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I use 1239, and love it. It's very versatile, you can make rustics, chunks, mottles, etc. It performs very similar to the 1343 but has a slightly higher fragrance load. HTH!

http://thecandlemakersstore.com/category/jars.old_fashioned/ These look similar if not the same, HTH.

Okay, this may be a bit long...It is not a stupid idea, as long as you do your research and are comfortable with what you find. We opened a craft mall in our town last year. The booth fee you mention would be considered reasonable here in Michigan, but the commission is extremely high, 10% is the standard here. The store makes its money from booth rentals, and those rentals should be calculated to cover the store's own rent, utilities, advertising, and eventually owner income... hopefully we'll see that last one at some point! The commission helps offset things like credit card fees and returned check charges, and 20 to 25% is pretty outrageous. Since the store's income comes from rentals, empty booths are bad business, and being new, she might be willing to negotiate booth fees to get her booths filled. You got some excellent tips already. I would add, find out what you're able to do in terms of setting up/decorating your booth. Some will let you paint, some won't. Ask if there is any incentive for committing to 6 months or more... it always surprises me when people pull out after one month because they didn't make their booth fee. Your booth is your business, and like any business, it takes time to build a customer base and repeat business. if you're not willing to commit to 6 months, you probably shouldn't do it. As a prospective new vendor, feel free to ask (not demand) just about anything. If SHE doesn't demand a contract, run. I promise you she stands to lose much more in uncollected rents and the cost of chasing down late payments and storing abandoned merchandise than you ever will with damaged or stolen merchandise, she needs a contract to cover herself, and any legitimate craft mall will make every vendor sign a contract. And don't be surprised if the contract states the store is not responsible for lost or damaged merchandise, that is standard here too. Insurance companies here will not cover merchandise which is not owned by the store, so vendors can insure themselves or take their chances, just as they do with craft shows. Finally, keep in mind that there is a difference between a craft mall and a consignment store. A craft mall is a series of subleases. We rent space to a vendor, and that's their store... they can paint, decorate, set up their display however they like, and it is up to them to maintain it, keep it stocked, clean and attractive. The store's job is to get traffic into the store, but it's the vendor's job to get that traffic to THEIR booth. We have three candle vendors, myself and two others. Do I push my stuff over the others? Of course not. The store can't succeed if our vendors don't succeed. My candles are a whole separate business and I pay the store, just as every other vendor does. I do extremely well now, but it took 3 months before I made my booth fee. I offer frequent specials, check and replace stock once a week faithfully, played with pricing until I hit on a price level that moved my merchandise, decorate my booth for the holidays and seasons, etc. Every customer at every craft show gets a flyer with a coupon they can use on my items at the store. Another candle vendor does very well also, and she's very good about checking in and maintaining. The other vendor sells very little. She is nearing the end of a 6-month lease, and I've seen her twice, and her booth still has xmas gift baskets in it. She calls constantly to see if she sold anything and always has a nasty comment, because her sales are so low. Sorry so long, I am always interested in the "craft mall" threads, and hearing all the different concerns and opinions and seeing the different rates around the country! It can be a lot of fun and very rewarding... or not! Never know till you try. Good luck whatever you decide!

You accumulate points with every purchase and the points can be redeemed for money off your order. When you check out it will tell you you have so many points and do you want to redeem them now for this much off your order... you can choose to redeem or keep accumulating. I think each point only converts to one cent, but it does add up if you order regularly. HTH

I use Joy wax for all my tarts, and it works beautifully. And if you use clamshells, it pops out without leaving residue. Great scent throw. I don't mix it with anything, just use it as is, so I can pour tarts every time I pour candles, with my leftover wax.

Wow Carol, thank you for posting that, she carries several things I use, especially my votive and pillar wax, and is only about 5 minutes from me!! You just saved me a ton in shipping!

Good luck, there really isn't much available here. The best that I know of is Southern Scentsations in Brownstown, she specializes in soy but also has some para-soy blends. I haven't tried her wax, but her scents are for the most part excellent, and service and support are very good. There is a J and L Creations in Harbor Beach, don't know anything about them except that they are in Michigan. And I got a postcard in the mail the other day for a new company in Trenton called Best Candle Supply. I took a peek at the website but wasn't impressed, so I threw the card away, but I think it said they would be carrying wax soon. Other than Southern Scentsations you might be better off checking in Ohio, shipping usually isn't bad from there. Snowtop is in Ohio, and has a good reputation. Haven't tried their wax, but the scents I've tried are very good. Several other good suppliers in Ohio as well, the Candlemakers Store and Natures Garden are two I can think of. HTH... if you do find any others in MI, let me know!

