Help! Made my first ever candles!

[lovinit]

I bought some soy wax from a reputable online retailer for wax and candle supplies, melted the wax, added color and fragrance, i did these right towards the end when the wax was cooled and ready to pour. I poured at 65 degress celcius.

The candles turned out well and they burn fantastic but i cant smell any fragrance. I used a good quality candle fragrance from the retailer, so i must've gone wrong somewhere.

Does anyone have any hints or ideas?

Any help would be so greatly appreciated.

The other minor problem i am having, is with the moulds i am using (a heart shaped one and a cherub one) they dont stand to straight as there is a wax 'imbalance' at the bottom. Is this normal and is it ok to "shave" off the excess wax with a knife?

I wanted red candles and used a fair amount of the color block and the best i could come up with was a frosted red color. Was there something wrong with the dye block i used? As i wanted a real deep red type color?

[Starr]

Well, I can say working with soy is a unique thing and does have it's quirks!

The scent you used may have been just fine, but not for soy. If you look at CandleScience.com you'll see their FO's have a soy rating.

As for color, it doesn't surprise me that you only got a frosty color. Part of the reason I stopped working with soy very early on was that I was never happy that I couldn't get a good rich, deep color out of it (maybe some of the soy guru's can give you some tips as to what types of dyes may give you better results). You can shave away at your candles if they've got a bit of unevenness but you can also melt it away as well if you've got a steady hand. When I do this, I turn my Presto Pot on fairly low (usually to the warm setting) and rub the candle across the hot surface until it evens out.

HTH

[lindanelson]

Congrats on your first candle. If you add a little bit of black to the red, it will be darker.

When you mix your color in...drop some onto wax paper, let it harden (doesn't take long). This is so you can see what the color is like before you pour.

[Stella1952]

The candles turned out well and they burn fantastic but i cant smell any fragrance. I used a good quality candle fragrance from the retailer, so i must've gone wrong somewhere.

Does anyone have any hints or ideas?

There's a LOT more to producing a good candle than simply melting wax, add FO & a wick, cooling then lighting!! My very best suggestion is to read up on the particular kind of wax you are using in the Vegetable Wax forum. You can use the search tool to find posts about your wax.

For better suggestions, please tell us what kind of wax you are using (not all soy blends are created equal), the type and size of wick, the inside diameter of the container or mold used, the type & supplier of the FO and amount used, the temp to which the wax was melted, the temp at which FO was added and the temp at which you poured and lastly, how long you cured the candle before test burning. There are many factors which enhance or inhibit hot throw, so we need more information to be able to help.

[topofmurrayhill]

Hello again.

I see you're making progress down under.

If you think the candles are burning well, then the two most likely solutions for getting more scent throw are to try a different fragrance oil (they don't all work equally well, especially in soy wax) or use a higher amount.

Perhaps start by testing those two possibilities. Make one stronger with the same fragrance and make another with a different fragrance. A bakery scent like Creme Brulee or Blueberry Muffins or anything with chocolate should be a pretty good bet.

[Debra Phelps]

You are adding the oils at too low temp. Heat the wax to 175-185, add fragrance and color, then cool it down to 125 and pour. This allows the oils to infuse with the wax. If you pour too hot it will take out the scent, and if you pour to slow, it won't combined with the wax. Get a thermometer. They should be good and strong if you get the temp right, IF, you have good strong oils to start with. Start with Candle Science. You can not go wrong with that company. Just my opinion.

[dejablue]

Careful, she is measuring temp in Celsius. 175F is equal to about 79.4 Celsius. Yes she is too cool (149F) but I'd hate to see the fire if she tried to go to 175C! How much too cool would depend on the type of wax she is using. What temp are you mixing the fragrance oil in?

[Stella1952]

If you pour too hot it will take out the scent, and if you pour to slow, it won't combined with the wax.

Even using farenheit, 185°F (85°C) is NOT so high that the FO will degrade! Some waxes are poured much hotter with no loss of scent!! Some soy waxes are best poured at lower temps (125°F), while others do better if poured at 165°F - it depends on the particular brand and blend the OP is using, which wasn't specified. Pouring speed has little to do with mixing FO into the wax... stirring thoroughly and adding FO at a high enough temperature have more direct bearing on getting the FO mixed in well. There are always a few FOs that, for whatever reason, do not mix well with soy-based waxes.

I'd hate to see the fire if she tried to go to 175C

Ummmm, that'd be like about 347°F!!! *faint*

Online temperature Conversion Link

[topofmurrayhill]

We should note that this is about pillar candles, so I don't think they will be poured at 125.

