Henryk

I wonder if it has to do with the type of silicone its made from too? I had a grubby-type silicone mold and when I poured the wax at too HOT a temp I got that white frosting. Pour it lower made for a MUCH better result. This mold just happened to be pink - but I assume they can color it any way they want?

Thank you! I wanted to do the eye pins (Thanks - now I know what they are called!), but I just ran out of time - and used gold cord. I think the eye pins would work really well as BW is really sticky and my ornaments didn't weigh that much. I use either the mold release from mann lake - which I think is a silicone spray so its ok because thier molds I believe are a rubber type (they work great btw!). I have heard that you do NOT want to use silicone on silicone molds though - so for everything else I use the mold release from candlewic.com. For most applications I spray the molds every other time - but just a little. You know, for the few times I have used real silicone molds I have not used anything and it was just fine - but I used paraffin. I would not think BW would stick to silicone. I don't know what the candlewic spray is but I've used it on pretty much everything and it works good. I don't use vegtable sprays because I would assume that the meltpoint is too low and just would blend right in with the wax at the temp I'm pouring at. Now, there are MANY people who swear by it - the latter is JMO! Its not that I did any scientific tests or anything! One thing though - I would NOT pour BW hotter than you need to - as THAT may make it stick more. I mixed the glitter with the buff material and then applied that with my fingers. The lighter the touch the better - you only want to get the raised areas. I would not sprinkle the glitter in the molds first before pouring because you wouldn't really have control over where it settled. Plus I really think the rubnbuff stuff works much better than glitter alone. I think the "art glitter" is like what I used - cosmetic grade glitter - its very fine right? Not like the regular stuff. Here is a pic of what glitter looks like just on a BW candle just sprinked on it: http://www.candletech.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=8804&d=1161442461 You can barely see it (it is pink, so its the same color as the candle so that doesn't help). Here it is mixed with rubnbuff and then applied: http://www.candletech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=37523 I made these to go with the ornaments as gifts actually. It really shows up much better than glitter alone. (You don't want to over do it with the glitter if you are doing candles though - as it will gum up the burn - I just got away with the amount I used). My pics are terrible, but Eugenia (another forum member fixed one up for me on that post). Hope I answered everything.

Hi and welcome. I use BW a lot in my candlemaking and I did these last Christmas - I used them for ornaments. Here is the thread: http://www.candletech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35147 but actually, if you run a search on this forum for the word "ornie" you should get more info (ornie is just slang for "ornament"). The are really nice gifts because you can use them for many things (in baskets, as ornaments - trees, windows, on tags/gifts, etc) and don't have to worry about flames! Beeswax actually comes in a few colors - yellows, olives, tans, (depending upon the flowers used and the "impurities". It also comes in white (bleached) I use BW from candlewic.com. The white is nearly odorless, very white, and comes in pelleted form so its very easy to work with and measure. You can scent it if you want and also color it. BW is pretty opaque so you will need to use more color than paraffin wax or you will get pastel colors. Silicone or rubber molds work best with BW because BW doesn't shrink much - if at all - and its sticky to work with when setting up and releasing from a mold. Yes, use a double boiler or a "presto pot" or something you can control the temperature of - NOT direct heat (Click on "General Information" on your left - and no, you don't need to put a spicket on it!) You don't want to get BW over 185F as it may discolor and burn. Basically, just pour a bit above the melting temp (melts around 145F to 150F), you don't need to get it any hotter - UNLESS you are adding scent and color - in that case I would bring it up to around 175F and add scent, stir slowly very well - then add liquid color. If using solid color like dye diamonds or flakes I've found bringing it up to 185 really helps dissolving these. As far as FO (fragrance) you must use oil-based fragrance and getting them from a reputable candle making supplier is best IMO. Other than that, you don't need to add anything to BW. Many people just use it without color and FO, but you can add color and FO if you like. HTH !

Jami - those are great ! If you want, you can always remelt the one (though I think its kind of neat the way it is) and repour - it will still "repattern". Whose palms are you using? Guessing those the candlescience palms?

Maybe try BW then? (If you don't mind non-container candles).

I need all the luck I can get !

Absolutely - even those clean-burning beeswax pillars will do that.

