daniedb

Great and great, for me. I only order one item from them, but I like 'em!

As a random story, I'd always used CD 16 wicks from BCN, then I bought 300 off someone in the classifieds. When I received them, they were about half the width of what I was used to, and I resigned myself that they weren't going to fit my containers. Lo and behold, when I tested them, they burned exactly the same way! So, it's true, they can vary in look from different suppliers, and thank goodness mine burned the same!

I know exactly what you mean, and I'm sorry for your disappointment! Honestly, unless you were to start selling the masons, I wouldn't go to the trouble. I just made 90 tins in a random size for a baby shower (darn big baby shower, LOL!) and even with the large number, it was still a huge PITA to test a new tin that I have no intention of adding to my product line. It was worth it for that many, but I wouldn't consider doing it for 12 after my experience.

I don't wash mine, but I usually spritz them with alcohol before I apply the label, just to get rid of fingerprints, residue, any FO or other random deposits. Your labels will be cemented on if you do that.

Okay, so I'm not quite getting you - you want some FOs that smell like the EO of that herb, but you don't want plain, single notes? Is that right? Are you looking for FOs that are reminiscent of EO blends?

I single wick mine with a HTP 1312 or a CD 22.

If you want it less hard, cut back on your cocoa butter. You can increase your shea by whatever you decrease your cocoa. Also, have you used whipped butter before? You are supposed to use hardly *any*, otherwise, it's going to feel greasy. I'm talking, glide your fingers across the top and pick up perhaps 1/32 of a teaspoon for a region the size of your hands.

www.fromnaturewithlove.com www.theherbarie.com The only drawback is that neither of those places offer USPS shipping, so you're really paying out the wazoo unless you need other supplies. I am in dire need of some (most places call it neroli hydrosol), would you be interested in ordering some together?

http://www.candletech.com/links/Candle_Making_Supplies/Texas/ There are a ton of good TX suppliers, BCS which was mentioned http://greenleafcandlesupply.com/ www.justbynature.com www.daystarsupplies.com www.wixnwax.com http://www.starrvillesoapsupplies.com/index.html Also, if you click the search button at the top of this page, and type in "texas suppliers", you'll get lots of good information that people have posted before. Here's a great thread that lists more suppliers: http://www.candletech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20901&highlight=texas+suppliers Check out post #5 from Candle Man.

I think it was $18.50, which included a notarized copy for me to keep, so I could open a bank account and get a tax ID resale #. If you don't get a copy for yourself then it's like $14 or $15.

That is a gorgeous candle, the red is beautiful...thanks for posting!

...suck. Oh, sorry, it wasn't a fill in the blank post?

You can certainly try adding more e-wax, but make sure you heat the finished product to approx. the temp that the melted e-wax is when you combine them, or you'll get nasty grains. Check the specs on the Germaben, you may be able to keep the temp under what the manufacturer suggests for adding it, and salvage the preservative, too. I've found that if I pour the lotion into bottles when it's still runny, I have to shake it about 3 times over the next 12-24 hours to keep it from separating. If you poured it runny, and just let it sit, then I would just try reheating a little and doing the shaky-shaky over the next day. I usually let mine cool to a thin pudding consistency, and I don't have any separation problems.

LOL, I need to reread before I say these things!

Gotcha. That's great that someone is interested in helping spread your business! If you don't want to sell them to her at the wholesale price (which would require her having a resale tax ID for legal purposes), then maybe you could offer like a 30-40% percentage on them, if you're talking her just reselling them on her own. If you have to be there, like doing presentations and stuff, then I would knock it down to 20-25%.

We could do a carpool thing, Tess.

Ah-HA! It's like a base! I get it now! Now that I think about it, I think there are some other people here who have used this before, and they like it - maybe do a search on the product using the search button, and see what other people have said before you give up.

OH, okay...someone posted something in another thread about the cost of being a rep going up to $5000, and I was astonished. Now that makes sense to me...thanks for the clarification!

The professional sales rep that wanted to rep my candles was going to get a percentage of the order. She takes the samples around to the boutiques and then gets a % of the order, and usually a smaller % of each subsequent reorder. However, if you're talking more of a home party kind of rep, where they sell to other individuals, usually the best way to do that is have her buy them from you at the wholesale price and then resell them.

I single wick the keepsake apoth with a CD22 and it works very well with almost every FO I've tried.

I thought you said it was in flake form, so I thought it might look like EZ Soy flakes, sorry!

Okay, I apparently have no clue what it is...huh. I'm out of the loop on this one. Weird, hard but greasy. Huh.

Where did you get this stuff? The only soy butter I know of is a soybean oil that has been hydrogenated chemically, which means it's going to be terribly greasy, just like Crisco. Can you give us more specs on it? Okay, did some more searching, and if you are using actual hydrogenated "soy butter", then you are pretty much using Crisco, which is what Crisco IS. Lots of soapers use it for a hard bar, but I just can't imagine that you would make a butter that wasn't greasy using that as your main ingredient. Maybe as a smaller percentage, with shea or some other softish butter as your main ingredient, then a little soy butter as an additive, but I don't know, I just can't see it being nongreasy no matter what you do. Someone correct me if I'm way off base, please.

From ISP's website: Applications For use in a broad range of applications; especially effective in emulsions. Soluble in commonly used solvents and can be easily incorporated into most formulations; in aqueous systems, a co-solvent or surfactant may be needed to help solubilize the preservative. Can be used to preserve a wide range of leave-on and rinse-off products. Can be used in a pH range of 3.0-7.5. Recommended for use in personal care products at levels between 0.5-1.0%. Higher levels of LiquaPar Optima may be required in formulations with higher levels of non-ionics and proteins since these compounds are known to interfere with parabens. Although Phenoxyethanol is slightly volatile, LiquaPar Optima is stable at temperatures up to 85°C, but it is always best to add preservatives at the coolest possible temperature. For cold mixed systems, add LiquaPar Optima early in the process to allow for adequate mixing. So, your answers are: add it at a rate of .5% to 1%, which for 16 ounces would make it .08 to .16 ounces...however, make sure you're only weighing your OILS and BUTTERS and not your sugar with that, it will skew the percentage. And apparently, add it under 85* C. I usually add it at room temp. Feel free to ask more, HTH!

Well, CRAP! It looks amazing, and fun, and it's much more affordable than the soapmakers. But dang...it's TWO HOURS from my ILs house...I just can't see making that drive, after driving from our house, which is three hours away. I'll ponder on it, though, it sounds SO FUN!!!