daniedb

Hey gloworm - I'm so sorry that you missed the spots! Melly and I decided back when we started that if we had enough interest past 10 people, we would open up a second phase...so if you want to, I can start a second group of people and see if we can create enough interest to have at least 5 or 6 more people sign up and then I can run the swap for you guys but it will be smaller!

1. Daniedb 2. Melly 3. Macy 4. Purple lilac 5. Ksbell 6. Stacy - DayStar Supplies 7. chopsgirl- Angie 8. Mnmhorsemom 9. slaztoo 10. hawaiiansun Whee! Finally got enough people to close it! Yee haw! Hawaiiansun - Full size can vary, of course, but just not a sample size - like a 8 oz lotion or 4 oz jar of cream or whatever, you know what I mean?

1. Daniedb 2. Melly 3. Macy 4. Purple lilac 5. Ksbell 6. Stacy - DayStar Supplies 7. chopsgirl- Angie 8. Mnmhorsemom 9. 10.

I'm thinking layered black and orange....

Stop it. You guys are killing me. While we're on the topic of colors, how do you make a sage green? :rolleyes2

We sure are...I guess I'll give it this last day and then close the swap with 7 people. I'll be PMing you guys with address and shipping info this weekend, so BOLO!

GOod for you for moving on! After over a year of using EZ soy, I'm about to go wax shopping again, too. I'm going to sample some soy/para blends and I'm also going to try my hand at Ecosoya CBA - I'm excited but nervous. Now to find some money to buy some new waxes.........

No WAY! Chickie, you're staying? Are you nuts, girl? Wow, I applaud you for not leaving your pups, but dang, being in Rockport during this is going to be an interesting sight. I'll be praying for your safety and I certainly hope that you can get some good pictures and film to make your ordeal worthwhile. You'll be in my prayers.

Well, I am in TX, so it's incredibly humid and HOT here right now. I do my heating, measuring and mixing outside, in my craft room, which has a small AC window unit in an adjoining room. I then take it inside and wait for it to set up and I pour in the kitchen, where we keep it about 80. However, our house is about 65 years old, so the insulation is not great, and I wonder how the humidity is affecting it.

My 16 and 26 oz apoths are 4" exactly, and I successfully single wick with a 1312. I think the 1212 might work very well for that jar! I'm really interested in if you can try that. I'd be very happy to send you a few if you want to try them, just PM me with your address!

Thank you guys so much! It really means so much that we're getting prayers and well wishes. We are about 3 hours in from the coast, so we know that the worst that will happen is a really good storm, but we tend to flood like crazy...plus, much of my family is in Houston, as well as my inlaws, who are actually coming to stay with us as of tomorrow, because of the evacuation. So, I need some extra prayers for patience and grace as well, LOL!

THey look wonderful! I think they're very classy and elegant. I think that prairieanne is right...what if you moved the flower to the middle, and combined hand poured and soy candles? Right now, it looks more like, "Terra Hand Poured" and "Soy Candles". I think if I saw it in a store, I'd be all, "What's Terra hand poured?" Do you mind sharing what kind of paper that is? Is it label paper, or do you have to spray it with adhesive to attach to the tins? I've been trying to find textured label paper, with no luck.

So, my question is...how do you know what rotten ass smells like?

How many inches wide is the jar?

I use 1/2 oz of WYW FOs per pound of wax, it's plenty strong. It's expensive, but you only use half as much as normal FO, so it all evens out.

PrairieDweller - I actually know exactly what you're talking about - in my "former life" I used to be a chef. Great info, I never put it together before, that's really helpful!

Can I just say, DUH?!?!?! I feel like a big, fat, idiot! What a wonderful solution! I was *this* close to choosing not to color them anyway, I decided to just because it sounded like fun and I thought I would enjoy the challenge. I feel SMRT, smart. I think I'm going to try that and see how much happier I am with the results! If that still doesn't solve my problem, I will then consider switching. Plus, I had an awesome angel, Trish, offer to send me a little paraffin to test with, so I will report back with the difference next week. Wow, what a great idea. *still shaking my head at my own stupidity* Thanks, everyone...it's nice to know that I'm not alone in my frustration, and that there are people who will listen, encourage and offer advice and solutions! I LOVE YOU GUYS!

