Jeana

On 1/28/2019 at 7:43 AM, TallTayl said:

I’m with you.  When two lots of the “same” wax are as different as night and day I get really skeptical of anything I’m told. 

 

Coconut waxes are so new they seem to be playing games to capture some quick money. Truth in advertising goes a long way in my world. 

 

I said a year go coconut wax is a fad. Sadly I think it’s still true. Out of box not one is all that great.  It soots terribly if not exactly perfectly wicked, and often needs to be blended really carefully with other waxes (when the formulas change between lots this is the same problem soy has). small makers jumping into the coconut candle scene hopefully are testing well.  Sooty coconut jars rival paraffin in every way. How can we sell coconut wax on its merits when people see black glass and walls and ceilings for themselves? 

The interesting thing about coconut wax is that many of them are not meant to be a stand alone wax. I've have the rep from Cargill tell me the the Coconut 1 is only hydrogenated 92 degree coconut oil and should not be used more than 25% in a blend. He said people don't listen to that and try to use it alone. But it only has a mp of 92 degrees. And the owner of Accu Blend informed me that coco83 should be mixed because the melt point is too low. He even admitted that the sc21 should be mix even though it has paraffin in it, because "it's too soft on it's own" . So the problem is that candle makers are not truly understanding the products they are working with. Using coconut on its own won't work. There are other "coconut" waxes out there, like the one from Cal-Wax, that uses a high percentage of paraffin in them to raise the melt point, and they perform much better. But the amount of actual coconut in them is pretty small. They are mostly soy, palm, and paraffin. I know you personally know most of this TT because you are a research type person, but I thought this could help others. 

But you are definitely right when you say it's a fad. But I don't think it's going any where soon. People adore coconut in any form LOL.

3 hours ago, NightLight said:

Those waxes you guys tested must have paraffin in them. I created my own coconut wax formul and burns clean with zero soot on candle glass. If you want to use coconut wax you are better off creating your own formula then you won’t be subject to shortages and the whites of candle wax producers.

So funny you said this, this is what I’ve been doing. I’m so tired of of manufacturer mistakes and shortages effecting my business. Plus, now I know exactly what is in my formula. No more mystery waxes.

1 hour ago, PINKT said:

the coconut/apricot blend has paraffin in it, the virgin coconut creme does not.. this is what I was told

The VCC wax does have food grade paraffin in it. 

3 minutes ago, kandlekrazy said:

I'm really confused now unless Accu-Blend changed their formula.  I tried their coco-soy wax many years back and didn't like it.  Coco83 I liked (not loved) but def different from Accu-Blend of prior.  Accu-Blend used to be in So Cal and had a small store in their warehouse, I haven't been there in many years but they may still be in So Cal and you could buy direct from them.

What's the part that is confusing you? Accu-Blend is still in the same place, and they make the Coco83, but it isn't being produced right now, or they are sold out. You can buy from them direct. You have to order 2000lbs of wax to buy from them if they ship it. I think most of these people are not in California to go into the store to buy in smaller quantities. 

58 minutes ago, moonshine said:

And cal candle shows coco 83 in slabs not bead form 

my slabs from c & s were marked coco83 and easy beads was not - so add that to the confusion also 

Cal candle gets coco83 in bead form, then melts into slabs. Accublend is the maker and said they make the coconut for C&S. I’m assuming that would be easy beads. C&S just leaves it in the bead form.

24 minutes ago, TallTayl said:

Ok, so this is the quickest way to send me into a full blown panic attack.  Just as we are getting finalized on all the wretched testing now this wax is “gone” for all intents and purposes too? I have no swear words strong enough today. 

