Buying FO dilemma, Help!

[MyWife'sBestFriend]

As I am just beginning this journey, I am trying to get my supplies at the best price possible (aren't we all). I am learning it can get costly starting out and testing, testing, testing. I bought my original supplies from Nature's Garden and so far am very pleased. (except for price)

The only complaint I have is that if you're buying an once at a time to test the scent, they are pretty pricey. I find scents on other sites with the same name at almost half the price. (I do know the old saying, you get what you pay for.)

To get to my question, NG's site gives me the impression that they have a perfumist on board, but in reality it might just be that the company they buy their scents from makes special scents just for them. Other sites that have cheaper prices may be getting their FO from the same manufacturer Does anyone know the story on this?

So far NG's descriptions of their FO is the best I have seen. I am scared to death that if I go somewhere else, I'll get an inferior product. Can you tell me what you've experienced on buying FO

Thanks in advance for any help you can pass on.

[Vicky_CO]

Do not go by name I can pull in ten Jasmines and I will bet maybe 2 of them will be close in smell. So just because the name is the same doesn't mean anything. As far as inferior product there are company that sell FO just as good as NG. I would stay away from companies that are half the price. Most FO are pretty close in price from one supplier to another. Most only vary a few dollars.

Honestly if you are not willing to pay at least $13 to $20 for 16 oz of FO then you are cheating yourself and any one that get one of your candles. The only way to get it cheaper is to buy in bulk which is usually 5 to 10 lb or more. To buy direct from the manufacturer most of them have a 25 to 50 lb minimum but few have as low as 10 lb.

[mindy5140]

Welcome to the world of testing. Some people like NG and some people don't. I started with NG and still order from them. You do understand if you buy 10 1oz sample you get a $5 discount which I think is awesome. You also earn points to go towards your purchases.

Same scent names well you really can't go by that. I bought Sex on the beach from NG and from C&S and they smell totally different. I have bought several of the same scents from different suppliers to test and they all in some shape or form smelled different than the other company.

Price well I think NG has great prices for their products they are a little cheaper than most but have awesome scents that work well in my wax. Which by the way I use their soy wax.

People have prefrences to where they buy their FO's. I not only buy from NG but also buy from other companies. Like BW, C&S, Just Scents, Keystone, EAC, and WSP.

If your afraid to spend to much money on testing, then I think you should stop this hobby now cause it can get very very expensive

Mindy

[Gdawg]

I tried just going with one supplier but it varies so I go with a few. NG has awesome scents but not all the FO work for me. And yes it is very spendy to test but its all in fun for now for me.

[lsbennis]

I have and still purchase from NG as well as many other companies...you will find your favorites and quite honestly they will most likely all be with different companies...lol So as everyone else has stated be prepared to spend a little money to be in this hobbey...I personally have spent thousands to get my candles the way I want and Im still testing and spending...:rolleyes2 Also try and get samples when they are on sale and you can get them for as little as $1.00 an ounce. HTH

[Tereasa]

NG is one of the LEAST expensive suppliers for FO. Their FO, for me, is more hit than miss... but I've found myself straying farther and farther from them as I've discovered other outstanding suppliers. Goes back to the old adage... you get what you pay for... and Vicky said it best.

[MyWife'sBestFriend]

It's not that I am not willing to pay for testing, just sometimes the budget does not allow me to go as fast as I would like. Candle making is very addictive. $13 to $20 for 16oz is not unreasonable, and yes, I did order the sample pack from NG. That was a help in trying different scents. Once I decide which scents I want, then I can buy in larger quantities.

I too use NG's soy and their Joy. I am trying a 60/40 mix. This weekend I am also going to try Soy only to see what the difference the Joy makes. Why am I starting with a Soy/Joy mix right out of the gate? Because of a book I had bought before I found this site. CT seem to be better than any book :-)

[Stella1952]

Kinda mind (and NOSE) boggling, isn't it?!! So many fragrances and suppliers and so little time... Even though a one or two ounce sample isn't much and is expensive per unit cost, it's a whole lot better than buying 4 or 8 or 16 ounces of something that turns out to bite the weenie!

We generally test fragrances in 1 pound batches (1 oz pp; 3 5 oz. containers per batch). I test one, my partner tests one and we save one to sell. The one we sell covers the cost of the other two testers. Sometimes, we are so impressed that we don't both test one because she or I report it as a "keeper." Other times, we remove the one for sale from our stock because we hate it and we recycle the wax into another project. But you ARE right - you are gonna burn a LOTTA money on testing until you arrive at what you want to carry... that's a cost you need to build into your pricing structure.

I buy fragrances from several suppliers. I may love one FO from Supplier A, but it smells like nuttin' from Supplier B who has another FO that I love, etc. etc.

Mulberry is a good example. We have tested mulberry FO from a dozen suppliers and only found 3 that we will pour. The others don't smell bad - they just ain't mulberry! I was laughing with my partner the other day and told her we should pour up the samples we were not satisfied with and sell them as NOT fragrances, ie. NOT mulberry, NOT gardenia, NOT magnolia, NOT jasmine, etc.

Each time we buy supplies, we get more testers... Even the ones we LOVE, we still test from other sources in case our main supplier is out of them or goes out of business and we NEED our stuff! Who knows - might discover a source of a favorite FO that we like even better than the one we are currently using!

