RichardLOZ

Thanks for all the great comments from you all. I was going to put some pics up of the votives that we made, but due to an interstate move back to NSW from Western Australia sooner than expected, all the candle stuff is now in the process of being packed for the move. Ou last market was on Sunday just gone. We did ok there, however it ws more of a trash and treasure market than anything else and people were always trying to spend as little as possible and go home with a full car load of stuff. We have alreadt checked out some markets back on the East Coast, and it looks like we can do something like 12 different markets each month. Will still be online uptil we move though Cheers Richard

Hi there, I guess the easiest way is to pick a style that you particularly like and go from that point. To some degree it may be dictated by the wax that is available to you if you dont want to have to pay for shipping etc. Personally we do containers, pillars, votives and tarts and we use 3 different types of palm and 1 type of soy for our products. Its really horses for courses, so decide what you like and start there. They are all great to make and all have their issues when it comes to wicking etc. Trial and error (from a good starting poinmt of course) and test, test, test, test. By the way did I mention testing Have fun and let us know how you progress. Cheers from downunder Richard

The information I have from my supplier on 464 is as follows.... GW 464 contains a soy-based additive and is both natural and kosher. This soy-based additive enables the soy to be poured at a hotter temperature reducing frosting and increasing FO GW464 - Has a lower melt point which helps with the burn and gives better glass adhesion. Suitable for container candles and tealights. Pour Temp: 65-80°c Melt Point: 46-49°c FO Load: 8%-10% I dont get too muich frosting, but have had some cracking when mixing the soy with non crystalising container palm. Richard

This is starting to look pretty good, however the red is a little hard to read over the graphic. Perhaps you could choose a different colour or a darker shade of red. It would also be good to see how it looks on your jars to get a better perspective of the overall look. Cheers Richard

Even taking the advice of a supplier can only be used as a rough guide. My supplier here has their own wicks, and along with each jar they sell they do give a wick recommendation, however even with the limited experience I have compared to some on here, I can only use it as a guide. In some cases it works, however in most it does not. They give a starting point, then you have to account for your FO, particular wax, additives if used etc. Yes it does cost both time and money, and lots of but it can be and is a very rewarding hobby / business depending on which way you would like to go with it. We now have custoemrs coming back to restock. Considering the limited time I have done this for I am very very happy. I know that by spending the money and testing, testing and more testing, I have a product that I can be proud of and that the customers like and want more of. You have to be confident in your product and know exactly what it is likely to do, or how it may perform under different circumstances. Yes I test burn under controlled conditions, however I will also test with a draft blowing through, by burning continuously for 8, 10 or 12 hours. This way I know what my product is likely to do even when used under not ideal conditions. Some of the comments may seem harsh, but a lot of the people here have been doing this for many many years and have put time, effort and money into it. People here will give you advice which you may choose to take, or you may choose to ignore. Ultimately it is only you and your daughter who will suffer, as you will become frustrated in making a product that does not perform optimally or even a product that may be unsafe. Sit back, chill, listen and learn and it will be a very rewarding activity for both you and your daughter. Off my soapbox now Cheers Richard

We currently use old glass coffee pots for pouring and generally just pop them in the oven upsiade down. Once the residue has melted out they are just wiped with paper towels. I reckon I would make more income if I had shares in the paper towel company. The paper towels seem to feature quite heavily in our trolley when we go to the supermarket to do the shopping Richard

OK a question for all you guys in the states. Things like this are just not readily available here in Australia, or at least I am unable to find anything. We have decided that it is going to be far easier to shrink wrap our pillars and votives, but I need to find a supplier in the states who is willing to ship to Australia. At this point I do not need huge quantities as we will first test the water to see how the packaging is received. We are also looking at the window kraft bags for our mini melts and melts. yes I have found a supplier for those but the smallest quantity I can buy is 500 bags. If any of you know where I can get a small quantity of both the shrink wrap bags for my pillars and votives and maybe just a couple od dozen on the 1/2 lb and 1 lb window kraft bags it would be most appreciated. Even if anyone on the board who uses this packaging is willing to sell me some small quantities for test marketing purposes. Can pay via paypal or whatever method suits best. Either solution will be most appreciated. Thanks Richard

