RobinInOR

Bunny wrote up a nice tutorial on how to build a soap formula http://www.candletech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3164

There's a spot in the mals admin section where you check off that you want to take credit cards. When you do that, and your customer selects that pay method, they'll be taken to a secure page where they can enter the information. When you are notified of the order, you have to log into your mals account with a special password (you set up another one to get to payment information), and you can then cut and paste the information into propay. It's a manual process.

A good way to start is one drop base, 2 drops mid, 3 drops top. Or you can get quite scientific - I've actually started doing this for my signature scent I'm developing and it's kind of fun. First, mix 2 top notes in 10 different concentrations, by drops: Note A: 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 Note B: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10 So your first sample is 10 drops A, 1 drop B. Your second sample is 9 drops A, 2 drops B..... You've got 10 samples of 11 drops each, with note A the strongest in the first sample, and Note B the strongest in the last sample. Figure out which one you prefer, and make up a mixture using that ratio. Next, using that mixture, add in the mid note. Mixture of A/B: 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 Middle note C: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10 Figure out which one of those 10 variations you like, and make up a mix of A/B/C. Continue on with the base note... Takes a long time to work through though

Well, this weekend is the 'official' start in this area of all the holiday fairs. So this weekend I'm going to be a customer I think - check out a few of them. Good luck to all those with shows this weekend! After playing customer I'll get back to soaping and balming - this is the weekend I've got to make my soap logs - lavender, rose, lemon verbena, oatmeal, orange/clove, and cranberry creek.

The one that weighs to .035 oz weighs to an accuracy of a gram. The other one weighs to an accuracy of a tenth of a gram. You'd only need .1 gram accuracy if you're doing something like preservatives for small lotion batches.

Douglas is about the only one I found with dog breeds. They're the ones I used for scented dogs, cats, lambs, etc, and they didn't have too bad of a minimum - I think most of the small animals were $3 each with a minimum of 6? Pretty easy to store for future years.

The weeks sure seem to move faster the closer it gets to the holidays, doesn't it. Good luck to all of those with shows, and stay safe our Californians! This weekend after packing up orders will be more soaping. I'm pretty well caught up, so I'll actually get to play with some new scents. Will be trying 2 new pumpkins (my current one is too dark for my liking and is renamed "Creamy Nutmeg"). Then probably bath tea and a ton of tangerine and lavender lip balms. What are you guys up to?

That's when it's the best - yum. I've got a pound bottle sitting on it's cap draining. Now that it's around $100/#, I don't want to waste a single drop!

If you don't want to use a full blown heat gun (I find them heavy), try using an embossing gun that you can get at Michaels or some such craft store. They don't have quite as much force and are a bit coolor. Hot enough to melt wax and do shrink wrap, though.

Yup, Illustrator has the option of saving as a pdf file. If it wasn't created in Illustrator, it'll be tougher to edit because it doesn't have the complete information on everything, but it gives you as start. One thing you can do on non complex labels is use your pdf as a background layer, and redesign over the top of it.

It usually evens out since your retail website will also include shipping $ and time. The boutique will be less $ in total and instant gratification.

Sounds like a bunch of you have fairs this weekend - good luck! Take pics? We love pics. My market tomorrow *was* canceled, so first order of biz is sleeping in without an alarm clock! Yay!

And whatever you tell them, they'll say it's too much anyway! lol...

Why wouldn't you give a hotel/restaurant your wholesale price? That's what it's for.

I think I tried about everything. I started with hang tags, but they got messed up and bent. Then I went to a neck tag - about 1/2 inch wide. I printed my own on 8.5 x 11 paper. That worked the best. The tops looked a little bare so I supplemented it with a design that just said "soy blend" something or other.

Are they set up with a centralized checkout? The setup sounds similar to that - you don't really work your own booth. Everything is tagged with prices so they know exactly how much you've sold so they can take their cut.

Rain, rain, rain, downpour of a rain. It looks like last day of market may be canceled tomorrow , so I'll have extra time to work.. Still cranking through the list of what I need for holiday fairs. Rose, Lavender, Lemon Verbena are on the list. What are you guys working on ? I love fall scents, so warm and yummy smelling!

Try marketing them in conjuction with your soaps. Are they fragrances that are in your best sellers? Put them next to the matching item. Price them higher, and then do a 'buy the soap, get $1 off matching perfumed oil'

It's wonderful - especially in the winter when the hot cloth steaming feels good. I sell it in one ounce bottles with a dropper, so no water ever gets into it - I don't add preservative. I think mine is 50% castor as well - I know I dropped the % down to make my face feel less tight. Might be 60%.

Neat! Congrats, that looks yummy!

Absolutely wonderful looking! Very professionally done.

It's a sign that the oils are starting to oxidize and are going 'off'. Could be many reasons - high heat/humidity, old oils.... and it can be catching. And possibly only one bar out of a batch will get it.

It's close. Colloidal is even finer than oat flour. But I've had good luck with oat flour, I grind it a little.

Another week gone, another week closer to the holidays Still madly catching up on stock. Just found out my suggestion for a craft fair at work has been approved, so there's one more fair I've got to prepare for. This weekend will be an interesting blend of scents - patchouli, orange, clove, rose, lavender, lemongrass - not all in one thing though! What's up in your neck of the woods? Have a great weekend!

Tell me about it. Aroma Web is pretty good - I use it alot. http://www.aromaweb.com/essentialoilspz/perubalsam.asp And I'm about to cough up the dough on Tisserands EO safety book.