soylights

On 10/21/2021 at 1:09 PM, Belinda said:

Thank you! Good to know. I went ahead and ordered the one from RE but I do order from Aztec so I'll keep them in mind. Thank you for the information!

I just went to order Toasted and it's out of stock until the 21st and we have a large order to fill. Were you able to find a good dupe for it? We are scrambling and in need of 12 pounds. GAH!

22 hours ago, Candybee said:

I just ordered the Winter Wonderland Whisper from Candle Cocoon. I have never tried their FOs before. I ordered a few others to try:

 

Winter Wonderland Whisper

Dewdrop

Sage & Chamomile

Surf's Up

Crushed Strawberry & Rhubarb

 

These samples will be for soaping but the WWW will be for candles. I especially am looking forward to the crushed strawberry & rhubarb. I want to mix with it with my fresh picked cucumber (CS) and maybe a little lime EO for something fruity, tart, and refreshing for my CP soap line.

Sage and Cham is just wonderful!! 

Let us know what you think of WWW!! Excited to see if you think it's a good match for Mistletoe. Candle Cocoon has great customer service and wonderful quality. 

Update: There is another mistletoe dupe we just received. It is called Citrus Balsam from American Candle Supply. Smells exact OOB. I hope to test it this weekend. 

On 11/4/2021 at 12:03 AM, TallTayl said:

I got really cozy with boxes, pirate ship and go shippo to pack test configurations and charge accordingly. In my case, shipping by weight was the closest to not lose money on shipping.  

 

USPS has regional rate boxes which save a nice amount for shipping to nearby states. Flat rate has gotten spendy. the "cubic rate" promoted by Pirate Ship is the same cost usually as regional rates or any first class size box.

 

UPS and FedEx are nice options for larger / heavier orders. Both are offered through Pirate Ship and FedEx now.

 

Even though many boxes are "free" from usps there is the hidden cost of about $.40 in their rates. I build in the cost of boxes, void fill, tape, etc. into my item pricing and a small handling fee of less than $1 to cover miscalculations of shipping by the shopping carts.

 

I charge by weight and to an extent dim weight (accounts for larger boxes that cost more to ship through all carriers.

 

Shipping is my biggest cost, and I don't want to give up any of that as it steals from profit. The increases this year have hit hard.

Thank you! We are using ship station which we have found is fairly easy to navigate.

Do you find people are still willing to pay the shipping costs on larger orders, say wholesale orders where you are shipping many cases of candles? 

It gets difficult for me to determine what is reasonable. For example, we had a retailer reach out to us interested in our candles for her store in New York. Once we told her the shipping costs she was no longer interested. It would have been $20 per case and that was with us eating a portion of the shipping expense. We have all local retailers and fundraisers currently for that reason. It has been great but we know that in order to keep growing we need to figure out our shipping. 

Thank you for your insight! Appreciate ya!!

How do you determine your shipping rates? We currently charge shipping based on the amount of the sale. We know we need to come up with a better solution as we lose quite a bit of money this way.  The majority of our orders are local so it’s only about 10% of our business, however, we were just approved for Faire and things are picking up on the retail end. 
 

I am of the opinion that people don’t want to pay shipping so keep it low as possible. My business partner feels we should charge our cost including shipping materials. 
 

For example, orders between $1-50 are $5 to ship, orders from $51-75 are $10 to ship and so on.

What do you find works best for you? 

 

16 minutes ago, GoldieMN said:

You are using a 795 Premier wick?  I've never used that big of a wick; but then, I usually only use canning jars.  Wax?

GoldieMN

Yes that’s what works best for us in this jar. It’s a 16 oz 3.8” in diameter. Some we have to bump to 798 and some 793 for this jar. 
 

In a canning jar, we are between 745-775 depending. 
 

Using 75% 444 and 25% 4630 blend. 

22 hours ago, Candybee said:

Would you be so kind as to leave a review of the Winter Wonderland Whisper. I am very interested in this if it is a dupe of Mistletoe. Thanks.

Testing of Winter Wonderland Whisper has started! So far so good and just like CS mistletoe… honestly maybe better. 

59 minutes ago, Candybee said:

Would you be so kind as to leave a review of the Winter Wonderland Whisper. I am very interested in this if it is a dupe of Mistletoe. Thanks.

Of course! We have it on deck for testing this week. I'll keep ya posted

40 minutes ago, Candybee said:

Believe me I spent quite a lot of time going over my Mistletoe purchase with CS. I too thought the same thing, they had sent me a mislabeled bottle and told them so as it smelled nothing like the old. I was able to get them to send me another bottle to replace my last order of Mistletoe. I waited hoping it had all been a big mistake and I would finally get the one I was familiar with. It finally arrived but it was the same one as my last two purchased. Smelled nothing like the Mistletoe I loved but instead just like the last two bottles I had purchased on separate occasions over the past year. So I now have a third bottle of Mistletoe that was carefully checked by the CS team and it did not smell anything like the old one but did smell like the others. 

