Craftedinthewoods Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 I've had just a couple customers ask me if my candles were made with essential oils. Only a few of my scents "contain" essential oils but they are still a synthetic FO. I began thinking about adding a line of candles made with only EO, so I asked my supplier about using EO in soy candles. She told me that EO on it's own will not bind with the wax and will therefore wick out of the candle quickly leaving unscented wax and an unscented candle. I've done a little searching on line and will plan to do more as this busy holiday / craft season calms down...but I haven't found anything about the chemistry of EO binding with wax (or not) Has anyone heard that EO will not bind with wax? Do any of you make scented candles with EO and have a great scented candle throughout the life of the candle? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardLOZ Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 We experimented with EO's for a little while, lime, lavender & peppermint. We found that the throw was not great and most people are not prepared to pay the additional cost of the EO considering how much more expensive it is than FO. Based on this we quite our testing and juts stuck to FO's.In the overall scheme of things the number of people who request EO candles in very small. I think in the past 12 months we have only been asked once or twice if we can do EO candles and based on that number of requests it just not worth the time and expense.HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Debbie73 Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 I noticed a couple of years ago that Yankee had some essential oil candles, they seemed fairly expensive. I am not sure if they were soy or paraffin. I saw them at Linens-n-Things, at the time and they did not seem to be selling very well. Since I make palm wax candles, I had considered making some using essential oils. We own a health food store and do carry some of the essential oils, but when I was checking out the prices of some of the ones I would like to make candles out of, I thought there is no way anyone would spend that kind of money for a candle. Some of them are very pricey. It seems like I read somewhere, where essential oil candles were not meant to fill a whole room with scent. A customer is not going to like this and you would have to make sure that they understand this when they buy it. I may try after the first of the year, it would be interesting to see what happens!_____________Deb santa wink Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted December 3, 2009 Share Posted December 3, 2009 You might get more replies in the General Candlemaking forum or the fragrance discussion forum... There are quite a few folks here who use EOs and report success with their products. I have used a few and was very pleased with the hot throw and burn qualities of the candles I made. Some are expensive... some are pretty reasonable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craftedinthewoods Posted December 3, 2009 Author Share Posted December 3, 2009 You might get more replies in the General Candlemaking forum or the fragrance discussion forum... There are quite a few folks here who use EOs and report success with their products. I have used a few and was very pleased with the hot throw and burn qualities of the candles I made. Some are expensive... some are pretty reasonable.Thanks, I'll post another thread. I would like to try making a few after Christmas. I already have some lavender oil from a different craft project so that might be where I start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LynnS Posted December 3, 2009 Share Posted December 3, 2009 I know someone who uses EO's but she does lotion candles.That would make sense.But for me and my location they would never sell. I found some EO's fairly reasonable but not enough to make me want to try and sell.If the scent is not strong and will not scent a large area my customers would not be happy. That is the reason they buy my candle.Long lasting strong scented candles.I see some EO's at $25.00 and some were in the $30 and 40's for 16 ouncs.YIKES!!!!!!!!!!!! Believe one was over $50:shocked2: Some of the scents I had no idea what it was.If your market buys them go for it.LynnS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisR Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 EO's are very tricky in candles. I do a few in candles, but only to a very close friend, who understands they won't be as strong as FO's and she's willing to pay for exactly what she wants! The ones I personally found to throw good and last the entire candle are lavender, patchouli, eucalyptus, eucalyptus/spearmint blend, lavender/sage blend, peppermint...can smell fuel if you use too much, rosemary and basil are pretty strong and lemongrass in a mix is good also. That's all I can think of right now. Most citrus fade quickly or smell like fuel burning. If you use them in a blend they sometimes work.It's an expensive venture because of all the testing you need to do. I only use 6 oz. tins for my EO candles. Good luck!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kandleindulgence Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 Hello,I have made soy candles using pure EO's and have had no problems. I have tested Lavender and some custom blends I have created using pure EO's from RM and SA with no problems. My Lavender Chamomile candles have a great scent throw and very nice to burn after a stressful day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Circle Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 We use essential oils in palm and soy wax and they kick butt with their hot throw throughout the whole candle. We have never had a problem with them being less potent or not lasting the whole candle. I think it is a bit of a myth that they are less strong than FO. An example is citronella 1oz per pound in C3 - the whole house hums with the smell rather than the mozzies!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nadiap Posted December 6, 2009 Share Posted December 6, 2009 Sorry to butt in :-) but I have a close friend who really loves her lavender candles - health issues and it helps her relax at night.. If I were to test a couple of either pillar or container candles, (to give her for Christmas) is the rule of thumb the same as using FO - ie: 1oz per pound of wax (in US speak :-) I convert that over to grams Thanks ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisR Posted December 6, 2009 Share Posted December 6, 2009 Not necessarily, some EO's like FO's I start at 1/2 oz./lb and go from there. Lavender EO is pretty strong, so you may not need the full oz to get a good throw. In my parasoy blend wax I use .75 oz/lb for a great lavender candle! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nadiap Posted December 7, 2009 Share Posted December 7, 2009 Thanks Chris,have some lavender EO on order and will give it a test sometime next week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kandleindulgence Posted December 7, 2009 Share Posted December 7, 2009 That's right! Lavender EO is very strong and I only add approximately 1/2 oz per lb of soy wax. It's great! It's amazing to come home after having a stressful day then burn a lavender soy candle and your entire mood changes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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