Cher Posted July 7, 2016 Share Posted July 7, 2016 For all you aroma bead makers--- I'm having a major problem. I made the aroma bead fresheners and I CANNOT find a good strong leather fragrance oil. I have tried three different oils from three different wholesale candle companies with NO luck. It is so frustrating. Everyone wants a leather scented freshener and I just can't figure it out. Once the beads get ready the scent is so light you can barely smell it. I don't have this problem with any other scent. Can anyone that makes the fresheners or just aroma beads let me please know where they get their leather oil??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
se2653 Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 I've used Peak's Leather mixed with vanilla, and it was strong and lasted... hope that helps 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 Leather scented fresheners are my biggest sellers along with any leather blends I make. I like leather from Texas Candle Supply better than any leather I've used. I also like Lone Star's leather too. I've bought from The Candle Source and I like theirs also but Texas Candle Supply is my favorite. Leather is harder to soak up in the beads than any fragrance I use too. I usually have to add more beads after a few days just to get them to soak up the FO. Where are you buying your beads and how long are you baking them? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cher Posted July 8, 2016 Author Share Posted July 8, 2016 Thanks for your reply Belinda. Ok, the leathers I've tried are: Lonestar Candle Bittercreek Natures Garden- it was actually "leather jacket" and it was super strong but smelled of fake leather. Lonestar is by far the best smelling leather scent in my opinion, as it smells like true leather. I also have to add beads to the leather to get it done faster but I still feel like the scent isn't strong. Maybe leather just isn't a super strong scent and I'm worrying for nothing? Lol I used this scent in combination with aroma beads from natures garden. Where do you get your beads? Also, I used Bittercreeks beads with Bittercreek leather and it was literally done in a day. The only problem is the scent seemed less strong than lonestars. I'll probably end up trying leather from Texas candle supply like you mentioned. I'm baking my fresheners at 350 for 10 minutes. Thanks so much for your input! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 I was getting my beads from Houston Candle Supply but they went out of business a few weeks ago. I loved their beads because they seemed to soak up the fragrance a lot faster than any others that I had used. Lately I've been buying them from NG or Aztec and they're ok but they aren't as good as the ones from HCS in my opinion. I've heard that Bittercreeks were good but the shipping is so high for me from their location. Bitter Creek South was only about an hour from me but they went out of business too . At one time I had at least 4 suppliers within an hour from me. Now there's Daystar and Texas Candle Supply, DS within 10-15 minutes and TCS about 30, but neither sell wax! I also bake mine at 350 for ten minutes. When I was using HCS's beads, 9 minutes was a good time but the ones from NG and Aztec seem to take longer for some reason. I may have to break down and order from BCN and see if they're the same as what Houston had. I sell a lot of fresheners right now. It's funny too because when I first saw a girl selling them at a craft show they didn't have any appeal to me whatsoever! Now I sell more of them than I do wax! LOL! I can send you a sample of Texas Candle Supply leather if you want. That way you can try it before you buy a big bottle. You may not be any happier with it than Lone Star's. They are very similar, I just happen to like TCS better and my son lives in Livingston and he sometimes picks it up for me so I don't have to pay shipping! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cher Posted July 8, 2016 Author Share Posted July 8, 2016 The Bittercreek beads were seriously miracle beads to me! With using NG beads, I never had any scents done in 1-2 days. The beads seem a tad smaller than the NG ones but they soaked up the oil SO well! You definitely need to bake them for less time though. I just baked them for the first time yesterday and I'm kind of curious whether they'll still last as long as my normal fresheners do. I SO badly wanted to use Houston Candle Supply and their online site seriously shut down like a week before I started making these. Lol The shipping from all these places KILL me. There isn't anything close to me. I just got on Texas Candle Supply and I think I'm gonna go ahead and order from them because they have a few other scents I've been looking for also. Thanks so much for the offer though! Have you used their leather and lace? That's another one I've been looking for. I had intentions on