Jeana

Thanks! Layers are pretty easy. The embeds are a little tricky. You don't want the base too hot or too cold. Too hot will melt your embed, and too cool will have air pockets around the embed. Also make sure to use colors that won't bleed in the embeds. The green in these ended up bleeding into the white. 

On 6/26/2020 at 5:35 AM, Sebleo said:

Definitely not that simple! No, I’ve never tried it. I use Candlescience’s base. 

I used to use the CS base too. It was ok.  I was just looking to avoid ordering from suppliers for now, and possibly make something that has a stronger out put.

On 6/26/2020 at 7:54 AM, TallTayl said:

Here’s another nice discussion from base notes.

 

http://www.basenotes.net/threads/287226-Reed-diffuser-carrier

Interesting stuff. I just got an email from the wooden wick claiming they carry a 100% natural diffuser base now. I’m so curious about it. Of course they don’t list ingredients. I’m not really looking for an all natural base because FOs have chemicals any way, I was just hoping I could do something easy that I didn’t have to order more stuff online.  

I did put together a base with rice oil, 91% alcohol, and some FO just to see if it works. It isn’t too bad really. It’s actually close to the output I was getting from the same FO in the CS base. I didn’t use much alcohol because I didn’t think it would mix. It mixed fine (slightly cloudy, but cleared eventually) so I may try another with more alcohol. I’m using the old sticks. I didn’t think about them getting clogged. I should try it with new sticks. 

Does anyone make their own reed diffuser base? I've seen some you tube videos that say to just use a light oil and put your fragrance in that. It can't be that simple, right?
I'd just use it for myself, not to sell. 

On 4/29/2020 at 11:46 PM, NewtonAgency said:

 

Alot and I mean alot of domain providers use godaddy at the core. Trust me I am a godaddy reseller myself. You can transfer your domain anytime throughout the year by initiating the transfer on the new registrar and confirming it on your old one. You just need to 1. Make sure the registration email is yours that you have access to and 2. make sure the domain is unlocked. (most registrars locked them from transfer by default but you should be able to unlock it from your control panel. Once you transfer your domain its important to find a host that will allow you unlimited email accounts. it costs them nothing for this. If you want a nice site that has a relatively easy learning curve to sell online wordpress and woocommerce are the choice for you. There are many templates and plugins and the overall coding is clean and ranks well with the search engines. If you need any help let me know and I can guide you through the transfer once you decide on anew registrar.

Thanks for the good info. Now I have a situation. I disputed my old domain registrars illegal charge since it was 2 months early and they used an expired CC on my account and they have now closed my account online so I can't get the code to move my domain now. They were sooo rude about this, is there anyway to leave them without having to contact them. I just want to leave them and not have to deal with them ever again. BTW this HORRIBLE unethical domain and hosting company is called Webstarts. Do not ever deal with them!

46 minutes ago, bfroberts said:

I would do a hang tag.  In these situations I also do a warning label on the bottom that includes the scent name, company name, etc., because the hang tags can go missing from customers fiddling.

How would you fasten the tag?

I'm really curious how some of you creatives would label a container like this. I'm really loving jars like this lately but I feel labeling them would be such a challenge. The "quilted" texture wouldn't allow a side label, and it seems like a label on the lid would take away from the cool wood look, but you have to have something. 

I just love this blue ❤️💛💜

https://calcandlesupply.com/8-oz-aqua-textured-matte-jar-w-lid/

47 minutes ago, Laura C said:

 

Hi Jeanna. I have all of my domains with IONOS (use to be 1and1), just domains and email addresses, no other services right now with them. Aside from free social media sites I have 1 website and I'm currently building it with Adobe Portfolio. I already have and am paying for Adobe Creative Cloud services; Photoshop, Lightroom, etc. which also includes Spark (graphics, logos, etc.) and Portfolio (a website builder & host). So I decided to use Portfolio instead of paying an additional monthly website builder & web hosting fee with IONOS. Portfolio also allows me to use one of my custom domains that I have with IONOS. I redirect the generic Portfolio url to my custom url. I think this will work out great for me.

