Lifelace

Hi! I don't have any suggestions but I wanted to say I really like your candle names. Very cute and different! I would be super interested to smell them all (as opposed to plain names like say...Lilac). LOL Melany

Hi Coco, please know I don't mean to offend but there's NO WAY your freezing and adding frozen water packets will work! They would work for packing a lunch or something but your items won't stay frozen for more than a few hours. Ziploc bags open all the time too so basically you're zipping zipped up water that can burst at any moment. It's only a matter of time before they burst and wet everything, your customers will not be happy, plus it can add to the shipping charges (weight of water) if you're not using flat rate. Please reconsider and find another method! It's simply impossible and your water packs, in a hot truck, would barely survive a few hours (and I mean a FEW). I won't even mention the frozen items, those will maybe last 1-2 hours frozen and you risk damaging them. Just put some frozen items in your car and see what happens. Again, I don't mean to offend but just had to say something, for your benefit and your customers'. Melany

Oh they will definitely be a hit! Very cute and girly and colourful! Melany

I get these too, they are just undissolved little lye crystals. I am completely OCD though and as the lye/water is cooling I'll stir and with my spoon break ALL the little bits up until the water is clear and nothing floats in it. They eventually will all go away but I need to break them up and stir stir stir. I don't get too many but it takes about 10-15 minutes of me stirring etc....I too would be worried about undissolved lye crystals in the finished soap. Depending on what kind of container you use they can be hard to see, but I use a clear one. Melany

Hi, you are definitely better off making larger batches (at least 10 times that), they will be alot more consistent (margin for error is much bigger the smaller the measurements) and it does mean a ton less work on your part (washing up a pot and instruments for 1 tart). You can store them safely and they'll keep their scent. Also you REALLY REALLY do need to figure out the math because you'll be using it constantly. Just open your little windows Calculator and put in: (wax amount in OUNCES) x 0.06 (that is what you are scenting at right now (6%)...which is pretty much the minimum, you can go higher for tarts) Just write it down on a sticky or something. Also, that is a 2oz tart right? That is kind of big and too big for alot of burners out there. The Yankee tarts are 0.8oz for example. Also as everyone else said, please do test all your your fragrances. You don't need to carry hundreds of scents, this just overwhelms people. Just because it's out there doesn't mean it'll throw good. You need to start on the right foot and selling tarts that don't throw will upset your customers. I will be completely honest and tell you I'm very worried about you selling tarts at this point, you seem very inexperienced and in a hurry to be making money....be smart and do it right. I hope this helps. Melany

I got the Salty Sailor from Daystar and while it's a nice scent, it's very perfumey to me. I prefer Cactus & Sea Salt from ICS. Melany

No offense taken. I know nobody said that exactly, it's just one of the <<messages>> I took from Top's post. Not that selling crap was great, but that Yankee was a REAL company that contributed to the economy and where their employees were paid well etc... (compared to chinese laborers that we are, which is true in many cases). I honestly don't dissagree with Top on most things but that is the feeling I got....that Yankee was a great company compared to the little hancrafted ones that don't bring in much revenue....and I still disagree with that because <<great>> to me doesn't just mean the money it makes. I've been doing this a few years now and still don't make much of a profit. For me it comes down to funds that are available. I can't buy large quantities of anything so I pay the maximum for everything, which means very low profit and not paying myself. BUT I do believe in the products I make and until I can find a solution to boost my profit (which is in the works and quite exciting) I'm going to consider this a hobby that pays for itself. After the first year and a half of testing, experimenting etc....where I spent money only I now make a profit (if I don't pay myself) and it's growing more and more. I'm not getting rich any time soon BUT if I can make a decent living doing this eventually that would be soooooo much better than working a 9-5 job I don't like. SO it's That's how I see it. With that said there are candle and soap makers out there that do this exclusively and make a nice living doing it. I'm thinking of Patti Flynn and her DH for example. Some people just have it goin on! Melany

To the a poster who asked a few replies ago, I design and make my labels myself. Handcut everyone of them. LOL. Top, I agree with many things you said. My arguement really was not that they are ripping people off by selling expensive candles but that they are ripping people off by selling CRAPPY expensive candles. I would have NO issues paying top dollar for something that is actually WORTH it. I certainly find NOTHING about that to be worth being proud of (selling crap for crazy prices). I do agree the handcrafted market is so saturated right now and handcrafted does NOT mean a better product, especially if it's cheap. I almost NEVER buy handcrafted stuff because I have bought tons from many places and have been dissapointed 99% of the time. I do think most of these hand crafters will give up soon enough, the true successes in this biz are not very many. You need to have the whole package and most of us lack in one area or another. While I think Yankee's tarts are AWESOME (and I admit I buy them at 2$ a pop more often then I would like) I think their candles suck. They sell awful candles that tunnel and smell like nothing and make loads of money doing it. Why do you think that is so great? If your goal in life is to be rich by any means and you don't care how you do it then that's great but personally I would not feel good it that way. It's a matter of preference I suppose. Melany

