CandleGirl Posted May 23, 2008 Share Posted May 23, 2008 I just moved to a new area and started selling my candles here about a month ago. A woman that works with my husband has been using a tart warmer and some tarts that she bought from me in the office. She was asked by the resident "health nut" (her term) in the office if they are "organic". I'm assuming by this she is asking if they are made from soy. She is known to be pompous and probably has no idea of what she's talking about but has caught on to some lingo somewhere and is trying to make a point. My tarts are paraffin. I choose to use paraffin (4794) because I am all about kick butt fragrance throw. In container candles I make a 70/30 soy blend, paraffin and I'm considering introducing straight soy. I'm seeing that where I am in California people are totally hooked into the whole soy is the only way to go mentality. Every candlemaker has their own preference in waxes. Mine is truly paraffin, but I feel the need to jump on the soy bandwagon to please others I've found in my experience the best fragrance throw to come from paraffin. How would you answer this woman?Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen B Posted May 23, 2008 Share Posted May 23, 2008 I'm a bit of a smart a$$ so I would probably look her in the eye's and tell her I haven't found a reliable source for bayberry wax that is organic. Unless bee keepers can kind of control the places their bee's pollinate I don't know if bee's wax could be certified organic. (I don't know crap about bee keeping so maybe they can) I would leave her with a very puzzled WTF is she talking about look on her face, but that is just me. If you want to be nice you could ask her exactly what is she talking about by "organic wax" because there really is no such thing. If she does start talking about soy or palm wax you could tell her to research the process that makes these waxes, but even that would be too much for my time and energy. No offense to the soy chandlers out there, but saying soy wax is organic is like saying the Glade pumpkin pie scented candle is made with EO. Kind of stretching the truth a little to far for my comfort level.Karen B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artcwolf Posted May 23, 2008 Share Posted May 23, 2008 I'm partial to definition 7 here http://www.answers.com/organic&r=67if that is the case then everything is by all rights organic including parrifin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CandleGirl Posted May 23, 2008 Author Share Posted May 23, 2008 I would love to give her a major smart a$$ answer! I'm so tired of people who truly have no idea of what they're talking about jumping on a bandwagon. I would love to give her a real dose of my (native New Yorker) sarcasm, but I have to bite my tongue for my husband's peace of mind. I really appreciate your response . The question came to me in an email. My husband said that "Miss Isitorganic?" is a real know it all and I should inundate her with so much info, I should make her head spin. I'm going to ask first what she's means exactly by organic and then share the beeswax, bayberry, soy process info with her. I'm for all candle waxes...that give me great scent throw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheQueen Posted May 23, 2008 Share Posted May 23, 2008 http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paraffinhttp://homecooking.about.com/od/cookingfaqs/f/faqparaffin.htmhttp://www.ota.com/definition/quickoverview.htmlThis will give you a bit of info on paraffin and "organic." I do not consider paraffin "organic" but neither is soy necessarily when you look at what actually constitutes being "organic." HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CandleGirl Posted May 23, 2008 Author Share Posted May 23, 2008 I'm partial to definition 7 here http://www.answers.com/organic&r=67if that is the case then everything is by all rights organic including parrifin That's great...love it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artcwolf Posted May 23, 2008 Share Posted May 23, 2008 http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paraffin a waxy crystalline flammable substance obtained especially from distillates of wood, coal, petroleum, or shale oil that is a complex mixture of hydrocarbons and is used chiefly in coating and sealing, in candles, in rubber compounding, and in pharmaceuticals and cosmeticsseeeeeee carbon so it's organic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CandleGirl Posted May 23, 2008 Author Share Posted May 23, 2008 I have more info from "Miss Aretheyorganic"?She wants to know if I use essential oils in my candles. Am I correct in thinking that not all essential oils are organic?It seems she thinks that essential oils are what makes a candle organic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tootie04 Posted May 23, 2008 Share Posted May 23, 2008 Oh Lord have mercy!! Good luck with that one....I think no matter what you say it aint gonna be right anyway...:tiptoe: .tootie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Circle Posted May 23, 2008 Share Posted May 23, 2008 Just give her the website of the National Candle Association and let her READ about how all waxes are clean burning if the right ingredients are used!