GermantownCandles

How many of you guys blend your own wax to create your own unique wax?  Just curious, I have my own jar blend and my own melt/tart blend that I think works better than any others that I have bought!  

The Candle Maker's Store sells them, but I never really noticed a difference.  As long as you keep your wicks trimmed and use the right size you should be fine with whatever you are already using..  The one thing that I like about the zinc wicks though is the fact that they stand straight up in the jar on their own after you put them in!

If you are tech savvy at all I highly recommend Photoshop..  You can tweak your designs to fit any label you want!  

When I first started blending oils, I only had a couple that I liked, but even then they were just ok. So, I started snooping around perfume forums and one of the things I realized was, if you want a really good fragrance, you can't just mix 2 oils and expect something awesome.. Most of the fragrances I blend now have 5-10 different fragrance oils in them, and the difference has been amazing.. For example, I searched and searched for an awesome creme brulee, and I did find only one supplier that I really liked, but I wanted one to make my own.. So I looked up the actual food recipe for creme brûlée and tested from there. So now I absolutely LOVE my personal creme brûlée and it contains 8 different FOs and lasts forever in my tarts.. Hope this helps!

Yeah, they are all over the place in Southwest Ohio. I have seen them in a lot of gas station / carry-outs. This is also the brand that is carried by OBI and a place in Ohio called the Flower Factory. They have a couple of fragrances that are pretty decent, but their wicking is definitely out of the ordinary. When you open the top of the jar, they leave the plastic centering device for the candle on it, and the wick usually extends about 2 inches or so above the wax.

I love the website elance.. I have had a decent amount of design done through them and I haven't been disappointed yet! And, there are developers on the site that will accommodate any budget.

Ugh.. Thanks for that reply, i need a shove in the right direction every once in a while... I kept searching for " candle warmers made in USA" and was getting nowhere!! More specifically I was looking more into an actual supplier, which I'm still having trouble finding.. Also, I'm not looking for the Tin Warmers, more the ceramic style.

Does anyone know of any place that sells electric candle/tart warmers made in the USA? We have been throwing the idea around for quite some time now and we have been developing a few of our own. My wife has a pretty extensive history with ceramics and we have developed our first prototype and it has turned out very nice. I'm just curious if there are any companies here in the US that make them? It seems like all the major companies (like many other products) sell warmers "Made in China" and it is driving me nuts!! Especially during the holidays they are always selling out! Any input would be greatly appreciated!

FYI if anyone is interested... Just got back from Wal-Mart and all of their Halloween themed table top candle warmers are 50% off... They had 5 shopping carts full at the entrance, all different styles, Frankenstein, Mummy, Pumpkin, Black Cat, and a few other pretty neat ones. They normally sell for $15 so they're going for $7.50 each right now. I picked up 15 of the Pumpkin Ones to sell at my festivals.

I was wondering if anyone knows if there are any manufacturers out there that make a "poop" fragrance oil? haha, someone I work with had a funny idea and if I can find it I'm going to make one for him. And I don't mean "Reindeer Poop", I mean like stinky, gross, poop smell! OR, maybe some suggestions for another really foul smelling FO! Thanks for the help!

I use 2" round labels. I use Photoshop for my text as well, and it works great because I can position my text to fit perfectly inside of the circle. I also include my company information at the bottom of my warning labels. Having a laser printer was the biggest help, my alignment when I print is always the same. When I first started, I used an InkJet printer and my labels always seemed to be just a little off center. Now, with my laser printer they are pretty much perfect every single sheet.

Yeah, I try to make each scent have its own color, but some are similar. And I just use the same warning for clamshells as I do for the tarts. This is what mine says.

"Failure to follow these directions could result in unexpected fire hazard or personal injury. Use only in well ventilated low heat potpourri burner without lid. Do not add water. Never heat on stove or electric appliance where temperature would exceed 190 degrees F. Melt enough product to have 1/2 inch of product in pot. Use only in melters designed for wax tarts."

Yeah they are on the inside. I just use a regular round label like on my candles. Works a whole lot better. I tried to get it on the front, but it just didn't look professional enough to me.

They look great!

I print them myself. I have a laser printer and it works great! It's nice too, because if I need to change something I just open up Photoshop and make the changes myself! Thanks for comments!

Sorry for the poor picture, but I just took it with my phone. What do you guys think of the design? Thanks again! It's pretty basic, but I think it looks pretty good.

Try the Starburst Palm wax, it is great for tarts. It is pricey, but I love the look of it and it falls out of my tart molds very easily.

http://www.germantowncandles.com/home/index.php?main_page=popup_image&pID=7

The link is a pic from my site that shows what they look like when finished.

A bit of advice a marketing manager at my job gave me when I started my website... Your homepage is the most valuable piece of "real estate" when it comes to a website. You want your best photo(s) of your best product(s) as the main focus on your homepage. If someone were skimming through candle websites and they come across yours, what is it that they would see first? Would they see some text on a banner or logo? Or, would they see your craftsmanship? When searching a site, your best product should pop right out at a customer, and you shouldn't have to scroll down to see what it is that you have to offer. Go to any big name website, and see how they display their product as soon as you get to their site. Just a little food for thought, but you have done an excellent job on your website! Congrats and keep up the good work, it will always be work in progress!

I use onlinelabels too. I buy glossy labels.I use an HP laser printer. I really like the laser, my ink never smears like it would with my inkjet if I touch the labels too soon, which is definitely a plus. I also use thesuppliesguys.com to buy refilled toner and I have never had an issue with refilled toner. I pay $127 for a combo pack of toner, and it lasts much longer than my old inkjet did. Picture quality is pretty much the same as what I had with my inkjet. My laser prints much faster than my old inkjet did as well. This is my jelly jar label. I use the same size on my 16oz Apothecary Jars. I use separate sizes for my 10oz and 26oz Apothecary Jars.

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I haven't tried heating the dye with my FO... I'll give that a shot and let you know how it goes! Thanks again, you guys are great!!

I bought some liquid dye from a small craft store near me just to see how it worked out. When the candles cool, i'ts leaving little dark colored specks on the side of the jars. I really like the deep colors it gives in my 6006, but I definitely do not like all of the little "dots" on the side of the jar. What do you think the issue is and is there anything I can do to correct this? Thanks for the help!!

I did a search on here and couldn't find anything. I was wondering if anyone has used the candle dye from Wellington? I tried some of their FOs before and it was about 50/50 on the 10 that I bought that I actually liked, but I didn't try the dye. Any one use it? Is it concentrated? Thanks everyone!

That is awesome to know! I have been really thinking about it lately! Thanks for the review!!

I always buy my toner from www.suppliesguys.com , I have ordered at least 3 separate times and have never had an issues. And, they are about 50% the cost of retail at Office Depot. I will keep using them unless I have a major issue. BTW, they also have awesome customer service.

Just curious as to how you guys that sell online ship your candles? I have small boxes I pack my candles in individually, then I pack them in a larger box with bubble wrap. I have never had any orders before over 5-6 candles/order. Anyone have any pointers on how to ship larger orders safely? i.e a case of 12?