making my own by mixing leather and vanilla, but since I wasn't happy with my leather, I never did it. What is your oil to bead ratio?? I usually do a 1:4 ratio whereas I would use 1/4 cup oil to 1 cup of beads but I'm almost always having to add beads so that's probably not what I need to do. Lol That's awesome you are doing so well with selling them! Right now I'm basically just selling to people I know, but hope to sell at a craft fair type thing once I get everything down. I started making them after I bought one from a local and it didn't smell at all. I was like "I can do better than this!" Lol Thanks so much your advice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 The beads I was getting from HCS were smaller too. They must be the dame beads as BCN sells. I'll have to try them because I was so happy with the way the fresheners turned out. The other beads have to bake longer to bind to each other and if they're not baked long enough then they seem like you can break them apart really easy. I think you'll be happy with TCS oils. I didn't care for his cream brûlée but others like it I guess. I like his buckles and spurs and a few others. I haven't tried leather and lace because I mix my own vanilla and leather. I use his leather and NG's vanilla bean or Vanilla Bean Noel instead of plain vanilla. It's a big seller for me. I use the 4 to 1 ratio too but like you I almost always have to add more beads, especially with the beads from NG and Aztec. I have noticed that citrus scents seem to soak up faster though. Are you in Texas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cher Posted July 9, 2016 Author Share Posted July 9, 2016 It looks like we are doing everything the same so maybe I'm just being paranoid with thinking the leather doesn't smell. I just don't want to sell a scent and it not be potent enough. Yes, I am in Stephenville, TX. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 I think others can smell them better than you can. When I put one in my truck, I can smell it for about two weeks but others can smell it for months. I always ask when someone gets in the truck with me and they always say they can smell it. I could smell my husbands after he had it in his truck for about 3 months. Texans LOVE their leather! LOL! Try mixing vanilla bean noel or vanilla bean with leather 50/50 and see how you like it. It smells better than plain vanilla in my opinion. It's another big seller for me. It actually sells better than plain leather. I also mix cherry and leather and strawberry and leather and people like that too. You're quite a ways from me. I live in Cleveland, Tx. which is in the southeast part. We are about 50 miles north of Houston. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cher Posted August 5, 2016 Author Share Posted August 5, 2016 Hi! I just ordered some fragrances from TCS, including leather and buckles and spurs, so I'm excited to see how those work out! I've had a new issue I wanted to run by you, If you have time! ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted August 6, 2016 Share Posted August 6, 2016 12 hours ago, Cher said: Hi! I just ordered some fragrances from TCS, including leather and buckles and spurs, so I'm excited to see how those work out! I've had a new issue I wanted to run by you, If you have time! ? Absolutely have time! What's the issue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cher Posted August 6, 2016 Author Share Posted August 6, 2016 Well, the last few fresheners I have made(and gave to friends) have melted off their string or warped. These friends do leave their cars out in the sun all day while at work and it is over a 100 degrees. I have another friend that has one of the older fresheners(from when I used nature garden beads) and it didn't melt at all but it was teal and now it's faded into like 10 different colors. The new ones I've made with Bittercreek beads don't fade but melt, and the older ones with NG beads don't melt but fade. The struggle. Lol have you had any melting problems?? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted August 7, 2016 Share Posted August 7, 2016 I hear ya girl! It's always something isn't it! I've only had one that melted and that was made from beads from Houston Candle Supply (I think). I have had some that I dyed blue that turned to a purple eventually LOL! How thick are you pouring them into the cutter? I try to fill them pretty thick, not the 1/4 inch that is recommended. I think that could be why I haven't had any melting issues or at least that I know of. The only person that's mentioned it is my niece and hers melted one day while she was at the lake. That's the only time that I know of one melting. I have one in my truck right now that's been there for about two months and I haven't even started it today and it's hot outside and it hasn't melted. I think maybe we have to make sure they're baked enough that they are melted together and make them thick enough to withstand the heat. That's my opinion. I hope that helps you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cher Posted August 7, 2016 Author Share Posted August 7, 2016 Yes, it's always something! Lol I have noticed that they are thinner now that I'm using the Bittercreek beads so I'll definitely make them thicker. Once it gets cooler, maybe I won't have any other issues lol Oh, and where do you get your liquid dyes? I've only bought from natures garden and lonestar and I swear my "hot pink" from lonestar never stays dark once the beads absorb. It ends up light pink. