kandlekrazy

22 hours ago, Peggy T said:

This is true. My spout drips a bit so I usually put a piece of paper towel on the floor below it. Still it's worth it for overall ease of use.

Those black plastic type trays from frozen foods work well for floor.  I have a few deep ones like 4" deep.  But after 5-6 yrs mine even leaked around the hole the spout was in.  Of course, I was able to drain it and my husband resealed it for me but if I didn't have that cookie sheet I would have had a big mess the day it leaked!

Think turkey fryer, once I got that I rarely looked at my Presto pots again, lol.  JK I use Presto for Palm and smaller batches when I'm testing.  If you can find a turkey fryer on ebay or at a yard sale with the front spigot they are really worth it.  I got mine on ebay it was used once and when I received it I could tell it looked brand new.  It does take just a bit longer to melt the wax but you can fit 15-20# of wax in, maybe more and get out much bigger batches.

I love the spigot but have to warn you that even the best made will leak after time.  I have bought them already made and my husband made me one.  Place it on a cookie sheet if you're going to use a spigot. then you have easy clean up.

Love it!

I love those domed holders, looks like a pastry shop display.  Maybe just have a cute little sign that says these melts are available to purchase, just ask, Unless that's what is in the tins.

Since they are only talking about IG 6006, I think what they are saying in those posts is they are following the recommended heat to 185 and and fo immediately because the temp drops to 170 quickly and that is too low to add fo.  IDK just playing the devil's advocate here I guess.  I read it totally differently.

I had to back off to 5% in C3 for both candles & melts and I used 3% in Glass Glow Palm

Looks great!  Yes as Laura said it will be ever evolving.  You will see other ideas or just come up with your own ideas after a few shows especially if you're doing outdoor shows and have to deal with wind, sun & rain.  I know I constantly changed things up for the first 5 years and then got tired and only changed once in a while.

oh wow, that is weird!  I did hear that they melt the pellets to make their slabs which is weird to me but may have to do with storage?  Personally I'd weigh out the pellets into bags and lay them flat and if the warehouse heat melts them some it would be ok.  IDK somehow debris or insects got into that batch.

I bought mine from them and no, not normal.  It almost looks as if someone dropped the slab before putting it into the bag and it picked up floor debris.  I realize that would be obvious before melting but that's what it looks like.

On top of everything else already said, EO will burn off fast and is expensive, it's just not cost effective not to have a carrier oil/wax with it to slow it down.

Love the shell on the roses while burning!  So pretty.  They both came out really nice with lots of detail.

Love them all.  Don't beat yourself up, this is how we learn what sells.  What we love doesn't necessarily sell well, boy have I learned that the hard way in the Antique business. LOL

Welcome!  Enjoy and share pics if you feel comfortable.

Thanks Candy!  Good info for anyone really.  I'm drawn to metal especially copper (old hand hammered is a fav) and so many home accessories have gone this way over the past few years.  I have a huge copper pot that I've considered pouring wax into for myself of course because the pot is pre 1880 but I'm afraid wax & flame will ruin it.

For a straight Peppermint as a mixer I don't think it would really matter if you want sweeter try a candy cane as a mixer.  I like chocolate with Raspberry and chocolate with Rose as mixers as well as peppermint.

Candlemakingsupplies.net (General Wax)

There are a few places you can buy EO wholesale but there are minimum $$ you have to spend.  I always go way over so for me not a big deal.  I'm the EO ho!

Among the most expensive are Rose Absolute, Neroli, Jasmine Absolute, Indian Sandalwood & Rose Otto, buy those all at once and you'll def mortgage your house!!

Sad but I stopped making Valentine scents, I carry Love Spell with hearts on label year round and Rose never sold well.  I used to do special Valentine blends but found I was stuck with 80% of them so I quit.  Our little town doesn't get super busy in Feb.

I used to use silicone or even just those heavy plastic serving spoons but then I found some slotted metal serving spoons at Dollar Tree, think 2/$1 and I love them.  They are just the right height for my pots so they don't flip out of the pot like the big plastic ones did!

Sometimes you can't up the fo content, the wax just won't hold it and sometimes it makes it worse, so you'd have to test and see.  I usually just move on unless it's a scent I think will sell to the customers that don't want overwhelming.  I have some regular customers that like lighter scents, they are very sensitive to strong so I have probably 10 scents that are light in scent and throw and they sell!

Those are super cute!  I'd want to see what was inside!

90% of my molds for melts were candy molds, not only do they unmold easily but so many more shapes available.  I also like that they are mostly thin and I could put a dozen into a package. I was able to get 10 trays of K so that I could give away samples as well, super thin, tiny bag with my business card stapled to the top.

I don't think anyone mentioned Hansel & Gretel's House, I get mine from CS, super strong!!

I have a blend I call Tuscan Nights but this sounds more like morning, so Tuscan Morning or Morning in Tuscany

The bakery boxes with the clear oval or really any clear section work the best if you don't want smears.  The bags tend to get ugly after customers touch them.  Paper bags would work well but now you're covering up all the prettiness you created unless you use the candy bags with the clear section in front.  In any event look at Papermart, they have a good selection to browse and then buy where you can get cheapest.