7 Pawz

Thank you; I think I need to pour colder than I did, but I'll have to play with the wick to get it centered next time, this was just a first try, I'll burn them later in safe holder, just because---then I'll try again, although, I'd really like to find a good mold for that, but no luck

You both have a lot to be proud of, your candles and soaps are lovely to look at

Thank you, I also crocheted a blanket out of that yarn, the scarf just help use it up

Thats me, still working out the kinks, my wax is the biggest thing I store to, that I have a lot of, but since I'm just a hobbyist, I've tried to cut back on the FO's but thats hard , then of course, dyes, thats even harder, THEN molds, I'm really struggling there But at Least I have a dedicated area just for those things and the kitchen is the kitchen again

That sounds like an ideal area to work in, my soap stuff has taken over my candle stuff as well, but I go from one extreme to another, one month i pour nothing but candles, next month, it 's soap, then for 3 or 4 months, cold turkey

Thats what I did before we moved and used the kitchen area for melting, etc. But now I have it all in one area, still working out the kinks tho:)

Thats what I'm trying to figure out, is how to better situate my fo's ; right now, I have a bookshelf under the presto pot and toaster oven, that has my fo's on it with soap/candle dyes. The books are on top of the shelf. I 've got the shelves, maybe I should dedicate one section just for FO's, I use one of the lower sections as a open rack to cure my soaps. Like your area Looks like you're short of FO's

Dust off those molds

Thank you Scented, will do.

I am a beginning knitter, self taught, I knitted this scarf out of a bulky yarn, used size 13 needles, it is very thick for a frigid winter. This is thicker than I normally work with, but I decided to see how itd work out after it was blocked.

I have 2 areas dedicated for my candle and soaps, but I've managed to put other stuff in there to, like the washer and dryer , to the left of the counter is another small room, with shelves used for more wax and soap curing, lets not forget the plant food there are high shelves to store along the other side of the wall as well. As I fill it with candle and soap supplies, I move out the other stuff.

Thanks guys, I scented them with an apple cinnamon type scent, it was a very small sample, the wax is recyled church candles, they really scent the area glad you like the holders

Vicky_CO, Its still clear, I lost the lid to the bucket and it stayed uncovered for a long time, i finally did put one on it to keep dust out, glad to know I can still use whats left.

Thank you, it does help out. The gel is still very clear and when I say I've had it for years, try 10 I originally had about 10lbs of it, I tried working with it, and at the time, If my fo werent recommended for gel, i tested for polarity, that got to a royal pain, I understand there are more fo out for gel, but I'll use what I have and let that be it. I hate to get rid of it if I can use whats left

Very good points to remember, thank you

Me too, thank you

Well, everything that could go wrong with a candle, I let go wrong I wanted some tapers for these holders and decided to try for a really rustic look, believe me I think they are, the wicks are a little off for burning purposes, but i'm using them for decoration so I'm not concered too much. I will try again and at least get a centered wick I thought the pic would enlarge, so that you could get a better look, but it doesn't

I've had some gel wax sitting on the shelf a few years, is there a limit on how long the gel is good to use? I thought about making a couple of candles in a few glade glass containers, but if I'm past an expiration time on the gel, I'll just let it go.

I'd like to cut down on the leftovers from some of my experiments, so I've decided to try the recipe for an experiment soap bar from The Soap Makers Companion, Susan Cavitch. It's about a 5 oz bar size. Since I try to stick to oils that I can get from the market, I decided to substitue vegetable shortening for the palm oil. The other oils are olive and coconut. I wanted a harder bar, so I thought about taking 2% on the discount. I did run the receipe through a lye calculator as well. I read online somewhere that 2% was a danger zone? I thought the more soaponified the oils were, the less likely rancidity would occur? Normally I use around 5% discount.

Thanks everyone for your replies I might try making them, as I do love my relaxation time:), but I'd like to come up with a very simple, but inexpensive ingredient list, I've got some plastic molds that would be perfect for these. They would be for personal use, but I don't know if what I'd come up with would be worth scrubbing the tub for

I did notice that the soap felt better after rebatching, so I may give it a few more tries, I guess it gives the opportunity to add extras that you didn't add before , maybe pour it as a basic rectangle or square, not my flower shaped molds

I subscribe to Saponifier Mag, read an article about making bath melts. This is the first time I've heard about them, looks like fun. Has anyone made them?

Hope your son is doing well and that things are better for you now. Lucky you, shopping--- If I had a few extra's, no telling what I'd order, my wish list is big

that is very lucky

I agree---I thought about trying to "melt" the soap shavings, add other scent, remold, but I can't get the soap mixture smooth enough and they look very primitive out of the mold, which is ok, the soap can be used, but it isn't quite what I had in mind for looks and if I add too much water as I melt, then its too thin and won't harden.