NickieB Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 I just carved my first candle and what a disaster. The first one my layers were all separating. The color was too light (wanted Red and got Pink). So I added more red pigment.... solved that problem the second candle made. Third candle came out a little better. However, on all three candle attempted, my wax kept cracking. Straight after my last dip, I carved the bottom off and began.... so the wax was still warm... still cracked layers? The wax I'm using is IGI 1343. I've made the mold with no problem. Can anyone assist me and give me some experienced feedback no what you think I'm doing wrong...? Oh and the temp I'm dipping at is 145 F. Is that too hot? Thanks everyone who helped... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joym Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 Your dipping temperature needs to be higher - I use 160-165. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoonshadowLane Posted April 13, 2013 Share Posted April 13, 2013 I'm a little hesitant to chime in here because I'm not very experienced. I started carving just recently and I've only done about a dozen candles so far. So, take my 2 cents for what it's worth. :-)I agree with JOYM. That dipping temperature seems way too low. I dip even higher than JOYM... about 170F.Also, make sure that your water dip isn't really cold, about 70F or so.I'm glad to hear that someone else on this board is interested in candle carving. There don't seem to be very many of us here.Best of luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jcandleattic Posted April 14, 2013 Share Posted April 14, 2013 You can also add some microcrystalline to your wax and that will help the layer adhere to each other as well as the higher dipping temps. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickieB Posted April 15, 2013 Author Share Posted April 15, 2013 Good Morning...I tell you guys one thing, I have more respect for candle-makers. You guys that are experienced, make it look so easy... I say to myself "I could do that!" However, you try it and you understand the difficulty of the hard work in it. Never the less, I'm not giving up. With that said...Okay, I'll increase the temp of my wax and see how that works. Also, I'll look into micro-crystalline. I haven't heard of it but interested in finding out more on how it works and see if I need to use it.Once I have a reasonable candle made, I'll post a picture. Thank you guys for the reply. All the help is greatly appreciated.NickieB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoonshadowLane Posted April 15, 2013 Share Posted April 15, 2013 Microcrystalline wax can have some really amazing effects on the properties of plain paraffin. Here's a link to the IGI microwaxes. http://igiwax.com/igi-products/by-type/microcrystallinewax.htmlThere's a ton of good information on that site. Finding suppliers is somewhat difficult, however.I'm not sure where you're located, but if you're in the Eastern US you might want to give the 4045EP from Candlewic a try.That's their own in-house blend and it works pretty well, but I can't afford the shipping so I'm trying to make my own blend with the IGI 1343A as the base wax.I'd love to see some pictures. If I can ever figure out how to download from my phone I'll post a few of my own.Best of luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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