Tammie, the store is about 7000 sq ft. People have requested all kinds of sizes, the largest has been 3'x20x, smallest 1x2... average spaces are 2x4, 2x6, 3x4, 3x6, in that range. Do you have craft malls in your area? I know they're popular in some areas, not so much in others, some have done well in michigan, some have come and gone quickly. I've had my candles in other craft malls in Michigan and done well, and I've seen a few posts on craft malls on this board, it's interesting to see how different things are in different parts of the country... especially rates! You couldn't rent a shelf in Michigan for what people have mentioned for 10x10 spots in other areas! So we'll see... but it's been fun Can I post the website to the store on this board? I'd love some feedback, and I'm so proud of the logo, done by BizzyB of this board! If not, someone let me know, I'll edit and remove. www.fourseasonsgoc.com Wish me luck... vendor move-in starts tomorrow and grand opening 4 weeks from tomorrow! Thanks!

Thanks so much Mag, for your reply... and some excellent ideas. I'm going to use your suggestion, to the extent that I can without turning away too many crafters. We've done pretty well getting a good variety without oversaturation in any one area, but the candle applications just kept coming in and I wasn't sure I was being fair...your method will help! If you're ever in my part of the midwest (South Lyon, MI), stop in and see us! Thanks again!

Hi all... I don't post much, mostly read, but I can't think of a better group to get an opinion on this issue from! My husband and I are opening a craft mall in our town. We have space for up to 150 vendors, we're about half capacity right now with signups coming pretty quick, so I expect to be at 100 by our opening in June. How many chandlers would you think was appropriate? Right now we have 4, two are strictly beeswax tapers, pillars, molded candles; two do soy containers and votives and melts. I've turned away several container chandlers because I didn't want to over-saturate any one type of product, but we only had 50 vendors signed up at that time. How many chandlers would you think appropriate at 75, or 100, or 150? Would welcome any opinions... TIA!

Are the shows close in location, where some of the same people might be going through? You might want to consider doing both, when people see you at multiple shows they remember, and they begin looking for you at future shows. Just depends if your physical and emotional health will take it!! My first show of the season is this Saturday, the first of three in a row, then a week off, then 3 in a row. I will be exhausted and sooooo sick of candles by the end of april, but spring shows are big around here and I prefer not to do summer shows, when the kids are home from college and I want more family time, so this carries me thru till fall when we have a similar schedule. Good luck whatever you decide!

I have Label Factory Deluxe... CD1 is the program itself, graphics, fonts and photos and some clipart. CD2 is clipart only. When you have your label template on the screen, and CD1 in the drive, click on "Image From File", then browse to your CD drive and open the photos folder. HTH

Natures Garden has Mardi Gras as one of their new scents, just poured a sample yesterday, liking it a lot! Their description: A festive and fun fragrance that begins with fresh citrus top notes of grapefruit, orange zests, and tangerine; middle notes of strawberries, apples, pears, rose petals and jasmine; with sexy bottom notes of vetiver, white musk, and ylang ylang. This fragrance is sure to jazz with your customers!

I get all my clamshells from Mill Creek, their service is wonderful, the quality is great, shipping is fast, price one of the best I've found on that item if you order quantity. The few FO's I've tried from them have been excellent, and I often order bears from them if I'm in a pinch and need them quickly. HTH!

Joy isn't messy at all, it's soft enough to cut with a sharp knife, but not sticky or gooey. Each slab in a case is separated by wax coated paper, just peel off the next layer of paper for the next slab, no mess. Wouldn't use anything else for my containers, but I haven't had any luck with the zinc wicks, I use hemp and LX also... no black jars, no smoking. I've seen people say they couldn't get rich colors with Joy, but I can get dark and vibrant colors with NG's liquid dyes... much more concentrated than others I've tried, I have a tougher time getting pastels! HTH.