Candybee

Belinda thanks for the generous offer. But I have moved on to CS pumpkin souffle. I just thought those that want a super spicy pumpkin pie should know about this one. It is really spicey. So much so I would cut back on my %.

Same here. I tried their oils years ago and some worked great while others not so much. Its pretty much the same as other suppliers. I did like their pumpkin pie spice but it was just a bit too spicey for my taste. I have since moved on to CS pumpkin souffle and pumpkin pie which I like much better. I do remember they also have a really good Nana's Apple Butter. Not sure if they still have it? Its another super spicy apple blend. Almost toxically spicy if you kwim. LOL Found it-- its on page 1 of their FO listing. Look for apple butter. It's really Nana's Old Fashioned Apple Butter. I would use this at 3-5% its that strong.

You know I won't be able to resist trying out some sample FOs when I go to buy their colors. LOL I have been eyeing the golden embargo for a while now.

The old forum had a listing of member website. It was badly out of date so is probably a good thing its gone. A new one is a great idea.

I'm glad you decided not to let her do your show. She obviously was only thinking of making money for herself and either did not realize she was screwing you or didn't care. Either way it shows her true colors. You now know more about her. Something to ponder...

I don't have any myrrh but that is one blend I want to try sometime. The vanilla sounds good. My EOs are dwindling. I have some cedar, sage, peppermint, eucalyptus, tangerine, black pepper, amyris, and rosemary left. Any idea if any of these might work with it? How is frank by itself? Can it stand alone or does it need to be blended? I also have an old FO of White Pepper and Clove that smells awesome, peppery and spicey. Would frank work with that?

Sounds like a good trick. I will try it. Thanks!

I make all milk soaps and never bother to force gel. If it gels or doesn't gel I just let it do its thing. The recipes I am thinking of are harder soaps using coconut milk so I don't want them to gel anyway. I like the idea of using a bit of mineral oil in the mold. Maybe I could put some on a cloth or paper towel and gently rub it on the inside of the mold and see if that works. The tip about the stearic gives me an idea. I think I may try making my shaving soaps using my little round molds. Maybe the honeybee molds I have. Those would look so awesome! They have a lot of stearic in the recipe. Will have to try it out and see if it works. Hmmm.... I generally use a little KOH mixed in with the NaOH so the soap may not work in the molds cause its really soft for many days.

I have a couple of those and a couple of the dragonfly. They are my favorite molds! Have you used the dragonfly mold? It makes the prettiest soaps.

Good to know! I was gonna buy the white glitter anyway when I get the chance and try a few others. do you have any particular favorites? BTW-- does anyone know where to find a really good lime color? I've been blending it myself. I have been using the neon yellow and green rainbow from NS before they changed their micas. I got the most fabulous bright lime with it. Also, has anyone tried the kiwi lime (not sure thats the name) from Tradewinds Select Shades? I never got around to trying their colors but they got great reviews. Now that the owners are selling the biz I wonder what will happen to the SS colors?

Try asking in the tart, wickless section. I think some still make them but think they may not be as popular as they used to be. I could be wrong.

I have chopsticks, bamboo skewers, and old wooden cooking spoons all dedicated to my candlemaking. I keep them all in an old plastic cup as my candle "utensil" holder cup. I don't think I bought any of them and they sure come in handy. Everything wipes clean with paper towels. Or if it doesn't, I heat gun it until the wax starts to melt off then wipe clean with a paper towel.

I used to know a flagmaker who used Disney and sports teams logos and images; characters. She would painstakingly secure permissions for each image before she would use them. She said it could take months. Don't know if that has changed. I believe there are fees involved too.

Oh thank you! You all gave me some great ideas.

I've been hearing good reviews on the Mad Oils micas. They have some nice looking glitters too. I think they have my favorite, a white glitter that shimmers every color. Not sure but that's what it looks like on the website.

I want to try this in CP soap. Anyone have any blend suggestions or do you use it by itself? Also, does it A&D?

Does anyone use the Milky Way molds for their CP? I have a bunch from my M&P days just sitting around collecting dust. I did try once and the soap stuck in the design details on the mold. If you do use them what kind of recipes work best for demolding? Also, I have some of the heavy duty plastic molds like the cherry blossom and dragonfly molds I would love to use for my CP. Does anyone use these type of molds?

NS has the POP colors in their Vibrance collection. Only they are much better formulated now. I know because when I ran out of my POPs I started buying them from NS because they took them and reformulated them to the rainbow micas collection. Now the rainbow collection is the vibrance collection. They are the same colors as the old POP from TKB.

Oh! I LOVE that pink. Gorgeous!

I've been blending waxes for years and never heard of heating to 200 degrees for them to "bind". There is one reason to heat to 200. That would be if you are doing a repour and the original pour was heated at 190. Then your repour would be to heat to 200. Thats for the repour layer to bind to the first layer. Not for the 2 waxes to bind in your melting pot. Lets look at your waxes first. The 4786 is a low MP container paraffin. Instructions for heating I found are to heat to 180 degrees. Its a 2 pour wax so needs to be topped off with a second pour. Your other wax is a parasoy container blend with an even lower MP. Instructions say to heat to 200. That sounds a little high to me I wouldn't go above 185-195 degrees but thats me. If it were me I would heat them together in your melting pot up to a heating temp of 185-195 degrees F as your starting point. Add your FO and dye and blend them. Pour about 165-175 as your starting point. By starting point I mean you need to experiment with it and see for yourself what is your best heating and pouring range. But that should get you started. Also, be aware that you may still have to check for air pockets or possible do a repour to level the container since the 4786 is a repour wax. Blending the 2 waxes may create air pockets thats why I suggest checking a few candles to be sure its solid wax with no air pockets especially around the wick. You may not have them but again you may and it would be on your larger containers say 16oz or more. Small jars like jelly jars should be no problem. Hope that helps you out.

I have always used an old wooden spoon. I think a whisk would incorporate too many bubbles into the wax? Thats why I never tried using one. I learned getting bubbles out of my wax, particularly in my paraffin pillars, was a chore. I still use skewers but just for poking relief holes.

Looks overwicked to me. I would try wicking down. From the picture it looks like too much flame, heat, and melt pool.

I don't mind using FOs. I do in a lot of my soaps. I especially love using a FO that I can spark up by adding an EO or two. Lime type FOs work really well that way, Ginger Lime, Coconut Lime, etc. I just add a little bit of lime EO to it to make it pop. I am still thinking of going with ginger lime with a dash of lime EO added for my shave soap. When I start making my shaving soap again I will try it out and see if I like before I explore the citrus blend again. I think EBB or AH has a lime cilantro FO? I know I saw it somewhere. I may give that a try too. Thanks for the ideas. Its a lot to ponder.

Welcome to the board! Love your moniker. I love Nurture micas too. When they duped the POP color micas from TKB I started buying from them and have absolutely loved every color I bought so far. Only problem I had was with the raspberry rainbow. The color was wonderful but it eventually bled. They no longer carry the rainbows but now have the vibrance line. So I am not sure if the raspberry was dropped or reformulated as a new vibrance color. I hope it was and doesn't bleed anymore. My favorite was neon yellow but not sure which one that is now? Same with the raspberry rainbow.

Who are you kidding? You know you want it! LOL