deb426

A cinnamon and vanilla blend

Amaretto Nog from CS

A triple layer candle with sugar cookie, snickerdoodle and choc

An accidental blend of black cherry and cinnamon

peppermint and cranberry tarts

Doesn't matter. Cut your losses and get your stuff back. There is no way that this will end well for you.

I do some small novelty candles and I wick them to burn like a pillar, not a votive.

I use CS MacApple as a mixer. Just be forewarned that it is very strong and will overpower almost all of your combos at 50/50. A little goes a long way if you want the other scent to be dominant.

"Sorry, its a mess right that I'm going into my busy season. I'll show you some other time." Of course, "some other time" never comes around. Close the door when they come over and don't open it. Kind of like what you do to a teenager's room, LOL.

Yes, get a presto pot, you'll enjoy your hobby more even if you are only making them for yourself.

No, the difference between 200 and 195 is not important, at least in my opinion. I'm sure someone else will probably think its earth shattering, though.

There are so many variables that play a part in retail price. If you can buy wax and containers by the pallet and your oils by the drum, and if you can pick it up, that can cut your costs to a fraction of what a hobbyist would pay for the same products. If you live in or near a metropolitan area, you can charge a lot more than if you live in a rural area. If you are a hobbyist, you might be happy to cover your costs and make a little extra. If you cheat like the overseas producers and only scent the top of the candle, you can cut costs. If a celebrity's name is on the label, the rules go out the window. There really is no way to compare. Just make your product and set your price. If you can't sell it for the price you want, you will have to decide whether you want to make it for less.

Have you already tested wicks for the 4 scents you chose in the jars you are getting from Walmart? All scents do not necessarily work with the same wick. Making melts and making candles are two very different animals. In any event, I wish you luck with your endeavor.

I use whatever I can find at a yard sale

Now. August has always been my biggest month for pumpkin scents.

I can't tell from the picture. Do you have your votive in a tight fitting container, a votive holder? A votive should become a little container candle after the first burn or so. Its not meant to burn like a little pillar.

Did you weigh it or are you going by how much is in the bottle?

Black Cherry. I love that scent but can't sell it to save my life.

When people I know ask for my website, I just give them my web address. I don't expect them to search for it. Can't you just give your website addy to them? Companies invest a lot of money to make their websites show up on google searches.

I'm a vanilla girl.

This is a picture of the bottom of some tarts that were poured into a souffle cup, an embed and the bottom of a little jar candle made about a two months ago. Notice the black mildew or mold or something that has appeared. I had this happen one time before and thought it was some kind of fluke. It appears to be from one small batch. Other candles with the same wax and same scent but made at a different time did not do this. It is straight C-3, the FO is Strawberry Shortcake from CS. I made other batches at the same time using different FO and this did not happen to those candles.

Any ideas on what it is and how to prevent this from ever happening again? Has anyone else ever seen something like this?

My shop is in my basement so I'm very lucky. Is it possible for you to do just your pouring in another room, even the bedroom? You could just set up some temporary tables, like you do at a craft show, and pour in there. You could still use the kitchen for heating, mixing, etc., but just pour somewhere else so the candles can set up without being disturbed or disturbing anyone else. Get some of those cheap plastic table cloths to cover the floor under the pour table just in case.

I am happy to see someone else's workshop has interesting electrical and extension cord arrangements like I do. Everything looks great. Hope you have a great vacation.

Old FO generally doesn't weaken, it actually changes its scent to something completely different. It either smells "off" or its completely unrecognizable.

I'm working on fall scents and looking for blending ideas for apple and pumpkin. My customer base is pretty traditional in its scent preferences. I'd like to use Pumpkin Souffle and Mac Apple from CS for the apple and the pumpkin scent. Any ideas?

Well, anything clear is going to smudge so if you really want to get away from the smudges, how about buying a few dozen 16 ounce tins and storing your tarts in those? They would fit in your baskets and you could even decorate them with Mod Podge and scrapbooking paper to make them pretty so you could leave a few in plain view.

How much oil per pound did you add?

Can't tell yet. Show us again on the third burn. It looks okay so far but for me, I'd like to see a full melt pool on the next burn after three hours.

I would like it if people just pulled into my driveway, walked up to my window and pushed a buzzer to alert me to their presence, and I could just pass the candles out the window after collecting their money. lol

LOL, this for me too, please.

Did you try cooling without covering them with a box. I've used C3 for years and never cover them to cool. The only time I have trouble with sinkholes is in January and February when my workshop is pretty cool. Do you have your air conditioner set low? You might try cooling them in an un-airconditioned room.