Tizimarezie

Mal's ecommerce is also free and works well with PayPal.

I got my order today, too!

I'm thrilled with how the Plumberry and Day At The Spa smell OOB

....such fresh, unique scents!

BUT (and I hate to be a 'downer' because I'm usually always impressed with CS FO's).... I'm disappointed with the Pumpkin Pie OOB. To me, it doesn't match up to their decscription. I smell some spices muted down with something but can't put my finger on what that something is. I don't smell pumpkin at all. Maybe it'll be different once I make a candle with it. Same with Peanut Butter Cookies. I don't smell any peanut butter OOB. I'll have to pour that one, too.

I've smelled three other Pumpkin Pie FO's that I prefer over this one OOB. But Flicker's Fragrances doesn't exist anymore. BCN is nice with a nice balance of pumpkin and spice, though I was hoping for one with some whipped cream thrown in. Peaks is a nice blend of spice and pumpkin with a good amount of whipped cream OOB but doesn't give me a good throw. I was hoping that CS could beat these.

I'm eyeballing that Pumpkin Pie by CS, too

I got the email, too. It shook me up because I purchase my wax from them and LOVE it. David let me know, however, that JBN carries the same wax. Whew! I sure hope JBN is stable!

Prairieannie wrote:

You can double or triple the Dr. Bronners. I'd at least double it. The veggie glycerin is great at that measurement.

Thank you! I'm excited to have these measurements! I'll be making soap this week and will let you know how it turns out. Thanks again, P!

I'm not fond of the lack of bubbles in SFIC base but I went back to using it because I really like how it feels on my skin. My daughters do, too. Other bases I've used contain chemicals and no matter what I add to make it feel good on the skin, it just doesn't make my skin feel silky smooth like the SFIC. For instance, I absolutely loved the bubbles I got from a base I bought that contained SLS!!...but it left a tacky film on my skin.

I'm still trying to improve bubbles and lather so I have this question:

Prairieannie wrote:

Veggie glycerin - helps big time with lather and a little with bubbles

Liquid Soap - helps hugely with bubbles! ......

.....If there is a specific item that I haven't mentioned here, please feel free to ask, and I will do my best to get an answer for you.

So...I'm asking. How much of each, please? I'm using 1 Tbsp/pp of both Bonners Liquid Soap and Vegetable Glycerin. It doesn't seem to be making much difference in bubbles or lather. Is there a specific type of liquid soap that gives better bubbles than others without compromising the 'chemical free' idea?

Thanks!

Is she scoping out other's WS pricing?

She very well could be. When I had a website design business, competitors would often come to my site to ask for a quote just to find out my pricing. In my opinion, pricing is only ONE aspect of running a good business. If you maintain a good product and excellent customer service, pricing is secondary.

This is a great thread with good questions and answers. Eventually, I want to branch into CP soap and had no idea where to start. There's a lot of info out there but this narrows it down for a nice start. Thanks for this thread!!

I agree that 25 watts is too low to give a good scent throw.

how'd you get the powder to mix without speckles? I always have trouble with that.

Not much brown powdered oxide is needed to make a tan color so blending it in wasn't too difficult. Stir, stir. But I saw a tip that I haven't yet tried: Place a couple of squirts of alcohol into small dish/bowl and gradually add your oxide and blend (as if you were making gravy). Blend until smooth and then add this mixture to your soap. Personally, I'd rather not use the alcohol and instead would try using a small amount of the melted soap base to blend with the oxide.

I tossed 'em and started over and included an additive that won't allow the wet spots to happen again. Yay, sticky stuff! I can't expect a customer to pay for decorative candles and than have them look like cr^p.

Onward . . .

Maybe you are talking about Ky All Natural Pillar/Votive Wax. ??

See:

I use their "KY All Natural Pillar/Votive Wax".

Okay, I just looked on KY's site. KY All Natural Pillar/Votive" wax is not the same as "KY's Para-Soy Tart/Votive" wax.

Carry on . . .

:tiptoe:

I got a tan shade when I used a slight amount of Brown Oxide Pigment powder.

Wow! What an elegant looking soap!

Does anyone want to throw me a bone here?

I use their "KY All Natural Pillar/Votive Wax". Is that the one you're referring to? I heat to 195-200, add FO at that temp and pour at 175. Have never had a problem with scent throw and, in fact, have had compliments on how long the fragrance lasts.

I've been making layered candy corn candles with 70/30 for two years and they've always turned out so pretty. This is the season when they sell really well, too. Well, I received a large order for these candles, spent a lot of time making them Friday & Saturday...and then the temps plunged overnight last night into the 40's (a very sudden drastic change). Woke up this morning and every one of the candles had wet spots. That's never happened before. They are so ugly! I can't melt them down and reuse the same wax because they are layered colors. What would you do???? Would you go ahead and ship them and expect the customer to embrace these wet spots?....or toss them and start over (and pray it doesn't happen again)?

I usually use my leftover container soy wax for tarts for myself only. They work out fine.

I had no idea! This is great info! Spiders scare the bajeebees outa me!

Soooooo, do you spray it around the baseboards?...anywhere else?

Another vote for BCS here. I don't notice a spice to it at all. To me, it smells like frosted sugar cookies.

my camera is only a 6 mega pixel so it dosent take that good of pictures.

6 MP isn't bad. I shoot with a 5.1 and my photos come out pretty nice.

Your logo is very creative!

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www.aromafieldscandles.com

I'm using a lip balm base from BCN (which gets good reviews here) and haven't had a problem with any of the 4 flavor oil suppliers I've used except for one...Oregon Trails. Their flavor oil is sinking to the bottom of the melted balm and even though I stir the heck out of it while pouring, my last tube ends up with most of the flavor oil. Consequently, after all the lip balms solidify, I can take that last tube that was filled, slightly squeeze the sides and the flavor oil oozes out of the sides. I wrote to OT over the weekend and, to my amazement, I got an immediate response. (GREAT customer service!!). But she wasn't able to come up with a solution to this problem.

What to do when the flavor oil won't blend into the base?

I like BCN's Pink Sugar. I think it's dead on.

Green Clover & Aloe and Spring Rain (both by Peaks) are two of my favorites.

I ordered Rice Flower & Shea by BCS and will be soaping it this week. The B&BW lotion smelled nice and light and I read (somewhere) that BCS's was a dupe.

I'm a huge CS FO fan but in all fairness...their Very Vanilla is truly the best Vanilla I've ever smelled.