 

So it wasn't a case of being mislabeled. After receiving 3 bottles that smell nothing like the old Mistletoe but exactly like the newly reformulated Mistletoe you can see why I am not willing to try a fourth. I am looking for a replacement as well as a few other newly reformulated FOs from CS. Mistletoe is not the only reformulated FO that has completely changed for me, others I have been using for soaping now behave quite differently as the components have been changed out. I have a business to run and can't be spending my time and money on FOs that no longer behave or smell the same in either my candles, soap, or bath & body products.

So frustrating! I am sorry that happened. I really wish these companies were more transparent. I guess we just got lucky. Definitely hesitant to order from them again. 

Thanks! I don't want the mislabeled mistletoe. Sounds like that's what the problem was. Reading reviews....looks like this occurred from late 2020 into 2021. We just purchased our CS mistletoe order this month and thankfully it's exactly like the old one we used for years from 2008-2015. 

We are going to test Candle Cacoon Winter Wonderland Whisper this week so we have a back up. We have an order to fill for 200 Mistletoe!!! These shortages are stressing us out!

18 minutes ago, Candybee said:

CS Mistletoe has most definitely changed and not for the better. So any old bottle you have or any ones you ordered that still smell the same are not the new reformulated one. The reformulated one smells nothing like the old one. I now have a couple of lbs of the newly reformulated one that I can't use because of that. I am so disappointed because that was my absolute favorite Christmas type scent. 

 

Will have to check out Candle Cocoon and PFO. I don't remember seeing Pinion Pine at PFO but will check it out anyway.

 

Hi Candybee! How long ago did you order it? We ordered mistletoe recently from CS and it's exactly the same as it has always been. We have burned it as well and it's the same thing which I was very happy since I didn't know they had changed anything. The bottle is a little different and it does say "clean" on it but other than that it's the exact same one we have been ordering for years.  
 

Candle Cacoon will be a great alternative if you don't want to take a change on CS. Looks like we will have to use Candle Cacoon as CS Mistletoe is out of stock until 12/6 (according to their website). We are running into a lot of delays with the supply shortages. 

Hopefully CS has fixed whatever issue they had with mistletoe. Reading the reviews, it sounds like they mislabeled something. Either way, very frustrating, especially if they weren't upfront about it. 

Happy Candle Making!

13 minutes ago, TallTayl said:

You seem to have responded appropriately.

 

I say as little as necessary, such as soy blend wax and cotton wick.
 

I tend to cringe at the word “proprietary”, personally. Nobody needs to know your formula, or secret sauce, but knowing your product does or does not have allergy triggers, or paraffin wax is appropriate. As is a vegan asking if the blend has beeswax. 

Thank You for your help! I looked on the National Candle Association site but couldn't find anything pertaining to a required ingredient list. 

A customer recently reached out and asked for ingredients in our candles. She wanted to know the type of wick and wax we use. I responded that we use a proprietary soy blend and a cotton core wick.  I was wondering what information we are required to provide when someone asks for our ingredients. I want to ensure we are protecting our brand but also want to be compliant with any standards. TIA! 

On 10/17/2021 at 10:50 AM, moonshine said:

Okay this is one my absolute favorites of all time -I stocked up before the announcement of changing over to all Phthalate free-  has it changed that much really?…..

 

back in the day Moonworks pinion pine was exactly the same to my nose, not sure if PFO Carries that one since the buyout but I will have to check 

We are burning our small jar in mistletoe as we speak and I can smell it from the kitchen to living room. Just like it always has. I don't know what happened at candle science but I wonder if they packaged the wrong scent and shipped it out without explanation. We had not ordered Mistletoe since 2015 and the only change we notice is that the bottle says "clean" and is phthalate free but no other noticeable changes to us. 

Let us know your experience! Looking at the reviews it seems people are happy with their latest shipments. 

Best - Nichole 

40 minutes ago, GoldieMN said:

Thanks!  I will try again with Candlescience and see if it works the same as before with my soy/wick.

Otherwise, good to know there is another option.

GoldieMN

Of course! I read the reviews on CS website and not sure what happened but the one we received last week is the same we always purchased from them. It’s really strange though they would send out a new formula, not tell anyone, then switch it back. Transparency is so important. I wish organizations would understand this. 

We have been using CS Mistletoe for years. We just received a new order not knowing they had changed anything. We don’t notice a difference. We have tested it with our new wicks and it’s great! 
On a separate note, candle

cacoons Winter Wonderland Whisper smells exactly like CS mistletoe (OOB). 

Anyone

someone

Please help Nichole 😊

I am hoping someone can help us out. We have customers waiting on Cinnamon and Spruce from Rustic. Does anyone that has smelled this scent know if there are other suppliers of this exact FO? Rustic keeps pushing the date back, it's not their fault, it's their supplier but hoping we can find an interim while we wait for it to be shipped.