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!I have the same thing here with the soy people saying that "Friends don't let friends burn paraffin" what a load. I tell my customers to look on my website where I have a section about wax, taken from the National association. All these nuts here say that soy is water soluble, I put some in hot water and let it cool and it is so water soluble that the whole surface hardened into a wax layer with the water underneath!!!!! It is much like saying lamb fat from a roast lamb is water soluble, not!!! Tell her that some Soy wax is not even certified GM free and see what she says to that and how some forests are being cleared for the palm wax. I now have been forced to use all waxes to show my cause and the only pure wax is beeswax as it is the only one with health properties. Yes, it can be certified organic but is a lot more expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swiecarz Posted May 23, 2008 Share Posted May 23, 2008 Candlewic carries natural Bayberry Wax, and it's $11.55/lb. , but it does have a beautiful fragrance. For me, to have a true bayberry candle and its unique scent, especially during the Christmas Season, it's worth the cost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted May 24, 2008 Share Posted May 24, 2008 If you search the veggie wax forum for organic, I think you will find a lot of discussion (and potential ammunition) for your "all natural" acquaintance...Every candlemaker has their own preference in waxes. Mine is truly paraffin, but I feel the need to jump on the soy bandwagon to please others I've found in my experience the best fragrance throw to come from paraffin.If you like paraffin best, I think you should stick to your guns and make paraffin. I do not think that paraffin candles are inherently more toxic than are soy-based candles - dyes, FOs, EOs, additives - ALL have their drawbacks. I don't think you should have to justify why you have chosen a time-honored medium to use in making candles. People can choose to believe hype, or they can educate themselves to learn what is marketing BS and what is factual. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissMary Posted May 24, 2008 Share Posted May 24, 2008 I have more info from "Miss Aretheyorganic"?She wants to know if I use essential oils in my candles. Am I correct in thinking that not all essential oils are organic?It seems she thinks that essential oils are what makes a candle organic.Most EO's are not safe for candles either. (ETA: Some have flashpoints as low as 120 degrees, which is unsafe, others will not burn at all but will reduce to muck, etc.) Just because someone claims to use them, the labeling in candles does not have to be entirely truthful by current regulations, so you can slap on a label that your candle is made from butt wax and no one would be able to tell you different.I created a page, taken from when I wrote up on Wiki for soy wax. (Fanatics kept changing the page back to weird crap, it said a long time ago using soy wax had healing properties... so now I maintain my own page.)http://www.cormarcompany.com/debate.phpIn particular this part:Essential oils are available and a bit more costly, but unless they are pure, they also contain chemicals. (Not all EO's are created equal either, they are also not regulated and can easily be unpure.)Feel free to read through that and take what you want to show her.ETAtA: This might also be of help to you: http://www.cormarcompany.com/scam.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Camay Posted May 24, 2008 Share Posted May 24, 2008 Miss Mary, I would change your sentence: "Essential oils are available and a bit more costly, but unless they are pure, they also contain synthetic chemicals."All EOs & FOs are made of "chemicals." The "organic" crowd is interested in using biologically made chemicals, not man-made (synthetic) chemicals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissMary Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 Ah, good point, thank you for noticing that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Di_in_AZ Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 I used to let it bother me and get real pissed about the whole paraffin/soy thing. Anymore I just realize the people who say those things are just pretentious and I look at the source. My last show a few weeks back, there was another vendor who had a few candles on her stall. She came over and asked what my candles were and I told her a paraffin blend. She then pronounced with her nose in the air that hers were soy. Me and my friend just stared at her and didn't say anything. As she walked away we couldn't help but laughing. Dear god, they need to get off their high horses. I used to get into it, but it really isn't worth it--I think they need to believe it to make themselves feel special.The best thing was she was one stall over from me and several people walked in her stall and asked what was the lovely smell, and the lady in the stall between us would tell them that it was the scent I was burning in MY stall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Debra Phelps Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 All natural candle. Take those eatable parrifin lips for kids, melt them and mix with a handful of roses, out of your front yard. Then before it hardens. put birthday candle in it. NAtURAL CANDLE...........Oh man, I forgot....The birthday candle is not natural. Darn.:embarasse Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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