fredron

If you have time before the wedding, floaters are easy to make, but you should test yours before you offer them. I found some poly rose molds that worked out well for me once I used only the top half of the mold. We discovered that fact only as we tested. Burn time is one of those features that must satisfy only you and your customer. Make a few, test them and tell your customer how long they will burn, and the two of you can decide if that time is sufficient. Usually they will burn only at the reception, so long burn times are generally not necessary. If you don't have time to test them, don't offer them. Fredron

I would start by adding small amounts of brown to black. I've never needed a color like that, but that's where I'd start. Fredron

Percentage wise, I make more money on votives & tarts, than on any other product I make. If I could sell every votive/tart I could make, I'd make nothing else. Fredron

The secret is ALAWAYS HAVE A SPARE. I keep a second one around just in case. Fredron

Got a small show, but I'll be making some of my blends: Konalua Bay, Blue Hawaiian, and O'Granate. Fredron

You think your taxes are high now? Wait til Hillarybama get to be president. Both have said we don't pay enough taxes. The new tax form will read: How much did you earn? Send it in. Fredron

OK, green is good. Nobody wants to live in a dirty planet, myself included. But intellignt green is better. Ethanol is a joke. It takes 1 gallon of gasloline to make 1.3 gallons of ethanol, but ethanol doesn't burn as well as gasoline, so 1.3 gallons of ethanol gives you the same mileage as 1 gallon of gasoline. The gasoline is still burning with the ethanol, so where is the green? Also the refineries have to close for 3 weeks twice a year to make the conversion, and your prices go up. So where's the advantage? That is what happens when you get a bunch of know nothing politicians making laws they don't understand 'cause we're too stupid to watch what they're doing. OK, I'm off the soap box. Fredron

Ok, Breanna here's how I do it. It certainly wouldn't be the only way, might not be the best way, but it works for me. And by the way, your sale of mixed bags is exactly why I started shrinking mine also. I use 3" shrink wrap tubing, which comes on a roll about 8" in diameter. I made a support out of wood, that holds the roll, sort of like a toilet paper holder, and roll it out onto the tray of a paper cutter. That way I get a nice clean square cut. I cut a couple hundred at a time. After cutting, I seal one end on an impulse sealer. Slide the tart into the open end of the sleeve, and seal the other end with the sealer as close to the tart as possible. You can get really close to the tart if you seal it bottom side up. The closer you get, the less wrinkles you'll have when finished. Trim the excess sleeve material, and in the process, clip off one small corner of the package. This is to allow the air to escape from the package when you heat it. Put the tart on a heat resistant surface, bottom side up, and hit it with the heat gun. (Run the gun first to preheat it.) Flip it over and do the top last. Fingers never have to be close to the heat. Once you get a rhythm going, they go fast. I like the shrink wrap packaging, because I can now stick on a label. Hope that helps, Fredron

Too many farmers age growing corn now, instead of soybeans, because of the stupid conversion to ethanol, which does nothing but raise gasoline prices, and as a second benefit, raises all other prices. I can hardly wait to see what our government will do for us next! Fredron

I shrink wrap votives and tarts constantly, and from my standpoint, the hotter the shrink source, the better. I use a heat gun on the highest setting, which shrinks the wrap quickly and removes wrinkles. I work fast, and have never melted a product. Fredron

I had looked for several weeks before someone gave me the name of a supplier on line. Never found one where you could walk in & buy. The stuff was so cheap, I bought 2 rolls, because the shipping for one roll cost more than the material. Fredron

I have been using an impulse sealer and 3" tubing for tarts, and it's working well. The sealer cost was $70.00, ans the tubing comes on a 1500 foot roll for about $8.00. Cut the tubing into 3" pieces, put in the tart, seal both ends, and zap it with a heat gun. Works really well. Fredron

Got a craft show, so not much pouring this weekend. However, I want to make a couple of my new blends tonight. Bristol Bay, and Yakutat Bay. Both are outdoor fragrances I've been playing with for weeks. My DW finally put her seal of approval on the test burns, so we're ready to pour. Fredron

I have one of these. It works fine on large candles with wide rims, but it's difficult to pour into small containers. You've really got to pour slowly. Also, you'll have to wrap something around the aluminum handle-it gets hot. All in all, I prefer the ones with a pour spout & bakelite handle. Fredron

You can build yourself a cooling box out of styrofoam insulation board used to insulate houses. A full sheet sells for about $10.00, and will make several. You can cut it with a rasor knife, and glue it with liquid nails then reinforce it with duct tape. I made 3 from 1 sheet. Put the candles in the box, put the lid in place, ant tomorrow morning they will still be warm to the touch, cold room or not. Try it, it's cheap, and it works. Fredron

Don't know what wax you plan on using, but my votives just fall out of the molds--tarts too. I don't use any type of mold release. I use 6228 wax, and pour at 180 degrees. Fredron

Anyone have a source for the cardboard cutouts used for air fresheners? I've found a few on line, but not what I had in mind. I'd like to use them for advertisements, with our logo on them. Fredron

I had the same question, and bought their 3" tubing. It works well. Fredron

I have found that cracks/sink holes are usually caused by pouring too hot and/or cooling too rapidly. You did not mention the wax type you used, whether it is soy or paraffin, but in general, I have found, for my wax, which I blend myself, heat to 195-200, add color & fo, cool to 150, pour into a warm jar, and then slow cool. I almost never have any type of hole/crack. The slow cooling, I believe, is the most important. I have made 2 cooling boxes out of styrofoam insulation board. After pouring I place the candles in the box, put the lid in place, and forget them till tomorrow. Fredron

You should weigh the finished candle you poured. That will tell you if you are pouring the weight you intended. You could be overpouring. I have found calculations are pretty much useless unless you weigh the candle as you pour. My jars are 16oz (fluid) jars, but hold 10.5oz in weight. So after a few tries, I finally made my own weight chart. Problem solved. Fredron

I buy plastic tubes for containing them. The tubes hold 6, so I sell in lots of 6 and 12. Fredron

You can salvage your candles by melting them with a heat gun. I don't get sink holes any longer, but back when I did, the heat gun was a life saver. One of your problems coud be the cooling rate. If they cool too fast, the shrink rate is greater. Try covering them with a towel to keep the heat inside. I place mine in a cooling box I make from styrofoam insulation board. Put the lid on, and the candles slow cool. Haven't had a sink hole in years. Fredron

Using the wick centering devices I make, I am not able to cover the jars, but I never have, even before I made the centering tools. I'm guessing the purpose of covering them is to slow cool by retaining the heat. I do this by putting the candles in a cooling box made from styrofoam insulation board. Covering is not necessary, it is a preference. Fredron

I tried both paraffin and soy. I started with paraffin, then people asked for soy at shows, so I tried it for a year and a half. The soy was harder for me to work with. I didn't like the cracking, the white crust on the surface, the sink holes, and I didn't like the fact that the colors were always pastel shades. So I went back to paraffin, diddled around with various brands and blends, and found what I believe is the perfect blend. There is a touch of soy in it, mainly to appease the "I only burn soy" buyers, but the base is paraffin. I get creamy, rich looking colors, great cold and hot throw, and an absolutely soot free burn. Fredron

Most waxes will blend well when mixed together. Whether or not they will burn well, or have good cold and hot throw, is another matter. You should have no trouble blending J-50 and J-223, but what you'll get in the way of performance is something you'll have to explore. I've used both of these, and didn't see much difference between the two. I settled on J-50 as the base for my blend. I had some repour issues with J-223 as I recall, but both waxes burned well and had good cold & hot throw. I honestly don't see much benefit in blending these 2 waxes. Fredron