Now there is the life. Pouring, selling, listening to music and having a drink all at the same time. What better way to earn a living Richard

Thanks to all for the advice. Guess I will be heading out during the week to pick up some UV. It sure isnt cheap, although a little goes a very long way. Yesterday was the first outdoor show we have done and we were surprised at how quick the fading occured. As far as the soy, when we bought our gazebo during the week, I looked at the walls and though should I get them or not. Decided at the time that it could wait and we will see how it was without. Guess what I am also going out to buy thisw week...LOL. You live and learn I guess. It still amazes me when some people turn their noses up at the prices, as they really have no idea what is involved in making a quality product for them to take home and enjoy. If it was just a matter of melting wax, sticking a wick into it, then I am sure that everybody would be doing it. Ah well I will enjoy Sunday today and then head out to spend some more money next week. Candles and spending seem to go quite well hand in hand I have discovered....LOL Richard

It looks pretty good to me. How nice it would be to have a place like that where you can keep your stuff, pour and sell all in the one place, rather than having to pack the car every weekend and drive somewhere, unpack it all, then reverse the process. It does get a bit wearing at times. The shop looks great, and I wish you much success Richard

Well of we went to a local show this morning, which is a nice change from the every Sunday trash & treasure market we generally do (although we are getting people coming back to restock which is very positive) By the afternoon we had learnt two valuab le lessons. Soy melts in the sun (which we already knew), but today was not that hot at all. I guess the direct sunlight played a part in that. Position is all important, and ours today had the sun streaming in under our gazebo for a few hours. Palm totally fades in direct sunlight. The pillars were in direct sunlight for quite a few hours, and the fading is totally visible. This is not the hippy range, but our more sedate range of actual feathered pillars, as well as melts. So two lessons learnt today. Have to start adding some UV stabiliser in, and in summer down here we are going to be in huge trouble with our soy range, as temperatures are regularly over 100 degrees. Might have to start testing and experimenting some more with the glass glow palm, which seems to hold up pretty well in the sunlight and heat. Any suggestions from those more experienced than us on either of the 2 points above aould be most welcomed. Cheers Richard

Hey Antonia We have also done some votives in this same style and I can assure you that they are a bigger PITA than the pillars....LOL. We have just got back from a local show so they are currently still in the car and can stay there all night as I just cant be bothered unpacking. Will get them out tomorrow and try to get a pick of them to post. Lets have a look at the ones that you have done in any case. I am sure they will still look wonderful. Sometimes we can be our own biggest critics, so lets get a pic of yours up for people to comment on. I am looking forward to seeing the results. Cheers Richard

Strange that you are just getting x's. If you go to our website you can see some of them on there. Cheers Richard

Jeana, I am using some locally sourced wicks for these ones so if I put it here it would really not mean anything to you. I was going to play with the CDN, but I have got the ACS (aussie candle supply) wicks working very nicely with the palm so for now will stick with those. Cheers R Richard

Yes I know exactly how you feel. The testing can start to get you down a little and palm I think seems harder to wick then the soy. A little bit over and blow outs everywhere, and a little under and the poor wick drowns. Ohhh such fun...LOL Seeing you have the palm you may as well go ahead and play with it. You just never know what you may turn out. Cheers Richard

Both Tracy & myself hate Lavender, but it seems as though the customers do not. A horrible fragrance to pour, but what can you do. If they want it I guess you have to supply it Richard