Wow, absolutely gorgeous soap! Such wonderful colors! Melany

Shortening is basically a solid cooking/baking oil. It's used instead of margarine when baking cookies etc....it's commonly called Crisco, you'll find it with the liquid oils in the grocery market (or possibly the baking/flour section), not in the margarine/butter section which is refrigerated where over here. Shortening usually comes in small boxes or round tubs. Melany

I was thinking that maybe he wants soap that removes garlic scent. Maybe he used some before and called it Garlic Soap, same thing as a Kitchen Odor Soap, KWIM? I truly doubt he wants a garlic scented soap! I would ask him for sure. EDITED: Sorry I missed your previous post. Well honestly, I love the smell of garlic when I'm cooking but certainly would never wants the smell on ME. Sounds like a bad gift choice only a man would think of. That's so frickin weird! LOL Melany

Hi guys, about the lids....do you mean the small or large jars? I'm in Canada and get my candle supplies at Village Craft and Candles and also Canwax. The small jars are just the little square mason jars with a seperate lid. Those can both be found at Bitter Creek. The large jars I have not found on a US site yet, but I didn't look much. I pay an arm and a leg for mine though! About 2$ to 2.50$ per jar since I'm just small potatoes and order from Canada! Oh and about the <<what happened to Yankee?>> comment in the last reply, I think they simply got greedy! Oh and you guys both say they don't scent their candles past the top portion.....WOW, I had no idea but it's definitely possible and simply horrible on their part if they do, just ripping people off! Melany

Hi guys, forgive me if this has been posted already, I did a quick search and didn't find anything! I just felt a strong need to rant about this, I feel violated and traumatized LMAO! I know, exaggerating a little....but GEEESH! I was in a local gift shop looking at candles and tarts for ideas on what is available around here (I sell 100% soy candles and tarts, been making them for a few years now) and saw the new Yankmee 100% Soy Candles. 25$ CAD for a 9oz white tumbler. Ok, I thought the gift store had them really overpriced, NOPE, they are 20$ US on the Yankee site (Med. Tumbler). I sell mine at 10$ for same size. Anyways I KNOW what it costs me to make these, I can't imagine they pay a fraction of what I pay for my supplies. It's a crime really and I feel so bad for people who will buy these and the kickier is they all smelled terrible!!! They probably tunnel like crazy too, like the usual Yankee candle. At least Yankee's normal candles have a decent cold throw. They had 5 kinds I think, all foody, and they smelled like fuel or something and very faint. On a good note, there's no way Yankme's addition of these soy candles will really hurt us, just the opposite. I know what my candles smell like and how much they cost and I feel much better now! These are mine BTW, just sharing! Soy Candles - Group Shot Triple Layer Large Soy Candle - Christmas Collection Probably not as cute as the Yankme ones (like their labels, not the all white candles so much). I'm so proud of my little babies!!! I know most people like us, I mean people who make candles at home (no matter what kind of wax), take GREAT pride in what they do and care about their products and customers and it's just a shame when a company puts out inferior products at such outrageous prices. I really hope I don't come out as a mean person, I truly not in the least. Also, I would NOT rant and bash another company, no matter who it is, to my customers. That doesn't help my image but among us I think it's fine! I will however be happy to mention Yankme's prices on candles!! I just really felt the need to rant about these, even though they are probably a good thing for us! Melany

Hi! That is a very intriguing and good point!!! Hmmm....I think this would work for new customers but I would say most of my customers are repeat and my biggest seller is my MP soap and they always rave and rave about the lather and moisturizing effect and say they've never had any soaps like them before etc.... (yay!) I would get my head chopped off if I only did CP, plus I love it myself and wouldn't want to only carry CP. I think it's mostly because my CP soaps are rather boring, I need to make them more interesting! I'm just very small right now and my husband got me most of my customers through his work (desk drawer store LMAO) They don't even glance at my CP soaps and just want more and more MP! I sell in a tiny craft mall store also (not sure what they're called in english) and it gets very little traffic (meaning new customers). Most of the people that go there have used my soaps before and they enter the store and go straight for my booth. They are often <<word of mouth>> customers too, that have heard about my products from friends or family. Teehee, plus I think it's very flattering that people will choose MP over CP when they have both to choose from. Means it's worth making! Oh, back to the cheating topic, I'd like to shamefully admit something: the reason I started making CP soaps is because I felt a tiny bit <<ashamed>> and thought people would look down on me for only doing MP. It sucks that many of us feel that way for sure!! Melany