Start with some of your favorites - you KNOW what you are looking for in those FOs. I am not familiar with many B&B products (I don't get out much and don't haunt bath & body, candle stores, or perfume counters when I do), so I rely on my young partner to keep me abreast of what's hot and what's not... She has a pretty accurate nose, so if she says one of the "type" FOs isn't on target, I take her at her word. If you or your wife are more familiar with the standards in fragrances and what's hot this season, try a couple of those. As you go on in all this, you will acquire more and more FOs and have a better idea of who to try first for new scents. Because there are so MANY sources for fragrances, it helps to just start with one or two suppliers and expand your search from there. I have a long list of suppliers I haven't gotten around to ordering from...YET! But I will!

[kandlekrazy]

Have you checked thru Vicky's thread at the top of the Veg Wax Forum? It has really helped me in choosing fragrances for soy. You can still shop for price, but I do it within the listing pretty much of the time...or by what others recommend in posts.

[carol k]

i order a few from ng. a few suppliers that are alittle cheaper at least on the 1oz sample size are thecandlesource.com & ics-candlesupply.us both of these are cheaper & for the most part have excellent oils. thecandlesource.com is in ohio very inexpensive shipping. i highly recommend his (loren's) oils.

[MyWife'sBestFriend]

Ok, I'm getting it. Seems the best way to pick an FO that you have interest in (ie. apple pie) is to order a sample (1oz) bottle from 8 to 10 suppliers and find out which one does the trick for you. Right?

Still wondering if NG really has a perfumeist on board.

Learning something new everyday!

[lsbennis]

i order a few from ng. a few suppliers that are alittle cheaper at least on the 1oz sample size are thecandlesource.com & ics-candlesupply.us both of these are cheaper & for the most part have excellent oils. thecandlesource.com is in ohio very inexpensive shipping. i highly recommend his (loren's) oils.

The Candle Source is great for samples they are usually priced under $1.30 for 1 ounce and I use a lot of their oils with no problem in soy blends!

[carol k]

alittle off of subject, but tennessee has their 1oz samples on sale for $1.00 an ounce & $3.00 off a lb. you have to put june news in the comments box or you will not get the discount. this sale runs from newsletter to the next newsletter. so you can order samples & get them & still have time to take advantage of the lb sale. i just love the way they do their sales. i have been really impressed with their oils i don't think i've had a flop yet.

[ChrisR]

Still wondering if NG really has a perfumeist on board.

Yes they do and have for years!!

[soycrazy]

Plus the shipping will kill you if you order from more than one supplier esp if you live out in the country, I usually have to ship my stuff to hubbies work for cheaper shipping.

[Stella1952]

Shipping to a business location by UPS is always less expensive than shipping to a residential address. I fought with UPS about this years ago because my business operates out of my home - but if the shipper'sor recipient's address is not in a commercial area (ie is zoned commercial), or you LIVE at your business, they will only ship at the higher residential rate.

There's a minimum rate for packages - around 8 bucks if memory serves; so if the package is light you may as well load it up 'cause it's still gonna cost about the same to ship 20 FO samples as it will to ship 5. For example, (using UPS's Handy Dandy Time & Cost calculator, if I send a package to the next town over from me (residential to residential, ground), it'll cost about $8.10 for 1 pound. A 5 pound package would cost $8.77, so it costs a mere 67¢ for the extra 4 pounds. See? It doesn't pay to just try a few samples and pay UPS shipping costs on such a teensy package! Try a boatload of them - at 1 or 2 oz each, you can get a lotta bang for your shipping bucks that way.

MWBF, if you are happy with a fragrance sample from XYZ Scents, stick with it and order a larger, more economical size! BUT if you are ordering something you like from another site and just happen to see that same scent there, give it a try. You might find one you like better... or not!

[soycrazy]

We moved from a apartment from a house so It was big wake up call with shipping lol. Plus we live out in the sticks now surrounded by cows. I do find it strange though that it costs more to deliver here since the UPS's main place is like 10 miles from us, but then our town is less than 600 people so maybe that's why.

[Stella1952]

Maybe so, soycrazy... It only stands to reason that if one lives way out in the sticks from a small town, the shipping would be more than a "normal" suburban residential area... Good thing your husband can receive those packages for you at work! But even if it meant higher shipping, I think I'd rather live way out in the sticks! The candles look better at night!

[MyWife'sBestFriend]

Stella, Is it true that UPS is cheaper to a business address then a residental?

If so I think I will have my supplies delivered to the TV station where I work.

[kandlekrazy]

In my pre-candle making job, I had warehouse supervision and YES, Business to Business UPS is cheaper than residential...always has been as far back as I can remember (which by the way is usually yesterday!) USPS flat rate can sometimes beat out UPS charges. USPS definitely is worth it for pkgs under 1# as UPS has that minimum charge.

[soycrazy]

Plus most suppliers can't use priority any more, because of flashpoints. So you have to choose parcel, but it's usually cheaper to go with ups or fedex anyway. I would rather go with ups/fedex, because the post office is getting really horrible lately with losing packages and slow delivery.

[Stella1952]

Stella' date=' Is it true that UPS is cheaper to a business address then a residental?

If so I think I will have my supplies delivered to the TV station where I work.[/quote']

Yes. UPS commercial address to commercial address is always the cheapest way EXCEPT when the USPS Priority Mail flat rate comes out to be less OR you ship Parcel Post, which is like a slow boat from China, but it's cheap! USPS has a flat rate using two different shaped boxes (which the USPS provides free to all shippers). You can ship anywhere in the US for the flat rate (currently $8.95) so long as the package is not heavier than #70 - if you can cram your stuff into one of those boxes, you can send for the flat rate and it arrives in 2-3 business days, usually 2. Sometimes, you can request this way of shipping from a supplier if you know the shipping wiull be less that way and your order will fit into the USPS flat-rate box.