Wow that’s a lot! You must have a great site.

I looked up ionos customer reviews. It looks like since they changed from 1&1 customers have been really unhappy.  A lot of 1 Star comments for the full service options. At least they could work for the domain purchase just to get away from my old place. I’ll look at portfolio. I was really considering Wix. They are supposed to be really easy and I’ve heard many B&B makers happy with them, but they don’t offer emails, and they charge more for monthly payments. They have some nice templates though. 

@Laura C who are you hosting your site through? I m looking for a new website builder and host too. I’m with big commerce right now. They are very good, but their templates are limited and outdated. 

On 4/17/2020 at 10:46 AM, Laura C said:

post deleted, not needed, sorry

I thought it was ok. You were right. I haven’t heard good things about go daddy these days. They used to have a very good reputation, but I hear they are more a la carte now, which adds up. 

The last time I shopped around, it seemed like I was only finding places that charge monthly for emails now. Do you know of any that don't charge monthly for domain emails? 

I can't stand the place I buy my domain from. No matter how many times I tell them not to keep my card on file, they auto renew it every year. They do so 2 months early each time. So the next year it's due 2 months early again, and this goes on and on. This is so unethical! This time they charged the renewal to a card I don't even own. I don't even know where they got the number from, but it's none of my cards. They are so sketchy I want to get away from them. 

First, can anyone recommend an affordable place to buy your domain, that includes at least one domain email? Second, if my domain was already renewed do I have to wait for it to expire before I purchase from a different place? Third, how hard is it to redirect your domain to the new place? 

44 minutes ago, Peggy T said:

I've been using the same formula for 3 or 4 years and it has worked well but in the past 6 months or so it has become more unpredictable (weak burns, seeping FO). My gut says a big portion of my problems have been from the 464. I have been trying to limit my testing to the waxes I can get locally. Those are the GB family of waxes, C3 and C6. I don't use paraffin because my customer base wants plant based waxes. I tested C6 for a while last year and hated it. I've chosen to order Easy Beads because I don't use that in a particularly high percent.

I used to have all kinds of issues with 464. I used it for about 7 years. It changed every season. Sometimes it would have some type of liquid in it. It would even start to boil at times. I hated that wax after a while LOL. 

Are you sure easy beads don't have paraffin? 

You asked how to simplify your testing. I was just saying it will be a lot less complicated to finalize your wax first, then worry about scents so you don't have to make 32 testers like you said. 

4 hours ago, Peggy T said:

I don't think I did a great job explaining myself. I am having several on-going issues with my candles that I am trying to resolve and they arent really related to HT per se (but obv HT IS important). I'm really asking about how to go about setting up a better system to test a bunch of different variables.  If, for example, I want to test an 80% 464 and 20% coconut wax, as well as a 70/30 and then also try these at 6 and 8% FO for the eight fragrances I carry. If my math is right that would end up being 32 separate candles and that's assuming I only make one of each option. Then I have to figure out where the heck I'm going to test that many candles at once. 🙃 So I'm trying to come up with a methodology that makes it easier to make 32 or more different candle formulas.

 

 

Since you're not set on your wax preference yet I would start with that before worrying about the scents in the beginning.  I would take your favorite scent (you'll get to know it really well, and most likely hate it by the time you're done) and make all the wax blends you think you want to try.  You can also start with no scent. That will give you the best idea of the burn characteristics of the waxes with no other influences. But if you do use a scent make all your wax blends the same scent so the only variables are the waxes. 

The percentages and waxes that you could test could be infinite, so make up your mind what results you want to see ahead of time, and how many blends you're willing to test. Setting up these boundaries will help you feel less confused when testing your own wax blends. Maybe say you'll only try 4 different wax blends and that's it. Take really good notes. 

When I was picking my latest wax formula, decided I could only use certain waxes because they were what I could get with reasonable prices and shipping. I decided what I was looking for in the finished candle and went from there. I didn't want to deal with the inconsistencies of wax manufacturers so I worked with some basics to make my own blend. It's a lot of work, but you really get to know candle making inside and out, and you're not at the mercy of wax manufacturers when they want to have their wacky changes. 