I do make both CP and MP. I find them both equally time consuming (MP is a pain to wrap IMO) but I MUCH MUCH prefer making CP. Problem is, my customers just aren't into CP! They are into the clear colourful MP soaps and I have a really hard time getting my CP to sell. Sure some people think it's cheating, so what! I think those people have probably never done MP and have no idea how difficult it is. Sure if you just melt in the micro, scent and add a few drops of colour it's insanely easy. BUT I do logs with embeds, cubes etc.....and it's not easier than swirling CP. Well really I should use the term <<time consuming>> instead because I find both easy to do. Now ask me what I prefer to use in my shower and I'll admit I prefer MP most of the time, because of the pretty colors and scents that stay true and strong. Melany

Hi there, I do both MP and CP and I gotta say the SFIC base is sooooooo much better than the soap bases sold at Nature's Garden. I found the ones at NG drying with low lather while SFIC's is the opposite plus the SFIC one is pretty much all natural (no chemicals) etc...I LOVE NG's fragrances but the soap base not so much. Stick with Peak's! As for color, I tried to play with oxides and MP and it just didn't work out well, liquid soap coloring is the way to go, which is what you got. I always LOVE to use natural ingredients to color my soaps like herbs and clays but not into oxides with the MP really. I use that for my CP. The liquid colorant blends right in (you can even use food coloring) but the oxides are much harder to blend in. Just know that the liquid colors will <<bleed>> so if you were to make a soap with different colored chunks for example, eventually the chunks would discolor the surrounding soap. But it sounds like you won't be doing that yet. Also, the only thing I can find missing is fragrance, will you be leaving your soap unscented? Peak has many fragrances, I would pick a few small bottles. But the stuff you listed is perfect. HTH! Melany

Hi guys, I'm just wondering if there's truly a big difference between the Fitoderm brand of squalane and any other <<no name>> brands? All olive squalane of course. I'm getting ready to order some for my serums and used the Fitoderm before and it was wonderful and had such a clean scent to it (from SW), but it's 3 times more expensive than other <<no name>> brands I can buy here in Canada from a few suppliers. Anybody know what the difference is? Thanks so much! Melany

Hi! I DID add honey! I added honey powder and wasn't sure how to mix it in and just sprinkled it in the mix after blending in my FO but there were lots of lumps and I KNOW some did not all get mixed in. It could very well be it because I really couldn't see any lye crystals floating when I mixed it with the water, which I stirred for quite a while to make sure it was all dissolved. Water/Lye Mix was clear. So.....you would keep this soap as is? I'm scared to taste it! Melany

Hi guys! I'm still brand new at making CP soap (about 10 batches under my belt) and this is the first time anything <<bad>> has every really happened to me. I was just cutting some new soap and there are bright deep orange <<oozing>> tiny sores on the soaps. From what I read this isn't DOS but could they be undissolved lye crystals maybe? I'm so upset I want to cry! What are these little sores? Is this soap garbage? There's ground oatmeal in the soap so that's what most of the spots are but some are darker and seen to contain some liquid. Should I post the recipe? Thanks so much for your help! My poooooor baby soap! *SNIFF*

Hi guys, does anybody have a good name suggestion for Kumquat FO? I live in a small town and many people don't know what that is plus it doesn't sound very pleasant and isn't easy to translate to French. I'm horrible at renaming scents! Any help would be awesome! Thanks. Melany

Hi there, just wanted to say...if in about 10 years you run out LOL that NG has this one now, it's a new scent. I haven't tried it yet though but thought I would let you know! http://www.naturesgardencandles.com/candlemaking-soap-supplies/item/df-00018/-NG-Black-Currant-Vanilla-Type-Fragrance-New-(ZB,-ZS).html As for my personal top 5 (right this moment): - SW Be Delicious - SW Honey & Shea - NG's Mardi Gras - ICS Cactus & Sea Salt - Bert's Silk Sheets Melany

Thanks guys! I think I'll order a larger bottle of Wash Day and a sample of Clean Cotton! Melany

I just wanted to say that I've ordered several Pink Sugars from suppliers and I find they vary greatly. I wish I knew which one was more authentic, I've never smelled the real thing. My least favorite was Scent Work's version, instant headache in a bottle, there's a really strong in your face note in there that I can't place! Melany

Hi guys, does anybody know the difference between Bert's Wash Day and her Clean Cotton? She says they are both the same dupe (YK Clean Cotton) but different suppliers, she doesn't give much of a description. What do they smell like? Just wondering! Melany

I also don't like it BUT try mixing it 50-50 with plain Vanilla FO, I call it Pink Sugar Clouds and it's so much nicer! Melany