smiley_miley

Ok, I know this is probably a stupid question, but I just wanted to make sure before I did anything, lol... I made my first batch of CP soap a few days ago, and it came out really good. I put it in a glass container that I used for a mold. I wanted to stick with the basics, so I didn't color it or anything, just added scent. I had a question about molds though... I know that the lye mixture reacts badly with certain metals, such as aluminum, and I know you are supposed to use stainless steel, glass, heavy duty plastic, or ceramic, but I wanted to know if it is safe to use that bakeware with the non stick coating? Some of those pans would make perfect loaves, and as I am still experimenting, I don't want to spens a bunch of money on molds. If anyone can answer this for me, that would be so great! TIA Katie

Where is a good inexpensive place to get these? I have looked around, but am having a hard time finding them. Can anyone help? TIA Katie

:highfive: LOL...ok, that is good stuff Maybe I will just take the plunge then Thanks for the advice!

I always wondered though.....do you guys up your prices for the big shows? Let's say you usually sell candles for $7 each....do you make them $10 or something? I read a few things at other places that gave me the impression that you can't sell too cheap at these things, that people expect to pay more. The whole thing about people thinking that "you get what you pay for...blah, blah, blah..." Is that true? Or is it that no matter where you go to sell you sell everything for the same price? I have set up at a lot of smaller markets, and one thing I noticed is that most people are looking for a bargain, they don't want to pay retail. But I would imagine that people that attend the large craft shows do not have that same mentality. How do you deal with those situations?

This is an interesting thread I have been thinking about doing the larger shows myself, but I am very nervous!!! :tiptoe: Also, I have been unsure on how much stock to bring....when you guys do these large shows, how do you decide what and how much to bring? It seems to do that much money, you must have a lot of stock! Whew! I wouldn't even know where to start when it came to deciding how many items of a certain scent to stock, lol Any advice for a (maybe) first time newbie? Katie

One of the things about natural remedies, is that you can't say that something "cures" or "heals" without it being a prescription drug. If you say that a product of yours cures something, then you could actually be arrested for selling illegal drugs. Most over the counter medicines and vitamins and balms only say "it assists with" or "can help relieve symptoms of" etc. There are many natural cures and remedies out there that can't say so just because of those laws, even if they actually do work. On the other hand, though there are many products that actually DO work, there are many manufacturers that exploit the system and put those things on the bottles/packaging so they can look like other legitimate remedies. So in essence, it is hard to say whether those things that are advertised are true or not, the best thing would be to do more research on the specific ingredients at well known and authoritative places to see if these claims have any basis in fact. HTH

Yes, but it was like they were talking about lye like it was the plague, lmao

Hello, I had a question that I hope maybe the experienced soapers can help me with... I am not making soap yet, but I have been doing some reading about ingredients and reading tutorials etc. so I can learn how. In my research, I have come across some differences in opinion, and I am not sure what to think. I found a place that sells handmade soap, I believe it is MP, and they advertise it as lye free. But I have read somewhere else that soap made with lye is actually more mild on skin, and better for you. I also read that the SLS in some MP soap can cause skin problems, and that is what their soap is made with. Which is the truth with this? They are advertising as if lye is harmful in soap or something. I wanted to start making soap, but I wanted to stay as natural as I could, which would be with using the lye....but how do you get around people who say lye soap is bad? Can someone point me in the right direction?

Great, thanks a lot! I was searching and searching, and the only place I found it cost and arm and a leg! I was hoping it wasn't going to be that high everywhere, lol.

Hi, I am looking for a good place to buy some turkey red oil. I have searched in the engines, but I can't really find any place to get it. I usually do my shopping at WSP, and they don't have any. Can anyone help? TIA Katie

Yeah, I remember that thread a long time ago, lol....I think it was me. I had no idea where to find that info, either, and someone gave me big help. Anyways, you can go to whatever state you are interested in attending shows in, and go to their department of tourism. For instance, I live in Ohio, and I can get my info at www.discoverohio.com Just go to Google or whatever search engine you prefer, and search your state's department of tourism, and when you find a good site, you can try different search terms on it to find what you are looking for.... Some good ones are....festival, crafts, fair, etc. Hope that helps

That is a good idea too. I do that sometimes, and it works too.

At shows, usually have a "buy so many, get so many free." On my website, I usually take a percentage off the entire order if it exceeds a certain amount. I have a Christmas show coming up, for instance, and my candles will be "Buy 3, get one free." It helps to give discounts especially during the holiday season, because everyone likes to get a bargain, especially if they are spending all their money on presents! lol I am not sure what you had in mind, but maybe that will give you an idea or two, hope that helps! :smiley2:

Oh, and just one more thing that I realized that I must mention before I go. Than I won't be replying any more. Prairieannie, did you make that Bohnen account to argue with me too? It seems awfully funny that that account was just created today and started bashing me as well. I highly doubt that some "random person" would make a new account just to bash someone's thread. Nice one.

