classiccandle

I'd like to take a stab at making bath melts and from what I understand if you don't include an emulsifier the oil will tend to pool on top of the water instead of disperse in it. It looks like Lush uses laureth-4 in their bath melts and I've seen where some use Polysorbate 80. Which would be the lesser of two evils to use? Thanks!

Is anyone here a copywriter that would be willing to sell their talent for a reasonable fee? I need someone with such a talent to help in writing captivating product descriptions for me. I've done it to this point but after reading what I've written even I have trouble seeing why I should buy it....lol. If anyone is interested please feel free to PM me with examples of what you've written and what you would charge. If this isn't the right category for this type of request would the mods please accept my apology and move it to where it should go? Thank you!

I too ordered sample fo's that were over $16 a pound and had no issues. I take, "...Designer Roll ons, Essential Oils and Fragrance oils of more than $16 a pound are not allowed for sampling." as more of a suggestion than a requirement...lol!

Thanks Debratant, that's exactly what I want to avoid. I guess when in doubt, err on the side of caution. Now, are tealights even worth the effort to make? Which are more popular, scented or unscented? I'm just trying to decide whether or not to add them to my product line.

Yes redraider you did answer, thank you. I sent you a reply and I too think it's a good thing!

Hi redraider. I sent you a PM.

Wow, I'm impressed! I placed two separate 10 sample FO orders today and paid for shipping on both and they've already been shipped and Fragrancebuddy also refunded $8.05 for the second shipping cost. That's darn good customer service!

I get mine from eclamshell and have poured probably 700 or so and haven't had a leak yet.

Hi Ravens, The BNB, RC, and CB that I mentioned I think throw well. However, I've sold one BNB and a few RC and zero CB in the past six months so I would think that the customers just don't like the smell of them. I do love their prices though!

I've used several of their FO's. One of my best sellers is their Gardenia FO. I've tried their Creme Brulee, Red Currant, and Banana Nut Bread but I can't seem to give those fragrances away. It may be the area I'm in or the fragrances themselves as to why I can't sell them but it seems I can't keep enough Gardenia in stock. They're a great group of people to work with too.

Thanks ksranch. I did do a search prior to asking the question but couldn't find any threads that asked this particular question. Maybe I wasn't using the right keywords.

For those of you who sell tealights do you use plastic or aluminum cups? I'm just a little nervous about using plastic around a flame but they seem to be pretty common in the industry. Has anyone had any bad experiences using plastic cups? Are they even worth the effort? Thanks!

For those of you who use cigar band type labels on your soaps do you print on both sides of the label so it shows on both sides of the soap or on just one side? I've printed on one side and added the ingredients to the sides of the label but have added nothing to the back. What's common practice? Thanks!

Thanks Kitn. Does sanitizing them with rubbing alcohol prior to using them do any good if they haven't been soaked in bleach water?

Thanks Pam! So what's the best way to get it out? Pour out what you can and then cut the top of the jug off and scoop out the rest?

I have gallon jugs of lotion and was wondering if it was safe to heat up in the microwave in order to thin it out enough to pour?

Thanks LeahRB! I didn't think to look there. I will from now on. Have a great day!

Wow, does no one know if JB causes lotion to turn brown? I guess I'll just have to put some in lotion and if it does I'll toss out perfectly good product.

Can anyone tell me if CS Juniper Breeze contains vanilla? Will it turn lotion brown? I called CS customer service but they couldn't tell me if it contained vanilla nor could they tell me if it turned lotion brown. If it were me I think I'd want my reps to know a little more about my products than they seem to know.

I've sold 4x more melts this month than I have candles. I've only been selling since February and from what I understand it's more of a seasonal trend than it is an industry trend. Plus, I think cost is also a factor. I sell my melts for $3.99 and my candles for $11.99. One woman I spoke with who used to make candles and such said she never buys candles during the summer and I think that's the norm. If I'm not mistaken candle sales should start picking up around September and then start dropping off again in April/May of 2013.

I know what size label I want on my lotion bottles but I couldn't find the exact size (3.75" x 5.5") at any of the label suppliers so I thought about ordering 8.5" x 11" full sheet labels, printing the lotion labels out (I can get 4 labels per sheet) and then cutting them with a paper trimmer. Does anyone else do this? Do the labels come out looking professional? Thanks!

Good morning. I have a question, mostly for the ladies, regarding lotion labels. I'm a man and thus don't tend to use lotion but my wife uses it every day. However, she keeps hers in the vanity area, away from excessive moisture, and not in the shower area. How many people keep their lotion in the shower area and how important is is to have waterproof labels on lotion bottles? I understand where bottles/jars for things such as shampoo, conditioner, bath salts, salt scrubs, etc would need a waterproof label. While they're much more expensive than regular labels I will gladly pay more if you tell me you think it's necessary. Thank you!

Is it more marketable to make the "type" of lotion more prominent on your label or the fragrance? For example, if I have a lotion that contains organic aloe vera and shea butter, among other ingredients, and the fragrance is Sweet Pea and Vanilla do you think the customers would be more interested in seeing the fragrance emphasized or the organic aloe vera and shea butter emphasized? Would it be better to emphasize the fragrance and then have wording such as "enriched with organic aloe vera and shea butter"? I may be over thinking this....

Thanks Candybee. I'll definitely check out the sites you mentioned. I haven't sold any M&P soap but I have given plenty of it away. Instead of switching from M&P to CP and having to explain that to my customers I think I'd rather just start out buying CP wholesale from someone while I learn the craft, plus I can feel better about marketing my soap as "hand made". I have nothing against those who do market their M&P soap as hand made though. It's just a personal preference. Having it made by someone else is of no consequence to me as long as it's CP soap. I've heard of re-batching but from what I understand, and please correct me if I'm wrong, it's a laborious task to do. It seems it would be easier for me in the interim to buy the CP soap wholesale while I learn to do it myself.

I asked this on a different thread I started but since that thread was about a particular company who sells wholesale CP soap I thought it would be better to start a new thread asking the same question. Is there anyone on this board that makes CP soap (translated "experienced"), who is willing to wholesale loaves, at least for a little while, while I learn how to do it myself, and is willing to either give me or sell me some samples of what they make (I don't mind paying a reasonable price)? Or, if I gave you a recipe, would you be willing to make it? So as to not start any wars with anyone on the board would you mind PM'ing me with your answer as well as what types of soap you're willing to offer/make and what you would charge? I'm mostly interested in moisturizing soaps that have good lather, as well as exfoliating soaps, preferably with fine walnut shell powder or oatmeal and about 5 oz each, or thereabouts. I'm not interested in fancy looking soaps, novelty soaps, or multicolored/multilayered soaps. We can get into more details in the PM. Also, I don't know if this is the proper section to ask this so if it isn't would the mods please accept my apology and move it to its proper place? Thanks!