rekarns34613

artcwolf, they could be used in either application. I assume it is glass. I use the clear glass flower pot type glass to make my sample candles. I wick them, and pour directly into the pot. they sell for $4.00 and go like hotcakes:cheesy2: . HTH ~Ray

Hey all, I am hoping someone can help me out with this one. Up to now, I have only ventured into container candles. Howerver, my wife is interested in something else. A couple of years ago, we saw some candles packaged in cookie cutters. I think they were two wick, votive type still in the cookie cutters. Has anyone seen these, or made these before. If so, I would be very interested in learning how to make them. any help you have would be greatly appreciated!! ~Ray

Anna, I used to use j-50. had the same problem with most of my keepsake jars. had to repour them to bring back to fill line, and then hit them with heat gun to remove residue lines at top. However, now I use j-300. since switching, I have had no problems! HTH ~Ray

WCZIRR, DON'T DO THAT! I discussed that with my lawyer, and he said that if your homeowner's policy doesn't already cover you for a home based business, and they find out that you are doing it, they could drop you. It is really hard to find good homeowners ins. anymore, so I wouldn't go that route. In fact, I got a couple of quotes today from some agents, and it doesn't seem that it's going to be too bad. Thank you all for the input

Hello There! I was hoping you guys could help me out. I am curious to see how much I should expect to pay monthly for liability insurance. I am going to start shopping for quotes tomorrow, but, am working on my budget today. If any of you with insurance could help me out, it would be greatly appreciated. I am not looking for specific dollar amounts (don't want to be that nosey), just a rough idea that I can put on that line for now. Thanks for any help!

Salons and spas are great!! I'll be the one to put it out there. Obviously, our largest customer base is with the ladies. Who most often frequents the salons and spas?.... Ladies!(sorry guys, but we are outnumbered there:sad2: ) When we were in the retail business, we sold out of 5 hair and nail salons in our area. It was the largest part of our business. We sold on a consignment type system. We collected the money and restocked product once a week. We sold glass jar candles, and pottery candles. The glass jars sold much better. I agree that coconut shells will probably take away from the high end appeal of your product. However, they would work in the summer for a beach theme, or like was mentioned, in tanning salons. Keep in mind that specialty containers often limit your scent list. Not much demand for a blueberry candle in a coconut shell. Hope this helps Ray

Hello all, Dumb question here! As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have been out of the pouring business for a while. Now, it is time to get going again. I have 2 cases (100lbs) of unopened Astor J300 container wax in the garage. It has been there for almost 2 years. I live in Florida, so, temperature is a concern. Does anyone know if the wax would still be useable? TIA for any help! Ray

Hello again all..... Just wanted to thank everyone for the responses to my post. Sorry for not responding sooner, but the day after I posted, my computer caught a cold. Now, after a few vitamin shots, and a swift kick in the power supply(and my wallet), we are back on line. During the down time, we have decided to proceed with our venture. We are probably going to start up a little sooner than 2 years from now. I just have to do some remodeling to the house.( any excuse to use a power tool) So, I will be bombarding this forum with a ton of questions. Our previous venture included only container candles. obviously, we will need to increase our product list to keep up with the big guns. Again, thanks for all the help, and "chat" with ya soon! Ray

Hello everyone! Let me start by saying sorry for the length of this(my first) post. I am seeking some professional advice, and feel I should explain my current situation. I am new to this board, but have been watching it for days and have been impressed with the amount of help and suggestions given to everyone. So, here it goes! My wife and I are restaurant managers. You can probably imagine how hectic of a lifestyle this makes. About 8 years ago, we got involved in the candle industry. We started out buying wholesale from a small business, and reselling for a small profit. Of course, we decided to try and develope our own product. After several months of research, we began pouring our container candles. As it always goes, we poured alot more mistakes than good candles. However, we eventually found the right formula to make a great quality product. We started giving them away. We received raves about them, and even managed to sell a few. Next thing you know, reality knocked at the door, and candle makinig got put on the back burner(and eventually off of the stove all together). However, we manage to pour a batch every once in a while for gifts or for our own use.(mainly because I still have shelves of product.) Every time we make some, we get the itch(no, it's not a rash)lol. Last year, a death in the family forced us to take stock in life, and think about what we are doing. Over the past few months, we have been discussing a 3 (maybe 2) year plan to begin our own candle business. Because of our work history, we are going into this eyes wide open. We are not afraid of working long hours, and are fully aware of the timeline to turn a new business into profit. Our plan is for me to continue working while my wife operates the business. The length of time before we begin will allow us to take down most of our personal debts, and give us some breathing room to get started. With that said,(sorry for the rambling) we would like to hear from some business owners. The biggest fear we are facing is can this become a successful venture? We are not looking to get rich. That's what the lottery is for. We just want to try somethig that will allow us to be creative, work together, and be able to call it our own! In closing, thanks in advance for any responses(positive and negative). Again, sorry for the book. Promise to keep future posts short!