After you settle on your wax blend you can start testing your scents. I usually start at 6% because it's cheaper, and most scents are fine at 6%. I would only try 1 or 2 scents at a time to get them perfected.

If you try to do testing for all the different variables at one time, it will waste more time and product in the long run than breaking it down to testing one thing at a time. 

On 3/29/2020 at 9:58 AM, Karen Ov said:

Hi...Do you clean your dye dropper with water when your done?  Does water stay inside like moisture?

There's really no need to clean the dropper each time you use it. You can get pipettes if you want a clean dropper each time. That's kind of a waste of colorant though.  I wouldn't chance using water to clean the droppers, some could get trapped and you wouldn't know it. 

3 hours ago, CaptnKush said:

No I haven't tried mixing them because the reason I was trying the 4630 in the first place was to get away from the 4627 because I get tired of scooping it out of the bag, and everything I read on it was that it was 4627 only in slab form. To me its completely different. Even colors differently. Maybe its just me.

It’s not just you. I think they are different too. I’ve never heard anyone say they are the same. I’ve been tempted to go back to 4630 because it’s easier, but after seeing this post it reminds me how it changes now and then. 4627 is the better wax of the two.

On 3/23/2020 at 6:20 PM, CaptnKush said:

Well that stinks, I really thought this was 4627 in slab form like they claim.  Guess I will just keep messing with it here and there. I wish all slabs were as soft as it is 

What if you were to try a mix of 4627 and 4630? 4627 is a pain to work with (soft and sticky) but it really is a nice wax. The one thing that's nice about 4627 is that it rarely changes. I used to have issues with 4630 a couple years ago. Sometimes it would be soft, and sometimes firm. Sometimes it would come to me really dirty, because they don't wrap it in the box it comes in. 

You'll want some method of taking notes. You'll want to keep track of every candle you make. What you did, and how it burned. You didn't mention FO but most people want their candle to smell. You don't have to have it though. If you get some it has to be made for candles. 

The evo colors from Candlewic are awesome. Bright, vibrant, zero smell, and very easy to completely mix in. I've used them in paraffin and natural waxes. They offer more color stability than other colorants too. 

I got a little berry mold, so I had to make a berry soap of course. This is such a great scent it's berries with a touch of clove. The only down side is that it made my creamy white base, yellow. I just hope it doesn't continue to yellow. 

13 hours ago, Laura C said:

Pretty, I like the colors. 🧼     Nice job. 👍 

Thank you Laura!

8 hours ago, Lizzy said:

Those look amazing! 

Thank you! 

2 hours ago, franu61 said:

Looks great!  What scent and base did you use?

Thanks! I used Stephenson’s base from CS. At first I didn’t like it because it didn’t bubble very well, but I found if I let the soap sit for a couple days the bubbles get much better. I guess it has to cure a little.

They are scented with Sea Minerals from CS. 

I've never done a loaf of M&P before. It was fun. And I was able to remove it from the mold in about an hour and cut it. A BIG difference compared to CP soaps. Since it was still warm I was able to use my CP cutter. This may be even more addicting than CP soap.  

On 2/26/2020 at 4:56 AM, CandleRush said:

I had high hopes for essentials by Catalina but did not like their soap.

The soap mentioned from brambleberry is the SFIC brand which I love. I would do a search for that soap base if you don’t want it buy 25 lbs. Maybe they have 1 lb. blocks. It’s a popular brand, so many places carry it. There are a variety of bases to choose from.🌸

I actually have a honey base from SFIC and a low sweat base. I did some soaps with the honey base. It was so nice. It melts very evenly, and it doesn't get over bubbly while melting. I haven't tried the other one yet. I just saw the SFIC is actually in CA, which is where I am too. I hate that I have to buy from places out of CA and have it shipped back to me in CA. I tried to contact them for a distributor here but they haven't responded. 
The SFIC base is twice as much as the Stephenson's base from CS, even if you buy directly from them. It is nice from what I've seen though.