No kidding! I’ve been working on a blend of the sc21 coconut and soy for a year now. I just got really comfortable with it, and now they don’t have it in stock for the third time in the last month. I have accounts ordering their candles, and I have no wax to make them. How can we run our businesses this way? I’m scrambling now to figure a replacement formula. The sc21 was supposed to be back in stock yesterday. I tried calling and Cal Candle wouldn’t answer their phones. I take it, it didn’t come in. Im totally screwed  

4 hours ago, JeremyM said:

Ugh, sorry everyone, but they're right. It was a different company who told me their wax had no paraffin. I just went back through my emails. Even though Lab & Co didn't tell me outright it contained paraffin, I did ask if it was considered all natural, organic, and biodegradable. The rep replied the wax was not considered all natural or organic, but she then added that coconut, soy, and paraffin waxes were all considered to be biodegradable. I should have asked a follow up question. 

Well, I'm annoyed at myself now for not digging into it further. Did they tell you how much paraffin they used? If it's less than 1%, I may be willing to live with it if I can't find anything better. 

 

In the meantime, has anyone had luck with the Coco83 wax blend? Someone mentioned earlier it has coconut, soy, and beeswax. I think I'm going to order a sample of that and hope it works as well. I've also come across the All Seasons Wax during my searches. It would be great if we could get it here in the US.

 

Jeremy

 

 

Which company told you their coconut didn’t have paraffin?

Coco 83 has been discontinued for a while. By the way lab & co feels and behaves it seems to have quite a bit of paraffin. All of the coconuts I’ve worked have palm in them. I’m not very happy about that. I took palm out of my soaps a long time ago and now it’s in my candles. I’d rather have paraffin than palm. I’ve been using sc21 mixed with another soy for a while.. Now it’s its getting very hard to find in stock, so I’m back to the drawing board looking for waxes again. I got some coconut/soy from General wax. I poured a tester last night. Have you tried that one? I has paraffin too, but it’s cheaper than Lab & Co.

On 12/28/2018 at 7:21 AM, JeremyM said:

I asked them about paraffin, and I was told it contains no paraffin wax. I hope they're being honest with me.

Unfortunately whoever you spoke with is not being honest with you. I spoke with customer service there and I was told there is paraffin in it. I stated that other's were told it didn't have paraffin. She said she didn't know why anyone would say that. She said it has food grade paraffin in it. 

On 11/17/2018 at 1:51 AM, Marleigha said:

Wow!  @Jeana That is a beautiful color purple!  I just went to the CW site... I'm looking for a hot pink candle dye.  I've tried many magenta dyes but never an actual hot pink dye.  The other pic with the 5 candles has really pretty colors as well.  Have you tried the Pink from CW by chance?  TFS!  

Thank you  I love these colors. They are far superior to any of the blocks, chips, or liquids I've tried as for being able to color without frosting and not having the chemical dye smell. I have their pink but I've never tried to make a hot pink with it so I'm not sure if it would make that color.  It is a true pink though.  Magentas would have too much blue to make a hot pink. 

I normally use the Cranberry Marmalade from CS but it isn't phthalate free, and I'd like to move toward my entire line being PF. Does anyone know of a twin/dupe from nature's garden or bittercreek? I know I've smelled one before, but I can't remember where it came from. It was being sold as a different name. 

Thanks for the ideas everyone :)

Now a second part to the question. What do you do with the scents you don't like? Do you just toss them? I wish I had some candle/soap makers near me. I have sooo many things I would like to get rid of.  Like about half of the 1oz samples I have LOL. 

My goal has always been to make an Excel sheet to keep track of the ones I definitely didn't like, so I could just get rid of them. That still hasn't happened LOL. 

Does anyone have a clever way to organize about 100 1oz testers? I have sooo many, but I need to keep them and be able to access them easily when I need them. Right now I have them shoved in boxes. I lose track of what I have, so I order more, and the cycle continues LOL. I'm typically an organizing junkie, but I can't get a good system for these, for some reason.

3 minutes ago, TallTayl said:

That pic was trimmed to almost level with the wax-as close as the scissors could go.  Went on like that for a good 15 minutes or so.

