How long did you test before giving/selling candles?

[KMommy]

I am just curious how long most of you tested before you felt comfortable giving and selling your candles? I have been reading post on several message boards from people that have just started making candles(few weeks) and they are already selling or planning to start their own business. I find this a bit scary:eek: The area I live in is truly flooded with candles and candle makers. Many are poor quality but new candles seem to pop up almost daily. I tested my candles for at least a year before I gave any of them away as gifts. How long did you guys test before selling or giving away your candles?

[kforbs126]

I've been selling paraffin candles for years. It took me a few months before i'd give them away and then i got people hooked and then they were paying customers.

Now i'm going to soy and i've been testing for about a month now. i use friends/co-workers as testers. I've already been asked multiple times when they can buy them. I'm trying to get a price down so that i can sell them, but it seems that my earlier thought about pricing was too low :undecided

I already have orders and i am trying to figure it all out!

[Jcandleattic]

I test for as long as it takes to get a good quality clean burning candle. When I first delved into this business it took me several months to a year before I was ready to sell anything. I gave candles to friends and family early on (after only a few months) with the stipulation of them helping me test. That turned into a farce because they didn't give me the feedback I needed. Now I do all of my testing myself. I've been in this business for about 6 years, and still consider myself a newbie, but even though it doesn't take me as long as it used to to test a new type of candle, it still takes a couple weeks before I'm completely comfortable with releasing it into my line.

I don't understand these newer makers who think they are ready to sell after only a few weeks of making their very first candle. :undecided

[Candlebuddy]

Probably about a year or so.

[debscent]

For me, approximately 3-4 months, but I continue to test whenever a new variable is added. You will personally know when your product is good enough to give away/sell, it's your name, it's your reputation. You will get every answer under the sun about this, but YOU will know when it's right, when YOU are satisfied with the results. Yes, the market is saturated with candle makers, but quality candles will always do well.

[Kelly]

I started out with kits, then my own, and only just recently (about 6 months of "practice") have I started to give away candles. I sold two so far to family members but to me it's always been in the back of my head that I hope to have my own business doing this. There is nothing wrong with thinking that it will be a business, you just need to be sure you are ready before you sell. And not get ahead of yourself.

I test each candles thoroughly and again if new variables are added, just like debscent. Right now I have about 5 scents that I would feel comfortable selling, next I will try to perfect one more. For me it's a very slow process but I'll get there!

(I am lucky that family members let me examine candles during "their" burning process of my candles. It's very informative because you'd be surprised how many people do not trim wicks before or during burning, do not burn for recommended amount of time (too long or too short), etc. You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink. )

[RobinInOR]

I tested votives in 3 scents for about 3 months - but that was working 35 hours/week on them (10 hours Sat & Sun, 3 hours each M-F), then sold those for the holidays. I'm a slow learner. Well, I was working with a pita wax as well (Cleanwax), so I worked with the manufacturer a lot in R&D.

[barbaranj]

Probably about a year before selling.

[EmpressC]

I tested votives in 3 scents for about 3 months - but that was working 35 hours/week on them (10 hours Sat & Sun, 3 hours each M-F), then sold those for the holidays. I'm a slow learner. Well, I was working with a pita wax as well (Cleanwax), so I worked with the manufacturer a lot in R&D.

Forgive my lack of knowledge, but this seems like a lot of time spent on 3 different votive scents. Perhaps us newbies are missing something. I can't imagine it taking so much time to test something as tiny as a votive.

May I ask, for my own benefit, what would have caused this to take so long? I am testing everything now and it doesn't seem to take that long. But maybe there are factors that I am overlooking. So any additional info would be much appreciated...from all. TIA.

[Scented]

Believe it lol! If you want to be sure of what you're selling, there's no reason not to be that cautious and not to work hard to put out what you feel is the best quality

For me, I'm always testing. I have about 11 years behind me though. THe first 3 years were constant tests. In those first years I didn't sell much and what sold were mostly chunkies and things that would cause a fire. But I didn't know better then and it was only a supplemental thing. About 3 years ago we started selling and about 8 months before that first show, constant testing. Make, set, test and do it all over again and again and again. Entered swaps for others to test for me, but that didn't always pan out well because of the reviews and people complaining that reviews were too harsh etc. and so people stopped reviewing. Had others testing too.

[damsels_creations]

With my first votive that I made I tested for about 3-4 weeks. Tested for scent throw hot and cold and tested 2 different wicks to make sure I had the right melt pool. Now after all that I went ahead and tested it by burning the way most people will burn your product.

1) in a room with cealing fan on .. drafts

2) didn't trim wick while it was burning.

3) power burn it all day or until it was all gone. lol

4) the correct way. Making sure wick was trimmed, burned it only 2- 2.5 hrs at a time.

Then I gave them to my neighbors and asked them to burn them and let me know what they thought about said votive. so it was about 1.5 months before I would sell even one votive and that was only in one fragrance.

Almond Pastries was the first FO that I tested and its still my dh's favorite candle fragrance.

[Ring of Fire]

A day for me.

[tcc]

I started giving away to my family after about a few months and started selling around a year, while pregnant with my son I stopped and when I started back up a few months back I retested everything all over again. I have spent thousands of dollars testing and expect to spend more before I break even...but hopefully it will happen eventually.

