bravo5

Excellent, thanks for the tips!! I'll be trying them out tomorrow.

i set my impulse sealer to 2 for foil packets. HTH

Great, I'll try that. How long did you seal them for?

I had already gotten an impulse sealer for other uses so I'm going to use that- but it's good to know about the iron/etc in case the impulse sealer isn't working!

I got some foil sample packets from KB and am going to play around with filling and sealing them tomorrow. I did a search on here and got some great ideas I'm going to try for filling them. The only posts I found on sealing them were for using things other than an impulse sealer. I recently got an impulse sealer so want to use that- I'm just wondering what setting / how long to use it.

Thanks much!

Whew! I got in now.

They're local and I just placed my first order from them about a week ago.

Anybody know what's up with Kangaroo Blue? I couldn't get into their website yesterday, and now it's just a placeholder page saying "Future website for MediMinderCards".

Huh?!?!?

That looks like exactly what I am looking for!!!

I had some shrink wrap for lip balms from another supplier, and this is much better!

Thanks much! I'm ordering now.

BTW- I ended up ordering about $50 from KB. Why can't I ever just buy the one thing I go to buy at a supplier?? LOL

Started playing around with lip balm, labeled my tester tubes- and already found something I don't like. I just hand-wrote a label for the tubes using existing label stock that I have. I don't like the "feel" of any of the labels! I tried regular laser paper labels, "weatherproof" laser avery labels (polyester), some avery clear (matte) inkjet labels, and some vinyl labels. I don't like the texture of any of them. I looked at some store-bought lip balms that I had, and they all have a very glossy, "plastic-y" label on them.

I did see on one store bought tube a label I really liked- plastic-y feel, wrapped around the whole tube, but then also had a perforated "tab" that stuck up onto the cap, that was broken when opened. I also saw one that looked like the whole label was a plastic shrinkwrap type label- it came off entirely when I peeled it, and wasn't adhesive. This one also had a perforated piece for the cap, that snapped off when you opened it.

So... what media do you use for labeling your lip balm?

Yep, my bad! That's why I wanted to clarify. My happiness was because I was excited that I got them for free- especially for my "testing"! I was able to put labels on bottles and leave them in the shower, soaking in water, etc.

You forget sometimes that things can be interpreted differently in text in a forum. And my twisted sense of humor at times doesn't help! :tiptoe:

No harm done. (Sorry to hijack the thread with the need to clear my name of petty theft charges!! )

Yeah, I updated my post to read that I was GIVEN said stack of vinyl labels, I did not steal them.

I will try to be more clear on future posts, so as not to sound like I am a petty thief.

Right now I have a stack of full-sheet vinyl labels that I WAS GIVEN FOR FREE from work. We have a print shop in one department and so they GAVE ME some from there for "testing" purposes...

Starting to look online at sources, haven't found one that I'm thrilled with the prices, though. For some reason, nobody can beat "free".

Edited to emphasize that I did not STEAL, I was GIVEN.

Adorable! Very hip, nice clean lines, and like you already showed- will be easy to print in different colors, including just B&W.

Your husband did a great job!!!

I have an Epson with the durabrite inks and love it. I have soaked an entire sheet of printed paper, printed labels, and printed cardstock in a tray of water overnight and nothing smeared.

HOWEVER- the paper and label stock itself gets a bit worse for wear. I was using paper labels on my B&B products and they eventually start to peel off, bubble, etc. But the printed text/graphics still look great!!!!! Looking at vinyl and other stocks for the B&B labels.

(I also now have an Okidata color laser that I use for most of my brochures and labels, since in the long run it ends up being cheaper per page to print. But the toner cartriges are a killer at $150 each!!!)

I do use both printers for different things.

This ROCKS! Thank you so much for posting it!

You can call too and talk to an Oki rep, they were really helpful to me.

Be careful with the clear labels- they can ruin the fuser over time, as the temps get really hot. What brand/supplier do you use for them? I'd love to find one that works!

Are you printing on glossy labels/paper SPECIFICALLY for laser printers? It they are for ink jet, they are specially coated and will cause problems, and can damage the printer.

The only media I know of for sure that will not work with my Oki is most clear labels, as the labels will melt at the high fuser temps. Haven't been able to find a brand that is rated to a high enough temp.

I use full sheet card stock paper, which is stocked with regular and colored copy paper at Office Depot/Office Max/Staples- not with the specialty papers/business card/label stock. I have a paper cutter and then just cut them myself. It's MUCH cheaper than buying pre-perf'ed stock, and you get a larger variety of papers. Plus you can then make tags any size you want, all with the same stock. In your tag/label software, you can either pick a standard template, or some software will let you make a custom template.

I use about a 65lb paper.

http://www.officedepot.com/browse.do?N=200888

HTH!

Sweet, I'm going to download the trial version and check it out!

I have been thinking about getting this! For those using the inventory feature- how does it work exactly? Can you go into your "inventory" and see how much you have of items? For example- I'm placing an order with a supplier, and I wonder how much I have left of something- can I just look it up?

Thanks!

I bought a couple of their soap molds. Quality was pretty good. Though I did have an issue when the mold got warm in the oven, and the sap starting oozing out of the wood.

Their displays look pretty good, though!

I saw a demo at the '05 Chicago soapmaker's conference using "frosting soap" that's sold here:

https://www.oakcourtcreations.com/ProductCart/pc/viewCat_h.asp?idCategory=12

It was pretty cool. I still haven't gotten around to trying theirs, or making my own- too many other things to try!!

Good questions! I ran into a similar situation for my "custom" lotions, where the customer can pick scent (or unscented) and color (or no color). I did some reading and ended up putting at the end of ingredients on label- May Contain: Fragrance, FD&C Red... etc. etc., and listed all my colorants. I'm thinking about adding Mica also as I'm going to give an option for a "shimmer" lotion. I read somewhere that this is allowed if it's under a certain % of the total ingredients, but unfortunately I can't remember where and can't find the link.

As far as scent goes- I use fine point colored permament sharpies to write the scent on the label. Works great for me!!

Office Max and Office Depot both carry them too. They even had a nice one that I also got- Was a large sign holder (11X17) that had a holder for tri-fold brochures on the corner. Looks very nice!

I have discovered that businesses can be regulated by your city/county, etc. And there are some cities that have their own regulations, such as not allowing business from a multi-unit dwelling (apartment), or not allowing ANY home based business- you're not even supposed to have a direct sales business. It all depends on your city/county etc.

I looked into this a bit when a friend of mine wanted to start a home based business (not candle/soap related) within the city limits of Chicago. She went to get a city business license as required, discussed it with them, and was told she needed a state tax id and a county DBA before she could get the local business license. She went through all the steps, got both, then went back to the city- and was told they do not allow ANY home bases businesses that sell anything. Period. She had to get a separate store front, with a physical address, no PO box. No exceptions, not even for direct sales such as Avon, Home Interior, etc. That technically these reps are operating illegally. It's crazy BS if you ask me!

I have gotten both the ECO dyes from Northstar and the EVO dyes from Greenleaf. I haven't noticed a difference with the actual dyes. They are cheaper at Greenleaf, and the last I checked they carried a couple more shades that Northstar didn't carry. I just LOVE these dyes, too!

I like Northstar though, as they carry my favorite FO ever... Green Forest.

I started an early bird discount for this show- only $5, and the cut-off date was 8 weeks before the show. I had 6 or 7 people sign up on the very last day before it went up, so I am going to keep using it!