 6:00 - 6:27 mark)

There is a soap that I have seen that looks like it's has painted bearded iris on it, but it's painted with soap. I'm trying to find that so I can look at it and try to figure out the technique. Maybe I'll just wing it and try it just going by memory... LOL I want the bars to not only be pretty and look good together, but I want them to be functional, without the end user to have to go through a lot of trouble to use them (aka - removing items from the soap, having rosebuds fall off and float in the water - things like that I'd like to avoid) I don't know. Maybe I'm asking for too much out of a bar of soap? LOL

Yes, pretty much. I might try a "painting" trick with M&P . I just don't know... I liked your suggestions, they were good, it's just figuring out how to get them to work is the kicker. Thank you,

Thanks Trappeur! I thought of lace - but couldnt' figure out how I'd attach it to the soap and how people would use the soap with lace on it. Maybe place the lace on the bar then put mica on that like a stencil? Something like that with silver mica? might be worth a try, but then I'd be worried about rubbing it off with handling. I thought of doing piping also, but once the bar is cut, getting the rosette piping to stick to the bar would be tricky... Again with the handling of the bars. In theory the making the bar and using these techniques are a good idea, it's the execution and the follow-up handling of the bar that has me perplexed. LOL

I've been proud of myself lately. My main motivator & driver for trying new suppliers or ordering more scents is because there is a scent I've never smelled, or it's new and exciting, so even though I do still order new FO's, it's nowhere near the volume I used too. I've started becoming a true mad scientist and have started mixing my scents to create something truly unique and new. I love it! Scent blending is soooo much fun, and when you get it right - man is that a great feeling. (and smell!) Sometimes when you *think* you got it wrong, the end result in product can surprise you. (That's happened a few times too) And then there are the times you take a whiff of your creation and think "oh dear, what in the world was I thinking" and the combo quickly gets the axe. LOL

To couple a soap with my "Sharp Dressed Man" soap, I would like to do some sort of white "dress" type soap, or even have it vaguely resemble a wedding dress. (It's been suggested several times since showing off my tuxedo soap - I just have no idea where to start) I have the beads, and I know it should be white, but other than that, I'm stumped as to how it should actually look. Like what type of embellishments on the face of the soap itself. Does anyone have any suggestions? TIA

Again, thank you everyone. Now I am in the planning/thinking stages of how to do a lacy one for a "wedding dress" type soap to pair them up. I am coming up blank. :-/ Any suggestions?

HOw about "Night at the Casbah" then? Belly Dancer Egyptian Vacation Pyramid Nights Gypsy Queen I don't know. I'm never good at these things...

Oi - I should have done this research myself. You have no idea how appreciative I am of you linking me these threads. Thank you! This will help tremendously. This is what I get for thinking testing these would be "easy" LMAO Thank you!

Thanks Candy - I remember the thread! I just forgot to look for it. I'll check it out. TallTayl, I twisted the flat-braid but the others were already primed by the supplier (might be another reason for them not burning right - didn't think of that until just now) I will try that again. I really don't want to go into yet another wick I don't have, but as we all know, using what I have available, might not work. *sigh* Thanks everyone...

UGH I swear wicking these palm pillars is going to be the reason I am bald by the time I'm 50! LOL I have tried several sizes of each - flat braid, CSN, CD, CDN, & zinc. It's driving me crazy and I'm just venting. Most tunnel and then the one size up will blow out. Grrrrrr. I just don't get it. Pillars are usually my specialty. LOL I can normally get them wicked correctly in 1-2 tries (of course that's with paraffin - which for the most part is easy) but still... Back to the drawing board when I get home from work...

If they are bad, you will know it. Your nose will tell you. Just like ChrisR, I have some FO's that are 10-15+ years old and they still smell as good as the day I got them. Most will be fine, but I have had to throw others out just after 2 years. So, it just depends I think. Let your nose be your guide. I know for me, however, I will only use FO's that are 2 years or less for anything B&B - but for candles, if they still smell good OOB, I will still use them.