Oh yeah, I guess that's helpful. 100% EZ Soy, no additives, just FO and dye. I was using liquid dye, but read that they could increase frosting...just bought some blocks and have been experimenting. I heat to 180ish, add dye, add FO at 170-175, pour at the coolest possible temp without having to scoop the wax, LOL! Prairie, got your PM...I'm off to bed, will respond in the AM. Scent Cellar - what a grand idea, I did NOT think of that. I will definitely email Doneen in the morning. Thank you.

I farking can't stand how my candles are coming out. I hate them. I HATE THEM! They're hideous! I'm so sick of spending hours trying to make quality products and have them coming out looking crappy. I've got loads of frosting...not the pretty sweet little smattering of frosting that might dust the top of the container, but all the farking fracking way through the candle. If I heatgun it, I get monstrous wet spots and air bubbles and all kinds of ugliness. I'm so ready to quit. I even *gasp* thought of sidelining my soys and trying my hand at a para/veggie blend instead, to market to boutiques. Is paraffin easier than this crap I'm dealing with now? Or is it just going to be this hard no matter what wax I use? I'm seriously ready to pull my candle page off my site and just say, screw it.

I find that using EZ in a fluted tart mold works great. There are no issues of it falling apart coming out of the mold or anything. The best method I found was to pop them in the freezer for about 10-15 min after cooling overnight, then tapping them firmly upside down on the countertop. The only drawback to using 100% EZ is that the edges of the tart tend to become squished if you don't take good care of them, and ensure that they are in a protected environment. I am going to be packaging them in a votive-like boxes and selling them in fours, it's too hard to maintain a good-looking individual tart without the sides getting squooshed.

Hey all - I've been making 100% soy with EZ Soy for over a year now, and I'm just up to HERE with the soy issues like frosting, pale colors, and general fugliness that's been coming out of my workshop. I'm thinking of maintaining an all-soy line, but also moving into paraffin for some offerings mainly for my (hopefully) wholesale accounts. So, what I need is some information about the best paraffin waxes, and the pros and cons of using straight paraffin or mixing paraffin with EZSoy. I know there are a ton of faithful J223 users, but I know there are dedicated users of 1945 as well. I was also looking at 6006 - I'm limited to what comes from BCS, because that's where I can pick up most easily. http://www.bittercreeksouth.com/waxes.htm What I'm trying to attain is, of course, terrific scent throw hot and cold, but also a smooth, creamy appearance with minimal wet spots, and of course, NO FROSTING! Again, if you could recommend a one-pour container wax, that would be awesome. Also, your thoughts on using straight paraffin vs. a soy/paraffin blend. I'm only doing containers.

I vote aluminum.

Here's something I do that helps avoid being in a sitch like yours - I offer ONLY what is listed on my site and on my price lists and catalog. That's it. If you want to make suggestions to me about new products to carry (such as a merlot scent in a wine glass), then go for it. I love feedback. If I get enough requests for similar items, then I'll start making them and selling. If someone says to me, "Hey! I want a merlot scent in a wine glass!" I say, "What a great idea! I'll put that on my list of products that are in R&D and if enough people are interested, I'll add it to my available merchandise list!" For people who don't understand the whole concept of R&D, like your friend with the magic wicking powers, then I would probably just say something like, "That's awesome that it worked out for you so well! Unfortunately, I'm a little more deliberate and a stickler for perfection when it comes to my products, so I spend a lot of time on each and every product before I can feel comfortable selling it." Whatever opinions she has, she can't really argue with your opinion or your ethics, KWIM? Sounds really frustrating...perhaps you could get the numbers or email addresses of these women at her work and communicate directly with them, explaining that you will be happy to develop some new products, but it will take X number of weeks to perfect the product. Most consumers are thrilled when you take so much time to perfect an item before selling it...they really feel cared about and special. HTH, and let us know what happens with this whole thing!

I just have to thank you guys for being so sweet and being so encouraging about my site, it's really uplifiting to hear...thank you SO much.

Amy's daughter has some nice stuff too. (My mom's name is Amy)