number2of7

Great to know....thanks! I use KY Perfect Blend so was afraid to order certain scents before having my question answered.

Thanks again!

I'm confused...happens easily, I assure you.

Anyway, I keep reading all of the posts regarding the fact that I should ONLY use bags made out of polypro or the scent will get "sucked" out. In addition, I'm not supposed to store my tarts together or the scents will mix.

Now, there are also posts that say things like "once the FO is in the wax, it's in there for the long haul". I've also seen chemical explanations of how the FO gets binded to the wax so that I don't lose any scent if I don't have a lid for my container.

To me, these contradict each other....either the FO is there to stay, or it's not. If my FO is there for the long haul, why do I need to worry about what to package them in?

I read a post on here where a lady claimed to have found some tarts that had been packaged in regular ziplock bags a couple years back....she said they were still as strong as ever!

??? Anyone have some scientific explanation ???

As a newbie myself, I prefer tarts and wickless candles (no wicks to worry about)....but I've ventured out into a few containers...not getting the hot throw I want, but I'm still working on it....

What a great hobby!! Having a blast!!! Good luck to ya...

I've read lots of posts regarding the fact that some scents will not throw well in soy wax. If an FO doesn't throw well in soy, does this mean that it won't throw well in a Parasoy wax?

Just like with everything else on ebay, you'll probably find good and bad suppliers.

I would buy FO's off of ebay. I just sold some fo's on ebay. There wasn't anything wrong with them--they were just extra stuff I had that I knew I wouldn't use, so rather than have them sit in a cabinet and be out the money, I sold them and somebody else got a really good deal.

I would probably shy away from somebody who has a million scents listed at $.99 each. Without any evidence whatsoever, it makes me think they dilute their scents.

I'm not talking about the ones who have leftover supplies bought from a reputable company....I'm referring to the ones who make the scents themselves and claim that they're uncut, blah, blah, blah....would you buy them from these people???

When I first started making candles, I got a few off ebay from dale8078kids . He is awesome to work with, and I have had many requests for certain scents I had purchased thru him. Throws well in soy!

He's actually one of the sellers I've been looking at....may have to give him a try.

Just curious if any of you have ever purchased any FO's from any ebay sellers that AREN'T well-known suppliers....

If you have, what has been your experience?

If you haven't, would you consider trying them?

I would just like some input....some have some pretty good prices, but I'm hesitant....:undecided

I don't know if it will work for your wax or not, but for mine, I preheat my oven to 170 (or the lowest setting yours has)....when I'm done pouring my candles, I pop them in the oven on a cookie sheet, turn the oven off, and let them cool overnight. The next morning when I open the oven door, I have wax adhered to all sides and no sinkholes!

The way I center my wicks - make a template of each jar - that is draw a circle around bottom of jar on piece of paper and measure off your center and then put your wick there and draw around it. When you get ready to wick your jar just put it on template and it shows you where wick needs to go. To I guess you would call it to "install" the wick I use a stick ball point pen and take very thing out and then just run your wick up through that and apply hot glue or whatever you use to stick your wick. Hope this makes sense:D

Now that's just genius!! Thanks so much!

Okay, I feel goofy asking this....but if you don't have a wick-centering tool, what is the best method for centering a wick in a container?

I've tried measuring the sides, eyeing it, etc....they still just don't get centered correctly. There has to be a way w/out spending $20 on a tool....

What methods do you use?

number2of7, Try veripack.com. Polypro 3X3 zip for $13.75 & 3X5 for $16.00. No minimum BUT they merged with Bagsandbows so the website is messed up & prices are wrong AND hard to find. You would need to order by phone until the site gets fixed. VP does have a print catalog.Best part about VP is that they ship from a warehouse in Atlanta (Lilburn or Lithia Spings or Lithonia, can't remember) so turnaround is one day.hth,donnawhere in GA are you? I'm west of Cartersville near the Alabama line.

Hmmmmm....if it's Lithia Springs, I'm in business....I'm right around the corner. I'll have to look them up....thanks for the tip!

Because wicks are evil ... items made in Satan's Workshop. Suppliers won't tell you this, but all wicks come from Hell.