TIA!!  Nichole 

20 minutes ago, TallTayl said:

If you are at the top and it is questionable, it will usually become more clear with additional burns. The truth of the wick comes out about the half way point, then becomes more glaring as it gets to the bottom 1/4.

 

When you choose a wick from that, make another and abuse it a bit. For example, power burn, and purposely don’t trim before lighting. Treat it as most customers will.c

Thank You! I had one customer literally burn one of our candles for 10 hours. Yikes!! One odd observation was that with the 3rd burn in our blueberry, the 770 actually had a deeper MP than the 775 but better throw with 775. 

Update. We have burned our blend testers with Premier 775wicks in 16 oz jar candle that is 2 1/4 at the opening and about 3" at the widest part. 

Seems I need an in between wick size for this jar. 770 tunneled at first but then got better with each burn. 775 seems a bit big however giving good HT.  The flame is dancing around quite a bit, but the jar isn't too hot with minimal soot.  One thing I do like about the premiers is they don't drown out. Where CD's would drown out in 10-15 minutes if wicked to small.  I'm honestly not 100% sure if I should stick with the 770 or 775.  How would you narrow it down? 

Hello! We relaunched what used to be a hobby candle business this past January and it's been full steam ahead! I notice some companies offering less options than others and wondering if there is a strategy to this. We currently carry 21 scents and try to keep them balanced to have about 3-5 scents per collection. I would like to add a few more and maybe rotate them by season. 

I'm curious, how many scents do you carry?  

3 hours ago, TallTayl said:

Wow! So many changes lately. Many of their popular candle waxes seem to be missing from the list.

 

yet one more upheaval in the candle world... my head hurts from all of this. 

 

on the upside if it is not a raw materials supply chain problem, IGI will likely still produce special batches for resellers who buy the whole “lot”. Or hopefully we can still visit wax blenders like candlewic, accublend, etc. for custom blends. 
 

if you use specific IGI waxes, I would invest in as much as I need to make it through thoroughly testing a new wax with wide availability.

We called IGI and they said 4627 is still being manufactured out of Canada with no rumors of phasing it out. YAY! 

I was browsing the IGI website to learn more about 4627 and other waxes they offer and can't find 4627. I found this flyer for candle making and it's not there either. My first thought is it's being phased out. Does anyone know? 

Here's their flyer with current offerings. https://dxm.d7e.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/bsk-pdf-manager/2021/01/IGI-Wax-Blends-for-Candles-Home-Fragrance-Products.pdf

On 1/19/2021 at 4:24 PM, ambar said:

Did you ever figure out the problem with this? I’ve been having a similar issue with my 444, but I single wick using CD wicks. Thanks for your help!

It's possible the wick is too hot and burning your FO off in the first burn.  You could try a temperature gun to check the temp, if it's heating past the FO's flash point, it's possible that's what could be happening.  

6 hours ago, SRez said:

Will do. I've been primarily focusing on 464, but in the beginning of this journey (back in August) I went a little overzealous and purchased other waxes as well. 415, 444, 6006 and 4627.  You know, one of the first things they tell you not to do.... Pick one wax and learn it.  Listen I did not. I have some success with 6006 but decided to slow down and tackle 464 first... Seeing how I have 4 cases of it... Did I mention that I went a little overzealous?

 

Bakery scents so far work great in 464 but I can't get Black Cherry Merlot to throw decently in 464 after several FO%'s and wick series and sizes which is why I figured I'd add a bit of 4627 to 415 thinking the 4627 would give it a kick... So for those, I poured a bunch of baseline testers as well as scented ones with Black Cherry Merlot about a month ago and broke out one of the 70/30 to mess with.

 

And just like you've seen, I had to wick up as opposed to down. And still very little to almost no scent. The FO is good because it works great in a melter with 494. I may break out the 50/50 soon to compare. 

 

TLDR: I had a bunch of wax to play with so I figured I'd blend to see what happens. 

Ha!  We have that same challenge!  Total fear of missing out over here. And now I see IGI has a coco/paraffin and soy/coco/paraffin blend.  Try I must!

I have found the same with bakery scents in 464 and some florals.  Butt Naked is good as well. It's really the lavenders, citrus, and spa like clean scents that seem to underperform in soy for us.  

Even though the blueberry muffin 444/4627 tunneled, she's still burning and throw is pretty decent compared to all soy. We are excited to test with larger wicks. Will update soon! 

Also when I went to IGI's website I see no mention of 4627.  I'm wondering if they are phasing it out.  Anyone know? 

https://dxm.d7e.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/bsk-pdf-manager/2021/01/IGI-Wax-Blends-for-Candles-Home-Fragrance-Products.pdf