beck180 Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 I am still learning about soy based candles and I am very interested in the benefits and marketing value of offering this to my customers, but I read somewhere that soy candles are frowned upon by some retailers because in the long term they are untested and prone to cracking and other problems. Can someone set me straight on this? Thanks in advance... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topofmurrayhill Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 I didn't suspect there are retailers who have this concern about vegetable wax candles. I think it has some merit.My conclusion has been that all-vegetable waxes don't produce a sufficiently stable product. These candles continue to change at a much greater rate after manufacture than paraffin candles and are more sensitive to environmental conditions. The changes can affect the aesthetics of the product and also apparently the burn quality.I found vegetable wax interesting to work with, but honestly I feel it has too many drawbacks as a candlemaking material. Whatever intrinsic advantages it may offer can more reliably be obtained, along with better aesthetics and stability, by use of a paraffin/vegetable blend.The only advantage I can see of an all-vegetable formulation versus a vegetable/paraffin blend is a little extra marketing cachet. People say the wax is made of "soy" and that word has associations with things natural, healthy and socially responsible - maybe as though the candles are made of tofu. It obscures the fact that the wax is actually made of chemically modified cooking oil.A bottle of Crisco oil of course has none of these associations, but that's the raw material. A tub of Crisco vegetable shortening is similarly unappreciated but has an ingredient list much like soy wax.Maybe a little controversial, but that's where my head is at right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beck180 Posted May 6, 2006 Author Share Posted May 6, 2006 I had expected to be deluged with pro soy making advice, funny the first reply was a seemingly unbiased straight forward opinion. That's what I love about this board! You are right on with my concerns. I surely don't want to spend such a great deal of time perfecting my products and packaging and have them turn to junk a month after I ship them down the road to a paying customer. Amazing how brilliant minds think alike, huh?Any other opinions here??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mystical_angel1219 Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 I just pulled 24 tins off the shelf and they look the same as the day I made them. They were poured over 2 years ago. I had a wholesale account in desperate need of a few extra things to take to a show with her. All I did was slap labels on them and they are ready to be shipped tomorrow. I did absolutely nothing to these candles. So basically it boils down to your production process and your own wax formulation. People have alot of misconceptions about soy. If they can't master it, they feel it's inferior. Thats hardly the case. My candles look as good or even better than any paraffin container. They might lack the translucent properties, however they command a higher price tag out there in the marketplace and they do burn longer and cleaner. Soy does produce soot, but not even close to what paraffin does. I don't usually ride the whole soy train thing. It's unethical to me. Soy is processed using harsh chemicals just as paraffin is. I think a realistic approach to what soy is and what it can do for you in moving forward in sales is a necessary ingredient for success. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mystical_angel1219 Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 I had expected to be deluged with pro soy making advice, funny the first reply was a seemingly unbiased straight forward opinion. That's what I love about this board! You are right on with my concerns. I surely don't want to spend such a great deal of time perfecting my products and packaging and have them turn to junk a month after I ship them down the road to a paying customer. Amazing how brilliant minds think alike, huh?Any other opinions here???Your candles will not turn to shit in a month. Opinions are just that. I speak from experience.Make no mistake- that is a misconception. I have shipped wholesale candles over a year old in less than favorable conditions (meaning sitting in a UPS hub in 90 degree weather) and not ONE has ever been returned. Its all on how you formulate your product. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topofmurrayhill Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 Yes but you're a specialist with long experience and you use a proprietary formulation. I think what I said holds true for the preblended waxes most people use.We should also note that a large number of people who like to use soy wax actually modify it with beeswax so that it's no longer an all-vegetable product. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mystical_angel1219 Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 Top I do agree that many of these preblends and especially Plain 415 are crap and do produce many more variables than paraffin by a long shot. Because they are readily available in the marketplace, many fledgling candlemakers purchase them and then get discouraged quickly with the problems and appearance of their finished products using those types of soy wax. Thus alot of the questions we get on this board.Beeswax is the LAST thing I would ever encourage as an additive to soy. Not because it can't be marketed as an all veggie, because it throw's far more variables in an already substandard equation. I played with beeswax for a while. It's an ungodly wax in my opinion.Beeswax lovers- send all hate mail to my PM box... LMAO!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beck180 Posted May 6, 2006 Author Share Posted May 6, 2006 You guys are hilarious, lets just keep it a friendly debate now Ok. I don't want to be the cause of any animosity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beck180 Posted May 6, 2006 Author Share Posted May 6, 2006 Hey can you guys read my next post I have a few more questions in there, if you would be so kind! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mystical_angel1219 Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 You guys are hilarious, lets just keep it a friendly debate now Ok. I don't want to be the cause of any animosity.No worries there. Top and I are friends. We agree to disagree on occasion.I feel everyone is entitled to their opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carol k Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 i use 415 and they will not turn to crap in a month or i would be out of business. the longer 415 sits the stronger it gets i've have candles that i done at christmas 04 and recently burnt some and they are as strong as ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
islandgirl Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 i use 415 and they will not turn to crap in a month or i would be out of business. the longer 415 sits the stronger it gets i've have candles that i done at christmas 04 and recently burnt some and they are as strong as ever.Ditto.... I have some candles from a few years ago that look great and the cold and hot throw is awesome!!!I guess it is all where you store them... almost any candle will turn colors if in the sunlight....(Soy or Paraffin)I just love my soy!!!! (Most of the time):rolleyes2 LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeana Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 I am still learning about soy based candles and I am very interested in the benefits and marketing value of offering this to my customers, but I read somewhere that soy candles are frowned upon by some retailers because in the long term they are untested and prone to cracking and other problems. Can someone set me straight on this? Thanks in advance...I still have some candles (containers) I made a long time ago too. They still look the same. Definitely no cracks. Sometimes soy pillars can crack when they get old though. I have asked many customers that bought from me last year how their candles went. Some say they still have them and they burn fine. I think retailers should be more concerned with moving the products off the shelves - sales!!- than worrying how long they can sit on their shelves. And if they plan on having slow sales on the items they can purchase in smaller quantities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roxi4112000 Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 I use 100 % soy and only that, ive never tried anything else for my candles, and I just burned a year old candle and it looked great along with burning very awesome, and Ive only been making candles for a year and a half so I dont think that I have that much experience or anything, I just tested for a few months, I actually just used parafin for the first time for dipped ragballs and found it much harder to work with, I wouldnt trade my soy for anything, but hey soy in not everyones thing, wheather your a candle maker or a customer or a retail store owner to each his own, as for me I LOVE SOY .I would like to note that one of my customers who is usually bothered by parafin candles and gets headaches from has not gotten one headache since using my soy candles:yay: I love it when my product can help in that way, I dont know what id do If I couldnt burn candles I was very happy to help this candle lover. I WOULNDT BURN ANYTHING ELSE.Rachel:cool2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
georgiaII Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 It is my opinion that it is well worth the effort it takes to make candles from soy wax and to contend with the sometimes frustrating characterists it exhibits simply because paraffin is a product of petroleum refining. There is a hugh advantage over using a product that is made from an American grown resource that has absolutely nothing to do with petroleum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hewells Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 I also use 415, now I have to admit that I had trouble with it at first through trial and error I have learned how to overcome some of the issues and I don't add beeswax to my candles. I have some that are several months old that I did not cover on purpose so I can test the quality and to see if it gets somewhat dried out and haven't found that to be the case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.