Help Me Stop the Madness, please!!!

[ktaggard]

I have been on a FO binge of late. I've probably tried 5 or 6 new fo suppliers in the last month. I can't seem to stop myself, but I need to. Common sense and financial sense are telling me to stop. I figure even if I like a few from each supplier, it will be cost prohibitive to order from all of them for my product lines. I'm thinking I need to pick 3 or 4 favorite suppliers and not keep venturing out. What have some of you done to curb your fo appetite? Any good strategies to share? Please help me!!!! I'm too addicted!!!!

[megandgarr]

LOL.... the only thing that would work for me is to throw away my computer, never get back on this board (or any others) and stop reading the reviews. Guess that isnt gonna happen. But what a great addiction it is!!!! Good luck!

[Ravens]

No, plain and simple.

How can you possibly provide "the best" if you do not experiment with new FOs and suppliers?

That's what I tell myself whenever I get those (rare) "guilty moments". We do not have an addiction, but a dedication to providing the very best we can :rolleyes2

(I know, I know, I may be full of it, but amuse me, will ya?)

[Darbla]

I hate the place I work at (currently) more than I love new FOs. The thought that the more money I wasted on FOs was money I couldn't apply to debt and that debt was keeping me chained in purgatory was enough for me to cut back on FO$$$. But I might be changing jobs soon and I may go on an FO bender!

[QTsmum]

I've been thinking this a lot too lately. It doesn't make sense money wise to keep ordering small amounts from all these places, especially for me with the duties upon arrival! I need to decide on a line up and buy it in mass quantities...But I can't decide. LOL!

[Scented]

What have some of you done to curb your fo appetite? Any good strategies to share? Please help me!!!! I'm too addicted!!!!

Bought. Man that isn't what you wanted to hear, but I was going to drive myself crazy if I never knew so I bought it anyway and most likely it's still sitting on the shelf. Not all of them are, but quite a few lol. If I were an octopus I could maybe make a dent. I've been through six cases of wax already and don't feel I've made a dent. Trying. I have an itching to buy something soon that isn't to replace something that broke.

Edited August 29, 2013 by Scented

[annie123]

I used to do that when I first started and I wasted a lot of money on FO. Every time I read about a "good" FO on this board I had to try it. In the end it had to come to how well a supplier's FO works in my wax. I am now down to 3 suppliers and that works well for me. I have also accepted that I can't carry every single scent in the world.

[marcuset]

Scented sure hit the nail on the head. Far too many of us could start our own scent sampling biz on the side.

[ktaggard]

Well, thanks for nothing ya'll!!! I guess that's what I get for asking help from a sick group of people. But honestly,- I love our sickness!

So, I've been thinking two things since i posted. First, I do need to make sure my customers get the best (thanks Ravens). And second, I really don't spend much on other things that other women spend money on - fragrance oils are my one real extravagance (and wax and eos and soap supplies and...). Expensive shoes aren't that tempting to me anymore. I'd rather buy FOs. Also, I just started doing a few craft shows and thinking of doing a farmers market- so maybe I can make some money or at least break even (someday).

[justajesuschick]

Well, you could be like me (feel free to use me as a cautionary tale!) and become completely over-saturated. In a bit less than 2 years' time I have purchased and tested (they have all been put in wax) 400 FO's from nearly 20 sellers. I have every invoice and could tell you what I have spent. The shipping alone is ridiculous.

Where has it gotten me? I have had fun. I have also gotten to a place where I really only have a few over 400 FO's that have met my preferences and made it through my testing. So many now are starting to smell the same (generic, not special) or like something else I already have. As it stands, I have only narrowed suppliers down to 7 and that seems like too many to me!

I am working now to stock up for a big one day art fair (the only one I do) but once that is over my plan is to not buy more and more from yet additional suppliers. I'll not stop buying but I plan to get more creative with blending what I have to create new scents from scents that I know already are winners.

[marcuset]

Well, thanks for nothing ya'll!!! I guess that's what I get for asking help from a sick group of people. But honestly,- I love our sickness!

So, I've been thinking two things since i posted. First, I do need to make sure my customers get the best (thanks Ravens). And second, I really don't spend much on other things that other women spend money on - fragrance oils are my one real extravagance (and wax and eos and soap supplies and...). Expensive shoes aren't that tempting to me anymore. I'd rather buy FOs. Also, I just started doing a few craft shows and thinking of doing a farmers market- so maybe I can make some money or at least break even (someday).

You got that right! I agree - I love this type of sickness. I'm right there with ya.

[pixie]

I went through the same stage and am now regretting it. It is VERY cost prohibitive to order from a bunch of different suppliers if your trying to make a go of candle making as a business. If you are just doing this as a hobby it would probably be okay. But for a business its horribly expensive and eats away at your profits.

[ktaggard]

Pixie, you are right. I guess I am still in between hobbiest and creating a business. But even as a hobbiest you occasional think to yourself, "hum, I could have bought new furniture or, in my case, a small car for what I have spent over the years." Crazy, but its fun!!!!

Here's the real crazy part - in the month of August I have poured 59 new fragrances from 19 suppliers. Okay, back to my original outcry "stop the madness !!!!!" I think I must!!!!!

[Guest OldGlory]

This is definitely a business pursuit for me - and I have other things to spend money on. There, I said it. And I've been doing it for 12 years.

I like a good FO once in a while, but I limit my curiousity to maybe a dozen new ones per year. If a candlemaking friend of mine shares one she/he thinks I might like, and I share a few back, that's a great way to see what all the fuss is about.

But, I've found FOs that perform very well for me and I am satisfied with them, as are my wholesale clients. That's the key I think, being happy with the products you make with the FOs you have.

And if you just have to have new FOs all the time, at least ENJOY it! I'm sure it's way cheaper than a lot of habits you could take up.

[Marilyna]

This is my third time to give the soap biz a go and this time I picked one company and bought most of my FOs from there. Then I bought a couple more from a place I'm buying almost all my other supplies from. So I only have 2 FO suppliers this time. It's not too exciting, but in the long run I think it will be most profitable. To me, it's more exciting to see profits in the bank than to see FOs in the cabinet.

On the other hand, if money isn't your bottom line and you're having fun, why not? I don't have a lot of spare money to blow, though, so I can't do that.