Susan.

Now that's funny right there...I don't care who ya are!

UPDATE: I apologize to everyone here. I placed my order, was not charged shipping, but then later last evening I received an email advising that my payment through Paypal had been refunded.

Apparently, the $100 minimum order is true. I just thought that since the order went through that they took it. I personally feel as though the order shouldn't have been accepted to begin with.....regardless, I'm sorry I gave others false hope. However, for those that do need $100 worth of bags, it still would be a good deal, I guess.

So, for those who have placed an order under $100, your amount will be refunded.

Please forgive me...I'm really sorry about this. :embarasse

Thank you, as usual! It's nice knowing someone has taken me under their wing to get me through this.

:undecided

I didn't have to pay shipping....and my total was only $9.99

...or am I doomed to a life of pastels? I use KY Perfect Blend, and so far, all of my colors are lighter than I would like them to be. I've read that over-dyeing can clog your wick...so I have a concern about adding too much.

On the chips, I used 1 1/2 once in a 1lb mixture, and it still had that lighter pastel look. I use flakes too, but only the blue seems to be vibrant.

Would liquid oils dye it brighter?

What are your experiences/recommendations?

Wow...that's two up from what they recommend! Why do they recommend so low to begin with? It seems like a waste to me....guess it's just another "making money" gimmick for them.

I happen to stumble across this website looking for 3x3 polypro zip bags. They seemed to have really good prices and FREE SHIPPING!

I ordered 1,000 3x3 polypro zip bags for $9.99 (no shipping). Hopefully I got a good deal. It was the best I have found so far....

Here's the link in case you wanna check it out:

http://www.customzip.com

I use KY Perfect Blend....I'll try wicking up one, and then keep going up until I get it right. Thank you!

I'm not sure whether I should wick up or down....

My container is 2 1/4 across. In my sample pack of HTP wicks, it recommended the HTP 41 for containers approx 2" and the HTP 52 for containers approx 2.5". Since my container measurements fell right smack dab b/w the two, I opted for the 52.

After 2 1/2 hours, it was burning straight down the center, leaving too much on the sides to ever catch up....resembled the way a pillar would burn.

I'm new to wicking, so when this happens, is the wick too small or too big? Should I wick up or down?

Are there a set of rules & guidelines for wicking up or down? I'm sure I will have other issues, but need to know when to wick up or down...what to be looking for.

Thank you!

Amber

Well, my wax says to heat to 175, so as soon as I remove it from the heat, I immediately add my FO & dye and stir until it cools enough to pour...I'm anal about stirring.

I think I'm going to just up my FO on that particular fragrance next time.

Oh, well my wax is KY Perfect Blend....guess I'll check with them and find out.

Thank you!

If you are unsure of what the max amount of an FO is, do you stick to the general 6%, or can you bump it up at all? If so, by how much without it being too much?

As some of you know, I'm having a small issue getting a good hot throw on one of my candles. I bought the FO from a lady on ebay who was downsizing her collection. Because I don't know which supplier she originally bought them from, I have no idea what the max load is for my FO.

I originally added the 6%....could I add 9% next time and be safe?

Well, this one cured for a week before testing....should I really wait longer?

This particular fragrance doesn't have the strongest scent of the ones I've used, but when I was zapping the top of it to seal in the wick, boy it was yummy. So, yes, I was a little saddened when I couldn't smell it.

I'll also try to burn it in a smaller room....

One other thing I'm unsure of is how much FO I can actually use without using too much. The lady I bought them from on ebay was cleaning out her supplies and she "said" she had bought these from places like C&S, BC, etc. How would I know how much is too much without exactly know where the FO came from?

Okay, well I just got done burning my first container candle....no hot throw!! And so the challenge begins....

I'm using Ky Perfect Blend, 6% FO (spiced orange peel), and RRD 37 wick in a 4x3 votive container.

After a 3-hour burn, I had a full melt pool about 1/2" deep, but absolutely no scent throw whatsoever! Is this a wick issue? If so, TOP warned me about this....

Would love some suggestions....