What do you look for

[jacobSue]

what do you look for in a container candle? What features impresses all of you the most? Which waxes have these features?

[Kaybee23]

That is a pretty broad question. In essence you are asking everyone what their favorite wax is, so you are going to get many answers. The wax I have been most satisfied with is the KY Puresoy. This is after testing many different waxes (about 10-12). Now if you give this wax to 5 diff. People and ask them to make candles out of it, I can tell you that it is pretty certain that each of these 5 people are going to have different results and different opinions of this wax. They may or may not use additives in the wax, they will most likely be melting at a diff. temp, using a different kind of FO, may or may not add dye, or pour warm instead of slushy. Even the temp. of the room you are pouring in will make a difference in the appearance. All of these things are either going to get them a candle that they are happy with or one they are not happy with (in regards to appearance and throw). The candle I may be happy with and like, someone else is going to undoubtedly not like. Even doing everything exactly the same as someone else may yield you an entirely different candle. I think it all boils down to your testing and your expectations of what your finished candle should look like.

To answer the other part of your question. The features I look for in my finished candles, that are the most important to me. First is throw, cold and hot throw. Then I look for fairly smooth tops. Soy is a hard wax to tame and takes a little playing around to get this. A little frosting doesn’t bother me as some of my colors and FO’s tend to cause this worse than others. I must get a good consistent burn each time. The correct wicking will get you a good consistent burn without overheating your container.

You really just have to get out there and order sample bags of the waxes you are interested in and do your own testing. That is the best way to know which wax is best for you.

[mappam]

The very first thing I have noticed with Everyone - is they pick it up and sniff it.

If you go into a candle shop and just watch the people - that is the first thing they ALL do.

Most people don't notice if the candle is frosted or has a smooth top. They notice the color in Relationship to the Scent.

After they get it home they want the Scent to be "there" - they want to be able to actually smell the fragrance. If the wick curls or mushrooms they usually don't notice (or care unless it drowns out or they can't relight it).

So this is what I test for - I notice the type of wick in relation to the Melt Pool as this is what usually determines the Throw of the fragrance.

After I got into making candles I started to look at the commercial candles - some have frosting. Some have pitted tops or sink holes. Some have little to no scent throw (cold).

In other words - Most people don't have a clue ABOUT candles or HOW they are suppose to burn.

Just an observation on my part. But something I try to keep in mind when I am testing something new.

[jacobSue]

I know it is a vague question, but there are so many factors in a candle. It is soo hard to achieve all factors. I just want to know what is important to everyone out there.

[kuepie]

Honestly the first thing I do is smell it (cold). But before making candles, I was very dissapointed many times at the way it burned. That is how I make my candles. First the scent, then the way it burns.

[jacobSue]

The reason I ask also is that I have been mixing different oils with soy and have gotten some interesting results. WEverything seems to look great, but the sides pull away from the container everytime. I just wanted to know what people thought about that.

[Kaybee23]

Most soy waxes are made to adhere to the container they are poured in. However there are a few out there that release slightly from the sides. One that comes to mind is the Strahl & Pitsch smooth container blend. It releases just slightly on the sides of the jar when it cools. I don’t think it would cause too much of an issue unless you are doing layers.