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cher Posted August 7, 2016 Author Share Posted August 7, 2016 Ok, I take that back. Lol I've been using the pink for strawberry leather and it always come out super light. I just recently made Butt Naked and it's hot pink like it's supposed to be soooo I'm guessing the leather is doing something weird to the color or something. ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted August 8, 2016 Share Posted August 8, 2016 The leather could be changing the color for sure. I've had some that would change color on me. I use dyes from Lone Star, Texas Candle Supply, Flaming, Rustic and Peaks. They all seem to be about the same to me. I do like RE's dyes because they have such a good selection. I think it's probably the FO plus the heat! Not a good combination sometimes LOL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cher Posted August 10, 2016 Author Share Posted August 10, 2016 Yeah this heat is out of control! I ordered red dye from Lonestar since I was already getting oils, so I'll try it with the strawberry leather instead of pink. Do you currently have "Black Ice?" A lot of men are looking for that scent and I didn't see it on Lonestar or NG. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted August 12, 2016 Share Posted August 12, 2016 On August 10, 2016 at 11:31 AM, Cher said: Yeah this heat is out of control! I ordered red dye from Lonestar since I was already getting oils, so I'll try it with the strawberry leather instead of pink. Do you currently have "Black Ice?" A lot of men are looking for that scent and I didn't see it on Lonestar or NG. I do have Black Ice! It's very popular. That one and Cool Water. I get CW from Fragrance Buddy and Black Ice from The Candle Source. It seems like I have Black Ice from someone else too but I can't remember who LOL! There are several that carry it though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted August 12, 2016 Share Posted August 12, 2016 Cher I just checked and Texas Candle Supply carries both of those. His oils are good so I'm sure they're good dupes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cher Posted August 19, 2016 Author Share Posted August 19, 2016 Thank you! I ordered the Black Ice from TCS and got me a new pink from rustic essentials! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cp0421 Posted August 23, 2016 Share Posted August 23, 2016 Check out Cajun Candle for the beads. Great price and reasonable shipping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted August 23, 2016 Share Posted August 23, 2016 20 hours ago, cp0421 said: Check out Cajun Candle for the beads. Great price and reasonable shipping. I used their beads when I first started but can't remember exactly how I liked them. Do they soak up quickly? The beads I used to order from Houston Candle Supply were the best I found but they went out of business. cp0421, What part of Houston are you from? I live about 50 miles north of there. It's a small world! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cp0421 Posted September 14, 2016 Share Posted September 14, 2016 I live in La Porte which is East of Houston. I have only ordered beads from Bittercreek and Cajun. Bittercreek advertises 30% absorbtion and Cajun is 40%. Plus the price and the shipping is a lot cheaper from Cajun. I'm hoping that Lone Star will eventually start selling them as I order most of my products from them. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belinda Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 On September 13, 2016 at 11:20 PM, cp0421 said: I live in La Porte which is East of Houston. I have only ordered beads from Bittercreek and Cajun. Bittercreek advertises 30% absorbtion and Cajun is 40%. Plus the price and the shipping is a lot cheaper from Cajun. I'm hoping that Lone Star will eventually start selling them as I order most of my products from them. My husband works in La Porte sometimes. He's a Longshoreman. It's such a small world! We live in Cleveland. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davis Posted January 22, 2017 Share Posted January 22, 2017 Where are Yall ordering your resin cutters from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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