YIKES!

1 hour ago, TallTayl said:

@Jeana the wax reminds me a lot of 4786 which flares like that when first lit. 

So that's only for a bit, then it settles? Is that starting it trimmed, or untrimmed?

On 9/25/2018 at 9:23 AM, TallTayl said:

 

 

Holy cow! I get nervous if my flames get higher than 1". These have cool packaging though. Certainly when they are testing, this flame isn't acceptable to them. I wonder if something changes after sitting on the shelves for a while? 

 

I had to take some soap photos so I thought I'd share. I explored some new micas from Nurture Soap this week. I feel like I've been living under a rock not knowing about these guys. Their micas are outstanding to work with. Not advertising for them, just the first time I've worked with them. 

On 9/22/2018 at 6:45 PM, Paintguru said:

 

Yeah the spice is definitely there.  Souffle may be better for a pure pumpkin smell.

All I can smell is the spice, no pumpkin  It has a great throw though. It still reminds me of Hansel and Grettel's house. 

I just don

16 minutes ago, Paintguru said:

Just started burning the Pumpkin Chai from CS, and WOW, I'm impressed.  I get both the pumpkin and the chai spice, and it is a great hot thrower.  Definitely a top performer.

 Good to know. I just don't know if I'll be able to handle the gingerbread type scent they put in it. I didn't expect that. I know the Souffle has tremendous throw even in some of the poorer preforming waxes. 

What are you trying to achieve by adding the BW? What coconut wax are you using? So that is 3% you are adding it at, right? Does it do this if you add it at 1 or 2%? Are you pouring hot enough? Many coconut waxes say to pour close to 200 to get jar adhesion. 

If you are going to color soy then the best colors by far are EVO colors from candlewic. They have no smell, and they frost less. They are super concentrated. This purple one was a tester of coco83/415. That color was about 10 drops, or about .05 oz.  And the other colors were either 464 plain or Ecosoya Advanced plain. It was a long time ago lol. 

So I put the pumpkin chai in wax and it smells like a cross between Hansel and Gretle's house and pumpkin souffle. It's not what I was thinking oob. I'm going to pour a souffle today to compare them. 

1 hour ago, bfroberts said:

They are both strong throwers.  Pumpkin Souffle has always been hard for me to wick.  I always get wimpy flames unless I use a bigger wick than I generally like.  Pumpkin Chai took a size smaller.  I use zincs.

If you are using soy, try HTPs. They hold up much better in harder to wick scents. I used to use an HTP 104 for a 3” container with 464. It was really nice. 

24 minutes ago, bfroberts said:

The Pumpkin Chai is nice.  I use 3 wicks sizes with my wax/jar/combo. For reference, Pumpkin Souffle takes the largest of the three (as does CS's Christmas Hearth).  Pumpkin Chai takes the middle size. Lighter oils like MacApple take the smallest of my three sizes.

OK, thanks, that's good to know that it is medium to wick. Pumpkin souffle was one of the easiest scents I have ever wicked. Sounds like the Chai isn't going to be as easy lol. How do they compare on throw? PS has a super duper throw.

2 minutes ago, jerry said:

I just ordered some Pumpkin Chai and am just coming to the conclusion that the souffle needs to be wicked up. I look forward to testing the Pumpkin Chai. I also got some Cinnamon Chai for comparison

Let me know how your testing goes with the pumpkin chai, and the comparison tests. Pumpkin souffle sells really well, but I think it could be nice to have the hint of spice for a twist this year. I can't do too much spice it messes with my head too much. I can get migraines from a lot of cinnamon or clove. 

I used to use their pumpkin Soufflé, but after smelling their new pumpkin Chai I'm considering switching. It has just a little more spice, but not too much. Anyone have any experience with the two to help me compare them, or want to give an opinion? The pumpkin souffle needed to be wicked up, does the pumpkin chai? Does it throw well?