EricofAZ

I see you're new to the forum, but when you get access to the business side of things here, you may find some helpful advice. Keep good notes, test a lot, get feedback from the testers.

Be careful about any alcohol. A while back I experimented with some diffuser oil from Pier One. I'm pretty sure it had alcohol in it. I did a power burn and I noticed after the pool was wall to wall in the container and about a half inch deep (the wick was too large), it started to flash blue on the surface. Next thing was a "pop" and the glass broke. The break was absolutely horizontal like a glass cutter half way down the container. It was a temperature differential between the blue flash and the unmelted wax below. Top melted wax ran over and extinguished. It could easily have not extinguished I think. General Wax in California has some oddball additives. They sell a mineral oil to create mottling. I've seen some luster crystals on Ebay and bought them but don't think they work very well. If you really need glossy, I like the idea of polishing or adding a very light glossy top.

I've noticed that some vendors get a bit snippy. To me, having a variety is great. I have always thought that folks could build off of one another. Want the double wick no scent? Hey, its over there, she sells those. Want the widget that I have, great, here it is.

Probably cheaper to buy an ounce of navy blue liquid dye from one of the suppliers. A few extra drops should do it. The Yaley is pretty weak. Maybe add a touch of black, but be careful there that it doesn't end up a midnight blue which is not going to be quite right I think.

Good combo, looks nice.

I see food grade paraffin sold at the grocery store with the mason jars. I thought it was meant to be used to seal the lids in a way that would not be toxic to the consumer who ate what was inside. I never thought it would be appropriate to make candles with ($3.50/lb) or that it would be any better on the burn than what we get from the regular IGI suppliers, etc.

Of course, everything is made up of chemicals. Water has two hydrogen and one oxygen atom. It is a chemical H2O. Soy wax is made up of chemicals. I think folks get too carried away with "no chemicals" when they really mean "no toxic chemicals" or "no chemicals that are harmful to your body." Maybe the seller means "No harmful chemicals to breathe" but I wonder if that is really true.

I have a rather strong personal opinion that CB135 has little to no scent throw despite the load that it can take. C3 has been a far better performer for me and pretty much one of the better soys for throw. I will never order CB135 again. However, the CB135 I think leaves better tops than the other soys so if you are making unscented candles and want a pretty one, it might be a good wax to consider.

Ever since I started using co-workers to test my candles, they've been on the lookout for anyone in the area that is selling candles. Today someone brought me a candle and a business card from an athletic event expo. The candle was about 2 ounces at most in an octagonal glass for $2.50. Good CT. The card said candles and jewelry and it was not tacky at all. (The candle was a re-sale.)

I'm imagining this company is something thought up and run by the Clampetts. I can just see it now. Jed would be the guy in charge of personnel and complaints. Jethro would be in charge of marketing. Granny in charge of shipping. Elley May in charge of the internet and phone orders. Mr. Drysdale, of course, in charge of incoming orders and bankroll. Ms. Hathaway would be the front person for the company, you know, that friendly face that everyone recognizes. Cousin Pearl would be in charge of purchasing. The dog Duke would be in charge of FO's.

I thought I was the only one who did that. I used a marker to mark 1.5 inches from the center so that I get the rim alignment correct then I glued a second stick on top with the same. I offset them for the wick so when I have the marks lined up, the wick is perfectly centered. I use mold seal to hold the wick. Glue guns are great, eh?

I use palm in pillars mostly but also in containers. For the life of me, I have not been able to get a 3 inch melt pool for the container (or near that for the pillar) without using a large wick and dealing with a taller flame. The pillars seem to like the #4 square braided wick and it burns about as tall as you mentioned. The containers are not so easy. I use a CD14 and that still leaves wax on the wall. I hate to go higher because I want to keep the heat of the glass rim under control. I did notice that after an hour of burn, the flame settles down a bit. Its just when I first light it off again that it burns tall. One thing I will say about palm is that I am very impressed with how it throws EO's like Lavender or Ylang Ylang.

Next, of course, is a courtesy letter to the IRS and the City/County Tax folks about the money she was collecting on an invalid tax ID. This nation is in enough debt, we don't need people like that collecting tax money and keeping it. She should go to a federal prison where she will learn the true nature of B*#@ $lapping. There are too many people that have made too many sacrifices over the last few hundred years to build this great nation. Folks who want to fraud and cheat and tear it down should be removed from society.

How does the 7505/9900 compare with 6006? I have 6006 here, its soft, slimy to the touch, and burns with a light wick compared to other waxes.

i think one of the important things about testing is building our experience. We can get all the book learning we want with tutorials but actual experience comes only one way. Testing with single types of wax and recommended wicks for the pool size got me used to how a particular wax tended to perform. It helped me to build a sense of what I call a baseline. So adding things shows up right away if the candle test burn is different. I can tell on a test burn if I put in too much vybar, for example, because the pool is smaller and the test burn is different from what I know the raw wax wants to do.

I have to say that the only colorant that ever effected the wick selection was when I bought some White dye that really turned out to be a pigment. That white clogs the smaller wicks, so I had to wick up when I used it. I'm looking for a real white dye now, not a pigment. I have not noticed any issues with any other liquid or chip dye so no/light/heavy colorant just isn't a factor in my testing (other than pigments of course).

What color do you use for Yuzu?

Nice tops, centered wicks. Have fun testing.

I had a co-worker two years ago that couldn't handle perfume. I had to come to work au-naturale or she'd walk out. Now I have a co-worker that takes her inhailer when we spray the bathroom. Recently, a lady came by to pick up some container candles for wholesale and she was pulling the lids off and whatnot. The co-worker had to leave. Some people are sensitive to this stuff and if so, making candles is probably not the best thing to do.

Tucson, and I get up to Phoenix every month or so on business. We don't have much candle activity here. Someone told me I was the only local chandler here, but I have a hard time believing that. I know you have a few in Maricopa County.

Keep in mind that the BBB is pro corporation and anti-consumer. When the BBB says the company made a reasonable offer to resolve and the consumer refused to accept, you need more information to decide if you agree with that. Some of you may be aware of the heavy criticism at the national level of the BBB. The national has been on a heavy campaign against attorneys who hold companies accountable for their actions. They have also been heavy in support of offshore jobs and outsourcing. I've always thought of the BBB as a corporate shill, not a valid consumer complaint process.

Well, I love this board because the vast majority wants to do it right and not mislead. That's great. Here's how I do my labels. I have 4 check boxes. __Soy __Palm __Paraffin __Blend If all I used was soy, whether 464 and C3 blend and additives, I check SOY. If 25/75 paraffin and soy, I check both soy and paraffin and the blend box. If I cut my palm with soy I check the palm and soy box and blend box. If anyone wants to ask, I tell them what I made. I do not include deminimis additives in the check boxes so if my colorant was a paraffin base chip, so be it.

Good job at reading the instructions. The yellow dye with the butterscotch is fine. Eventually you'll see charts and suggestions about colors for a plethora of fragrances. If it looks good, go for it. Wait at least 24 hours before burning. I've stared a burn when the wax was just starting to crust (30 minutes) and waited days for that extra curing time. 24 hours seems to be pretty much the soonest that works. Takes overnight to know if you need a second pour. You know there is a lot of testing, but you're off to a good start. Let us know how it turned out. A few good recipes are great to help folks get started.

If it was me, I'd try a test burn with a 62-52-18 cotton simply because I have a bunch of those.

Yup, quite nice.