There isnt really too much to tell you. We are essentially using 3 and sometimes up to 5 colours. All feathering palm. The palm is not poured hot as we are going for a non feathered look, however some feathering worked in looks pretty good. Before each tilted layer is poured we let the layer below it set pretty good, so that there is shrinkage back from the sides of the molds. This allows the next layer to run down creating the kind of messy cool look that they have. It is really all on the colours I think, and Tracy is very good with colour combinations, unlike me. If you dont want to use loads of wax, perhaps try in a votive mold first. Our first ones were done in glass tumblers, which actually allows us to observe what the wax was doing, which made it somewhat easier. Doing it in the tin molds is a bit more of a challenge as you are pretty much guessing what the wax is doing in the tins. This is some ways can make it better, as YTracy stated earlier in the thread, it is like opening a present as you never really know what you are likely to get. We have done some which have then been remelted and redone. That in itself is a task as once you have remelted you dont want to waste wax, so for thoese one you just have to work with the colours of wax that you have. We tend to also use our scrap wax for the same process, just have to be careful of the fragrance combinations. HTH and maybe Tracy when she wakes up can expand on what I have said. Cheers Richard

LSCandles & Antonia Thanks so much for your comments. I am sure that Tracy will be very chuffed as they are pretty much her babies. I dont have the eye for colour as she does, nor the patience I dont think. Just ask me about all the damn testing.....LOL. We now have added a brown earthy set called Log Cabin and a bright green set we are thinking of calling Rainforest. The name refers essentially to the colours rather than the fragrance. These sets are fragranced with Jasmine, Winter Nights and Vanilla. SHe played yesterday with votives in the same style, so we may add 12 or so of similar coloured votives to the range and see how they go. We currently sell our votives for $1.50, but these ones we would lift to $2 as they are a PITA to make considering the time involved. Cheers Richard

I am sure you can just imagine a few of those nice firestarters sitting around down here in Aus at Christmas in 40° heat, which in your scale would be about 110°. Dont quite think you would need the firestarters to assist in getting the fire going somehow Richard

I love the way that you guys over there do things like these. I have talked to Tracy about doing them here, but once again I just dont think the Aussie's would get it at all.....LOL, nor do we really have the cold weather like you do there. Richard

We currently use their Teakwood, Spa & Moonlight Path and all are great. The teakwood is very very strong. Richard

We make crystal potpourri with the large rock salt crystals. We use only FO as we found that the EO's did not hold their fragrance well at all. We had some lime EO bags that had no smell at all after about 3 weeks, whereas the ones we do with FO have been lasting 5 - 6 weeks. Dont know if that would be the same with the beads as we cant get those over here Richard

Thanks Koalagirl. LOL, they are mine, Tracy did the rest, and she says I have no colour coordination...hahaha. Your note to self is valid. We only have 3 each of the small and large pillar molds so to do these does indeed take a considerable amount of time. We will continue to see how they sell and if it looks like we will be selling quite a few we can then go out and purchase some additional molds. They are fun to do though, and the look of them definitely attracts people to come over to our stall. We are doing a local show this Saturday rather than the regular flea market we attend, so it will be very interesting to see if there is any difference in buying patterns from people. Cheers Richard

Hi Dee I cant comment on the C-3 or C-1, but I used to use the GW 415 and have recently changed over to the GW 464. The GW 415 is great for both hot & cold throw and gives nice smooth tops with little if any frosting, however its PITA having to wait till it is slushy to pour. Its fine if you are pouring a couple of jars, but if you are doing 10, 20, 30 it becomes a pain as once it is slushy it coold very quickly as you would probably know, which makes pouring a large amount difficult. The GW 464 can be poured much hotter so you dont run into the same issues on that front. Using the 464 I still get nice smooth tops, however have had some frosting and wet spots. To fix these I waited a day and then hit the jars with a heat gun, let them reset and the frosting went away. For this reason I have now stuck with the 464. Both hot and cold throw are still great with all of the oils that I have used so far. HTH Richard

I like those. Personally I do like chunk pillars, so I might try and convice Tracy that they are a good thing to do and will bring interest to our stall Richard