Pouring temp has nothing to do with anything here. You add FO and give it a stir. Never me an FO that wouldn't mix right into soy wax at any temp. It doesn't need to "infuse" and as Stella points out, it won't burn off.

I don't know what is so complicated about it. Try a different FO or try more FO is the simple answer.

The other possible issue is the wicking. We are told that the candles burn well but we can't see what the means. There's a possibility that a bigger or smaller wick could be helpful.

[lovinit]

Thanks everyone for your helpful replies. Sorry it's taken me so long to get back on here.

I just ordered some more soy wax, even threw in a kg of palm wax as well as some new fragrances and colors to try again

Starr - thanks for the candlescience website, i will take a look at it. I am glad i am not the only one with the frosty color, i thought i had done something wrong! I havent yet shaved the uneveness of the bottom of the candles yet, i am to scared i might butcher them, will get round to it and post some pics in the weeks to come

lindanelson - thanks for the tip of the black and putting some wax onto the paper first to see the color - will be doing that when i try out my candles again this weekend!

stella1952 - i bought the soy wax from an online retailer who said they're container suitable, once again not sure about size of wick as this was all put together for me by the lady who owns this online store also the mould was a plastic one cherbus design. This time around i bought from a different supplier and purchased - Golden Brands Container Soy GW444. ***NEW CDN 4, 17.5cm*** for the wick and the container i am using is Aluminium Round Mould 50 x 165mm. I hope this is going to prove a better investment this time around

topofmurrayhill - i bought several different fragrances this time so going to be trying those out,also can we use essential oils for scenting?

debra phelps - 175 - 185? are we talking degrees celcius or farenheit?

dejablue - i am mixing in the fragrance just before pouring at about 65 degrees celcius!

Thanks again everyone for your help and when i can get my camera working i will post some pics.

I have some more soy wax left here (about 1.5kg) so i am going to play with that on the weekend and see how i go until i get my other order with the other wax and fragrances

[Debra Phelps]

Made a mistake, didn't mean pouring too slow. I meant pouring at a low temp. I have found, that if you pour at a lower temp, on 3 of the top seller soy waxes, that your oils don't infuse into the wax, and the scent is not there. If you pour to hot, it CAN take the scent out of it, not always, but CAN. Now there is one thing that I do know. HOW NOT TO MAKE A SOY CANDLE. Why? I made all the mistakes and found out the hard way a few years back. I have been working with soy and researching what makes it good, and this is what I have found on my own. No book. I make very stong, even burning, no soot, wonderful soy candles that my customers love. My business has been really starting to grow. That tells me, I must be doing something right. This is my suggestions. You may not agree with me, but there is more than one way to make a candle right. When you tell me that you have a really good business and are selling at less 80 cases a month, I will listen to you. Best advice ever, is to listen to the rest of us. You will learn that the better candle is not made by what someone teaches you. It is made by what you teach yourself. If you go by the book, you will only have a Wal Mart candle.

[Circle]

Thanks everyone for your helpful replies. Sorry it's taken me so long to get back on here.

I just ordered some more soy wax, even threw in a kg of palm wax as well as some new fragrances and colors to try again

Starr - thanks for the candlescience website, i will take a look at it. I am glad i am not the only one with the frosty color, i thought i had done something wrong! I havent yet shaved the uneveness of the bottom of the candles yet, i am to scared i might butcher them, will get round to it and post some pics in the weeks to come

lindanelson - thanks for the tip of the black and putting some wax onto the paper first to see the color - will be doing that when i try out my candles again this weekend!

stella1952 - i bought the soy wax from an online retailer who said they're container suitable, once again not sure about size of wick as this was all put together for me by the lady who owns this online store also the mould was a plastic one cherbus design. This time around i bought from a different supplier and purchased - Golden Brands Container Soy GW444. ***NEW CDN 4, 17.5cm*** for the wick and the container i am using is Aluminium Round Mould 50 x 165mm. I hope this is going to prove a better investment this time around

topofmurrayhill - i bought several different fragrances this time so going to be trying those out,also can we use essential oils for scenting?

debra phelps - 175 - 185? are we talking degrees celcius or farenheit?

dejablue - i am mixing in the fragrance just before pouring at about 65 degrees celcius!

Thanks again everyone for your help and when i can get my camera working i will post some pics.

I have some more soy wax left here (about 1.5kg) so i am going to play with that on the weekend and see how i go until i get my other order with the other wax and fragrances

Are you making a pillar candle? You can't use container wax for this, firstly you won't get it out of the mould and secondly it won't burn properly because GW444 is made specifically for pouring into containers to be burned in the container. You are referring to moulds as containers. Quote: for the wick and the container i am using is Aluminium Round Mould 50 x 165mm.