coconut

when I started this thread, my thought process was regarding the ingredients of M&P vs CP soap.... I didn't even think about the customers but that is something I need to think about too. DH and I are both allergic to the fragrances in commercial soaps and detergents. I don't have this problem with most of my candle FOs (although I can't stand Clean Cotton and Downey). So I was curious about the difference in ingredients and the results of the use of the two different soaps. I have so much reading to do!

I'm afraid of lye too.

I'm positive there is an old thread on this board where this happened to someone... Got to go find that! I'm having fun reading this thread. I'm still using the double boiler method but someday if I pour lots of candles, I may get a Presto. Based on snowman's post, no spigot I think....

I don't know if it is the best, but Peak's Magnolia is very nice and very strong.

Ah, one of those questions. Thank you for your input. I'm not ready to tackle CP yet, but I am interested in unscented soap. But I wasn't sure if I would see the benefits of a handmade product if I start out with MP. So much to learn!

Does M&P soap count as hand made soap if you don't add fragrance or color to it? :tiptoe:

You said a mouthful-until you do it, you really don't know what it is like. After five+ years of pouring, I ordered online from Lowes some chemical respirator masks with a vent. Comfortable and they really help. It is a P95, 3M, part 8577. I would find after a day of pouring I would get breathing issues, and I pour outside. If you pour inside, it would probably be worse. As for the hubby, send him out on a long errand! And for your impatience, after you pour, go to the computer and start reading all the old posts on this forum and in the archive forum. You will be distracted and will leave your candles alone, as you should. Works for me every time!

DH bought me a Milwaukee from Lowes after my cheap Harbor Freight model died. He didn't say what he paid for it but it is totally adjustable for heat settings and has been going strong for a few years now. I even use it to strip paint. Love it.

No disrepect intended, I tried Hollyberry & Ivy and it was horrible, made my customer gag. Other than that one, all Peak's FOs that I have tried (which is most of them) are great and strong. For the holidays I like Spiced Cranberry, Spruce Christmas Tree, Grandma's Swinging Eggnog, and Home for the Holidays.

I use one type of wax for my melts, and two types of wax for containers. That's it. Someday I may cut back to one wax for containers, but for now I have plenty of each kind. I like 4630 because it is a little bit cheaper, but I also like J50. First I test with 4630. If I can't get the burn I want, I try J50 which works better on heavy scents. If that doesn't work, I use up the FO in melts and don't reorder it. In the beginning I tried a lot of different wicks because I was learning but now only use a couple kinds. Wicks are cheaper than FO, so I try to make most FO's from my suppliers work. Once I figured out what I was doing, it isn't as hard to get a good burn. I guess I'm a slow learner because it took a lot of tests and a lot of wicks to figure it out. :tiptoe:

I have a Milwaukee heat gun that you can adjust the temp. Also I hang it from a hook when not using it so the tip is in contact with nothing.

Very good point. Also, calibrate the thermometer before you use it. You can place it in boiling water and it should read 212 degrees. If not, make a note how much it is off and use always add or subtract that much when you use it. I have to add 13 degrees to get the actual reading on mine. With a little practice, you will figure out what setting on your stove or burner will let you keep the water hot but not boiling. Best not to boil the water as the breaking bubbles can splash water into your wax; also the wax may get too hot. I know that setting my burner to 3 will melt my wax just right. HTH.

If people only knew what UPS does with packages! Remember the old commercial with the gorilla jumping up and down on the luggage? Close, very close. DH and DD both worked there. It's not pretty.

I put my jars on a piece of floor tile on the counter. Have not melted the Formica yet. HTH

Nothing wrong with a clothespin, but it is a pain in the neck. As for sticking the wicks, I think Stella presented a lot of great information. I have had customers actually tell me they liked certain brands of candles because they burn all the wax like in her photos. Oh, my. I use a different method to stick my wicks and I have not had any of them come loose, nor have I had any issues with all the wax burning due to wicking from the bottom. It is unorthodox but works for me and I can easily reuse my jars for testing (I do not reuse jars for selling). I use sticky mold sealer clay. I flatten a little ball of it on the bottom of the wick tab and press it firmly to the glass. The clay does not melt and it stays stuck. HTH

If you are selling a business, you need a lawyer, an accountant, and possibly a realtor or business broker unless you already have a buyer. All can help you set a realistic price. I would never, ever, and I repeat, EVER, consider selling a business without a lawyer and accountant. If you want the transaction to go smoothly, get your money, stay out of trouble with the IRS, and be released from liabilities, these two people are critical. Good luck to you.

