Sally

I looked at the SOS $1 sale yesterday :drool: is all I can say. Good thing I'm broke Blowing bubbles with my 3yo daughter to make up for it. Sally.

ISO Armani Mania type FO...any one know if I can get this anywhere, also need it shipped to UK. Have been asked to make a set of candles in this & I'd like to oblige. TIA. Sally. Found it on Save on Scents.

Lovely bottoms wish I could get mine that smooth. Sally.

Your candles are always so beautiful Eugenia, what wax (es) do you use? Sally.

Thanks butterfinger these look like fun.

:highfive: me too. Sally.

PLEASE stop this I've just discovered aroma beads now diy car fresheners. I come here to learn more about candle making & keep going away thinking oo I want to try that too! Still it's great to be inspired so a BIG thank you to all for your inspiration. I don't have enough hours in my days to do lots of things I want to but I can always add these ideas to my expansion list! Sally.

What are these aroma beads, I'm not sure if I've seen them here in Scotland. But then I only discovered soy wax a few months ago! Sally?

Thanks Stacie, I've got my notes, & little stickers on the bottom of my candles with the date made etc on them so I'll be able to compare fresh to more cured candles in the future. I'm hoping they won't stay on the shelf so long that they go "off" once they're up for sale, & I'm thinking of making a "light" range too. I had someone test a patchouli 4oz tin for me & loved that it wasn't too heavy on the scent, just a thought tho its early days yet & the ideas are always evolving. Sally.

I do mine in the bottom of a heavy based pan & swirl them around a bit, over the heat. It works really well the only problem is my kitchen seems to slope this way & that so I often find the perfect bottom isn't level at all. Trying to correct it usually ends up making the bottom wonky so short of ripping out the kitchen & levelling new fittings(which the landlady won't approve) I'm a bit stuck. When I get my work room set up it'll be perfectly even all over!..Or that's the plan anyway....smooth bottoms ahhhh but I won't go there! Sally.

Hi Stacie, Hope I'm not veering off thread with this question but it is connected to the previous posts. Bearing in mind that EO's do take longer to cure than FO's, what is the maximum time you cure your EO candles for, also taking into account the shelf life of the EO itself? Hope you or anyone else practised in the art of EO's in soy can help. Sally.

The candles I've made with EO's are about a month old now & definately maturing nicely (even if the pillars aren't burning right yet) lol. Those in tins have worked much better as the melt pool is bigger. I agree the throw is lighter...I think fresher is another way to describe it & that's what some people are looking for. Increasing the EO %would make the throw stronger but as EO's do have therapeutic properties & affect us differently to FO's I'm wary of overdoing it..I'm not an aromatherapist but I really want to produce good quality soy candles with EO's so I'm keeping at it. I've made some tarts with EO's & found them to work well, it takes away the wicking issues too. Sally.

Wow, I've never made that type of moulded candle but I'd have a go if I could get hold of some of the fairies & angels. Quality like that can command the prices they charge no problem. Sally.

Firstly welcome, i'm quite new here myself but I've found if you ask your questions in the right way you'll get some help, by that I mean don't think you'll be given the answers if you haven't done some ground work yourself. Secondly so much of candle making is trial & error, some things work for some people but not for everyone, you need to try things out & keep lots of notes & do lots of testing. I originally wanted to use only EO's with my soy but have decided not to limit myself that way & am testing both EO's & FO's. I can't recommend any particular wax, I only have experience with 2 varieties here in Scotland & it's still too early for me to know which I'll be using. Also shipping costs may have a big influence on the waxes you choose to try as they can often double your costs. One thing I have found is that EO's take a lot longer to cure & you're unlikely to get a GREAT throw with all EOs but if you have the patience to wait & are prepared to experiment a lot you'll eventually find some that work for you. The quality of whatever oil you use whether it be EO or FO is important to your end result so try to get the best you can. Finally check out the archives, there is so much information here I learn something every time I look for some help. And one last thing ...buy sample sizes of whatever you want to try that way you'll not be left with lots of stuff you don't want to use. Have fun. Sally.

Fab pics , am testing out wicks in Ecosoya PB myself & your pics are a great help. Thanks for posting. Sally.

It could be a supplier label thing but as I don't have any CD's I can't compare. The multi purpose wicks I have are unbleached cotton whereas the Eco's are bleached, there is a slight difference in the actual colour of the wick but not much. With the Eco's there's a larger range of wick sizes so I'm going to try one of them today as I tried the smaller multi purpose (10) & thought that was too small. Am currently testing another pillar with same size wick but different FO & yet another with an Eco 6 & different FO....running around from room to room taking notes as I go....the kids think I'm nuts! But they should know that by now! Sally.

Lovely looking layers, did it take long to make? Sally.

You need to change your name to Eugenius...you certainly are one. Sally.

MMMM LOVELY Something else for me to try. I've never seen these on sale in Scotland so maybe I should give them a go.....when I can afford it! Patience is a virtue that goes right out the window when I come on here & see so many wonderful things I want to try out. MUST NOT LOOK IN CLASSIFIEDS DO NOT LOOK IN CO-OPS Sally

OOOOOOOOOOO Totally awe inspiring. Sally

Beautiful candles! Bet they smell wonderful. Howabout English Country Garden... the colours remind me of my gran's garden when I was little (I grew up in England, live in Scotland now). Sally.

Love pic in post #10, clear & uncluttered, shows off your gorgeous candles perfectly. Something to aspire to when I do get a digital camera myself. Thank you for sharing your work with us. Sally.

Well now the rush to get your candle made in time is over you can get it finished & have the chance to test it out at a more relaxed pace. In my experience whenever I've tried rushing a candle something always goes wrong. Hope you enjoyed the wedding anyway. Sally.

Initially flame size was perfect, less than an inch high & stable & the candle seemed to be burning really nicely, however as I said todays burn was totally different. I'm going to wick down a size tomorrow & if that doesn't work I'll try again with the Eco's. The current wick is a multi purpose unbleached cotton with paper filament no.12 from a UK supplier so not commonly used in the US I think. I'm going to get some LX's & RD's soon as I can & confuse myself even more! Thanks for your help.

Thanks Tops, I gave my pillar a second burn today....first burn was good it behaved similar to the HTP 1212, however todays burn was something else! It started out fine then an hour in a small hole burned through the shell & the mp ran away into the holder. The wick had no hope after that & just tunnelled down til I decided to blow it out. Could this 2nd burn performance be due to an air pocket that I've missed in the repours? I couldn't see any evidence of one but I'll know tomorrow when I melt it down, repour & try a different wick. Or maybe the aliens have found Scotland, I'll have to make myself a foil hat!