I want to thank everyone again - esp. Prarie for the offer - very kind of you. :smiley2: After so much reading I think I'm going to J waxes - at least first - for a couple reasons. I can pick it up and/or get it shipped locally - plus wetspots are low on my list as far as problems that bug me go. I'm just getting bored with soy wax for container candles - need another challenge. :tiptoe:

Thank you very much ! I was actually all set to start working with the comfort blend - but it being dead last in wicking has me concerned. Wicking and Burn 1. J-50 4.21 (0.63) 2. J-223 3.77 (0.95) 3. Harmony 3.44 (1.27) 4. Comfort 2.27 (1.12)

I was researching back posts on J-50 and once again referred to Top's excellent poll on container blends. I was curious though from those in the know - what properties would J-50 exhibit that can put it last in the appearance category? Appearance 1. Harmony 4.19 (0.88) 2. Comfort 4.13 (0.96) 3. J-223 4.10 (0.87) 4. J-50 3.92 (1.04)

Just curious - what did CS tell you?

Two things I can think of: The wax from the original pour has all pulled away from the container, but when your meltpool sets back up that is stuck to the glass. Hence the two "colors". Compare this to "wetspots". The wax that is in the meltpool cools at a different rate than the original candle hence the color change - compare this to a repour on a pillar candle - repour is cooling at a much faster rate than the original pillar.

Elaine, the 4144 is one of the waxes I use - though I don't make paraffin tapers. Its melt point is just a couple degrees higher than the IGI 1343 and a couple degrees down from the KY143. I personally would try to make the wax you got (the 4144) work - adjust your wicking and additives per this thread - there is no reason I can see why it should not work. BTW, you go by the diameter of the candle and not the height to choose a wick. The standard base for a taper is 7/8". If it were me I would read up more on this board first as you seem to be purchasing supplies based on what others have said without fully understanding what you are purchasing and how things work with each other - hope you aren't mad I said that - I'm just trying to save you some money ! Top, my understanding about vybar is it doesn't do much with melt point does it ? Wouldn't it be better to use something like a hard micro - like the 180 to raise it ?

I used to make my own out of wire - but these are MUCH better. I use them for wicking both molds (taper and otherwise) and for pillar candles made with wick pins: http://betterbee.com/products.asp?dept=851

I know this is zinc - but can anyone take an educated guess as to the size? (These are the ones with the 15mm tab). TIA

I had a small sample awhile ago - to be honest, I didn't have enough to really test. Candlewic sent it to me for free along with a couple other waxes of theirs to test - if you ask, especially if you are already ordering something anyway, I'm sure they would be amicable to send you samples - I know that won't help with the sale only being a week though! I'm thinking of trying it again as I'm already getting my pillar waxes from there. (Its either going to be that or If you go on candlewic's site they state which of the J waxes each of their waxes is comparable to I believe. In the meantime, here are some past links: http://www.candletech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38707 http://www.candletech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=40028 http://www.candletech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=21490

I have always respected Wikipedia simply because anyone can contribute. I'd much rather read an article on Wikipedia and/or other sources and then make up my own mind rather than being spoon fed by mega-conglomerate sources which tailor "fact" reporting according to local populations or who is throwing advertising dollars at them. Honestly, it did seem a bit on the soy-bashing side IMO, but that is what is great about Wikipedia, if one feels parts of the article are inaccurate - fix them and cite your sources!

Or of one that is oxygen starved. I think folks need more info. Type of wick and size, container, how far down the flame is in that container .... I'm surprised too - usually I get the worst shroom on the first burn - much, much less on subsequent ones.

Ah - I see - thanx !

I've been reading about their container waxes - what the heck is the difference between "level pour blend" and "single pour blend"?

Did you notice how nice and clean the packaging and supplies were? Some places look like they got the stuff out of trash bins. I'm all for recycling and I know things get returned, but please don't send me garbage wrapped in garbage.

Sharon, I hope this helps. With my camera and skills I can't get any better picture. I really like this mold. Everything literally falls out of it - even beeswax. I hope you can see the level the wax gets too. IMO its fine and compares to every tea light I see out there. I do a trick when I take out the "blanks" - I put them in the cups upside down - that way you get perfectly flat tops all the time - it looks like a machine stamped them out. (Yes, the posts are straight, I have to be so many feet away with my old digital - the close up doesn't work right either - that things closer and off to the sides look "bent").

I just got one of these - why did I wait so long?!

What a great article - except "Essential Oils are available and a bit more costly, but unless they are pure, they also contain chemicals." All Essential Oils contain chemicals.

BW rocks. Thanks - I'll have to remember this!