I hope you both contact Lonestar. They may have someone new back in shipping who is not packing properly and they may not know, if nobody calls them.

Christmas 2012, yes, Christmas 2011, no. It is not likely, maybe impossible, to test even one new scent in such a short time and make a safe quality candle. Have her start at the beginning of the General Candlemaking forum and read until she gets to today, and she will learn so much about candles. And then she still needs to test, test, test. Not being mean, just honest. Best of luck to her and her new hobby.

Once you decide to stick with this hobby, a wick centering tool will save you a ton of time and aggravation. Also, wick holders beat clothepins by a mile. I use these from Bittercreek North: http://cart.candlesupply.com/product.php?productid=19995&cat=634&page=1. Did the kit come with something to use to stick the wicks to the bottom of the jar?

By "cotton wicks", I mean I have used an assortment of cotton wicks with different attributes. Some are cotton core, some are not. I use the LX wicks, Peak's cotton wicks, and the Premier wicks. When I first started making candles, the LX and Peak's cottons were readily available. I have tried other cottons and cotton cores but they did not work for me (Eco, RRD, A&P cottons). I find the Premier mushroom the least for me with heavy FOs. Since I don't want to have too many kinds of wicks, I will eventually retest using Premier wicks, the scents which I currently wick with LX wicks and Peak's cottons. I think that like Bugtussle, I will eventually settle on just a handful of wicks that work for all my FO's in the size jar I use. I expect if I change jars, I will have to wick up, but I expect to stay with the same type of wick. You can get samples of the Premier wicks from Aztec or Coal Creek Candle. HTH

I have a round cake cooling rack I bought online that I use inside the pot which elevates the can I melt wax in. I use clean coffee cans, put the plastic lid on to keep water out of the wax, fill the pot just until the can wants to float, then take off the lid and put it on the stove. Works great.

I chased my tail on this for a while and finally caught it! I settled on HTP wicks for "light" scents and cotton wicks for "heavy" scents. I even use two different waxes. I no longer have to try a lot of different combos to wick a scent but it did take a while to narrow my options down to the two that I like best, HTP and Premier wicks. Originally I tested every kind of wick I could get my hands on, but that was my learning process. I'm satisfied with the mix of wicks/wax I use for now. I keep my formulas recorded in a spreadsheet and also on index cards for convenience.

Thank you, Stella. I might just have to give it a try. Commercial scented soap makes me sneeze, and DH too. Plus it always dries out the skin. I am not terribly coordinated, so I have been afraid of the lye. But after we get done rebuilding this house we bought, maybe I'll give it a try. Lots of reading to do! Now, about that wine.... DH makes wine! It is much easier than they say and you don't need all that junk the books tell you. Fruit, sugar, good wine yeast, grape leaves, clean water, a bucket, a carboy and a bubbler and you are in business. Right now we have 10 gallons of mango wine stored in the bedroom (no place else to put it) and 10 more cooking in the living room. He makes wine out of all kinds of stuff. Wild grapes, lemons, oranges, mangos, whatever we can get our hands on. Give it a try, it is easier than it looks. Now me, I like making pickles and that is really challenging, harder than candles I think because timing is so critical. Maybe I can make soap.... Hmmmm

Stella, those are gorgeous. I'm scared to try soap. What gave you the push to try it and how hard is it compared to candles?

I don't think so. I looked at the online documents and finally found a picture of the trademarked item. They are not trademarking a scent name, they are trademarking an actual device with a scent product pre-loaded into it. It is an interesting way of doing it. Now in contrast, I looked up Clean Cotton. This one is trademarked as both air fresheners, electric fragrance dispensers, and candles; fragrant wax for use in potpourri burners. The image attached to the candles; fragrant wax for use in potpourri burners is below: It would seem that someone at Scentsy spent a lot of time look for these technicalities...