No, I am not a moderator. You are right, thank you for stating the obvious again. But this thread isn't for your nitpicking, either. Ever since this board started, you have been trashing me. What did I do to you? What did I say that was so wrong, except that it was taken care of? I didn't even give a name. And if someone researches this thread, they still won't find any valuable information, because you have scuzzed this board up. You didn't say one valuable piece of information on this thread. All you have done is belittle me, argue with me, talk about "reinventing the wheel," and many other things...all disguised as sweetly as you could make them. All you did was constantly jab and jab until I finally spoke up, and then this blew out of proportion, and now you are insulting me even more. I had posted this, not to advertise pergoodies. I had searched for a cart addon. I couldn't find one in the search engines, and he couldn't either. I posted on here to see what other people were using in their carts to calculate shipping. I got no replies. So he started to make one for me. That is all. I shouldn't have to defend myself to your attacks, but I suppose I must, or you will slander my name all over the place. I also seem to remember another thread in that you weren't so nice to me, either, and it had nothing to do with this. I don't know what the problem is. Also, pergoodies posted that he was going to ask sara to allow him to post on the supplier page. There is nothing wrong with that. I will not be arguing on this further. You do what you want with this thread. You know what they say....you can't argue with a fool, you will always lose. So, you win, prairieannie. You win.

This is rediculous. All I did was post and ask if someone knew of a program to ADD to my existing cart. Those of you who say this was some kind of "setup" or "plant"....that is rediculous. This board was dead....I said it was taken care of, I posted that I had asked him for help, and that he was making me one. I didn't even say who it was, just that it was my boyfriend. It was at the bottom of the page! AFTER I said everything was taken care of, well...'someone' comes on and shares the brilliant idea that there are "carts out there." Well, it was already taken care of, I didn't need a whole cart to begin with, and I couldn't find any before I had posted this thread. Pardon me for asking around for advice. Prairieannie....you have stated what irks you. Well, let me share with you what irks me. 1.) Stating the obvious probably just to get a bigger number of posts. 2.) Causing all this. 3.) Stating rediculous assumptions and then using them as arguing points. 4.) Insulting someone....then apologizing for offending them....then insulting them AGAIN. You have made false statements, and downright insulted perlgoodies and myself. I don't know why, or how this even became a big deal. It is JUST a shopping cart insert! Now please. If you don't have anything else nice to say, or at the very least, constructive critisism, then please don't post on my thread anymore. I just want this to go away. I have been a member of Candletech for a long time, and I have made some great friends. I have never had any problems, and I have built good relationships with people on here. I am an honest seller, and a reputable person. So it is quite a shocker that someone would say something like what you've said about me. And enough with the jokes. He wasn't "charging me too much." That isn't funny, and it is just rude and mean.

If that were true, there would only be one world wide shopping cart for online stores. There wouldn't be literally thousands of carts to choose from, each with their own unique benefits. There is nothing wrong with taking a concept and improving on it. In fact, that is how civilization has come so far I don't know why you would discourage something new that will probably work better than a lot of those other shopping carts out there....I mean, you don't even know what it would be like, and you are putting down perlgoodies without even knowing what his capabilities are. That is bad business if you ask me, especially since you are apparently in a similar business yourself. But that is fine, everyone has their own points of view. JMHO

Yes I know that, that is why I didn't want one....I just couldn't find a good one, that's all. But it is all taken care of now

I use a Paypal shopping cart, because I didn't want my whole website to be one big shopping cart, I wanted my own design. But on Paypal, it only has flat rate shipping that you can add, or you can do a % of the order shipping. I can't do any real rate shipping....but my boyfriend is a programmer, and he is building me one now to go with Paypal...but thanks for the help, everyone!

Hi everyone! I have a question...I have a Paypal shopping cart on my website, and it doesn't calculate shipping. You can only charge a flat rate, or you can charge a % of the order. Is there a shipping calculator somewhere that I can add to give accurate shipping fees and add them to the order automatically? Thanks in advance! Kathleen

Where can I get these? I need some 2 or 3 step risers so I can use them at shows....does anyone know where the best place to get them is? Can I get them at any local stores, or do I have to buy them online?

Alright, I will definitely keep all that in mind! I really appreciate the tips. Setting up before Mother's Day is a good idea. I probably wouldn't plan to set up too much before tax returns though, hehe. :tiptoe: Everyone will still be broke from Christmas!

Okay, I have yet another question! lol SLSA is used in bath bombs, milk baths, etc. to make them foam. Could it also be added to sugar scrubs to make them foam? Or do you have to use something else? Or can you use but have to add something? Thanks in advance!

lol....sounds about right! I have found a lot of places to say goodbye to my dough!

I really wanted to try some to put in a sugar scrub...I am starting to get into bath and body, and I really want to try those sugar scrubs, I have heard so many good things about them! But FBB seems so expensive to buy! Is it worth it? Can it be used in a lot of things? Or is there something I can do or make myself that will make those sugar scrubs foam? Eek, I need some advice, lol...thanks a lot in advance to anyone who can give me a tip or two!