[asheebeans]

It took me close to a year but I was working full time too. I was a third shifter,working four days a week.... so on my nights off I would be pouring candles while the rest of the house slept. Imagine the sweet dreams they must have had....

[RobinInOR]

Why did it take me so long?

First, they weren't just simple votives.

They were octagonals.

Plus it was a wax that no one had ever used. It was a vegetable blend, no soy, no paraffin.

They have to burn in larger votive holders, so I had to find a wick that would work when the votive completely spilled over into the holder - it had to sustain about a 2" diameter. I tested in 3 different votive holders to make sure it would work all the way down to the bottom. Guess how long it takes one votive to burn, in 3-4 hour increments, all the way to the bottom.

I wanted to find a wick that didn't need a lot of trimming, because I knew from my reading that customers wouldn't trim. So I watched to see how high the flame got without major trimming.

I wanted the flame to look "right" - on some wicks the color was off - it all had to do with temperatures of the flame of course, but there were wicks that burned ok but I didn't like the color of the yellow of the flame - LX wicks gave off a brighter yellow. I know, I'm weird.

I tried 4-5 sizes of RRDs, LX, HTP, cotton, didn't try zincs, hmm, I think a few other types - eco had just come out, CDs didn't exist I don't think.

Then for the colors it took a long time to figure out coloring without getting blotches - a nasty Cleanwax trait.

And what temperatures worked best for a nice clean finish without too much of a second pour, that would pop out of the molds quickly without sticking to the wick pin.

Then the scents - how much scent would it hold, what really smelled good. Went through lots of scents before I found the first 3 I was happy with.

And then packaging - wrapping them differently, seeing how plastic reacted over time...

After I knew what was what, the time shortened up. When I wanted to do a new scent I only had to test 2 wicks usually (I picked LX) and I could tell how it would do since I was so 'intimate' with the wax lol... So new scents would only take a few days.

[SpaceGirl]

I made candles for a few months before I gave them to some co-workers for testing (with a test score sheet!) I did sell some that Christmas, about 4-5 months after I started to create. Looking back that wasn't long enough. I'm confident that I didn't sell anything unsafe but I'm sure they didn't burn as well as they should have. Luckily for me, life got in the way for the first 6 months of this year (did a lot of re-evaluating in my life and relationships) and the candlemaking took a backseat until early fall. At that point I starting creating and testing again so that what I sold this Christmas was head above heels better. I'm finally at the point where I feel comfortable knowing what to test, so I think that it'll be a few weeks testing for each new candle -- combo of wax (which is now stable, thank goodness!), FO, wick and dye that I bring on board.

[Candle Makin Momma]

I have to agree with the always testing comment. Especially with soy, since every crop can be different.

[Cindy/WI]

for me it was about 1 year of testing b/f I sold.

[stephnms]

A little over a year and I only sell two sizes of jar candles. I wanted to make sure it was perfect though.

[Fire and Ice]

About a year or so of R&D as well as testing. I have ever only used one size jar and I started with paraffin at first but two months in, God switched me over to soy which took on a life of it's own.

I know all about the newbies who crop up every week and think they'll make a mint but just doesn't occure to them that you get out of it what you invest.

Fire:cool2:

[Mommyof3wifeof1]

Wow there is so much great information on here! Ok, so let's see if I am paying atention.

I need to get a kit, mess around with different waxes & scents until I come up with what I feel are marketable candles. I have been to BitterCreek's website & it's fantastic, I think I may start there. But when you all say "testing" is that simply burning the candle? Or is it more involved than that?

[Jcandleattic]

Wow there is so much great information on here! Ok, so let's see if I am paying atention.

But when you all say "testing" is that simply burning the candle? Or is it more involved than that?

WAY WAY WAY more involved than just simply burning the candle. You need to look for specific things, like does the wick smoke, is the melt pool too deep, not deep enough, is the wax consuming at a rate that is too fast, is there a good scent throw, is there NO scent throw.. etc, etc, etc,...

There are many many more variables than the ones I mentioned here, but those are the ones just off the top of my head...And with each type of candle those variables will change. Like for instance a pillar, a container and a votive are all going to burn differently so you are looking for different things from each type.

HTH

[Crafty1_AJ]

I took several months. Fortunately, because I had done a LOT of reading and research, it was less "miss" than "hit" for me when I got started. I did experience some trial and error, but I also really lucked out on some excellent wax blends/wick/fo/color combos that enabled me to get out and running in just a few months. As I said, a TON of reading helped me narrow down my choices and get exactly what I was aiming for though. I spent tons of hours reading online. I think my bad eyesight must be attributed to that. ROFL

Also, I was somewhat speedy because I'm a very determined and intense person. Once I really decide to do something, there's no "halfway." I hit it HARD and stay with it until I get it. Conquer that beast, KWIM? LOL!

So some of our variables have to do with personality/temperament. We can't help those! Ha ha!

[leashaann]

I "tested" for almost a year and a half. I started giving them away right away because I didn't know better. A friend still has one that I gave her in the beginning and it scares the heck out of me that she burns it.