Hi and some questions from a noobie

[candlentn]

New guy saying hi here. I'm as green as you can get at this. lil history how this adventure came about. We've been married 27 happy years and have traveled a lot. In those travels, and life in general, we have collected a lot of coffee mugs. They keep getting moved and stored. Some have sentimental value; like one from our first set we bought when we 'setup ' house. We've always burned candles in our home. And for the past few years have spent a lot on scented candles. So..I decided it would be good to learn how to pour my own scented candles in these mugs and use them around the house and camper. So, last week I stopped by a local scented candle store and got a quick lesson in 'waxology' from the owner. Soy flakes. And it went ok. We don't get the scent in the house after burning that we'd expected. Warm Jazz scent. I don't think I got the percentage right. I just sort of guessed at it, it smelled good in the pot. I didn't want to overdo it. Or it maybe just that scent.

So, after a couple of pours I have some questions.

I'm sure I'll wander around and find some of these answers on this board, but here are some newb questions, but I mostly wanted to introduce myself here.

• my major confusion is about percentages/weights etc. Appears to be lots of measuring needed. I need to get me a kitchen scale I guess first. But, anyways, I see so many different opinions/thoughts online that it's hard to know WHAT to do. Weigh wax...add scent (by weight or by a volume ? One place said 1 tsp to a pound of wax).
  
• How do you clean the wax/scent from things you use to melt/pour? As the newbie, I'm using the coffeecan in a boiling pot with a candy thermometer and that's working ok I guess. I read to keep it at 180. I also read about people using other thing to melt/pour out of and am curious how you clean those pots where the scent isn't in the next pour? I put my stuff on a cookie sheet with newspapers in the oven and turned it on low and got most of it off and wiped it out. But...still the old scent is on them. yea, I can get another coffee can, but there has to be a better method of cleaning.
  
• Oils vs Fragrances seems to be an ongoing dilemma. Does it really matter?
  
• wood wicks vs cotton? My son and I decided we'd make a 'mandle'..a man candle. :laugh2:So, we got a wood wick, some patchouli scent and poured in a big Titanic exhibit mug. (added a lil blue coloring crayon..how newb..but that's all we had to color with. It made it blue though). It's doing ok, but the wood wick is not really flaming..just sorta glowing. That normal? I thought it'd sizzle like those woodwick candles we bought.
  
• The local store is very expensive for supplies and his oils don't say "essential oils". I see a lot of candlemaking supplies on Ebay. Have you guys had good luck with that route? or do you prefer to buy locally and pay the difference because you can hand pick?
  

So anyway, there you go. It's good to have a good resource for information.

Thanks and have a good day,

Mark

[Candybee]

My advice is if you want to make candles for yourself to save money don't count on it. Its definitely much cheaper to keep buying already made candles than making them yourself.

If you want to learn about candlemaking and make candles that's a different matter but be prepared to spend a lot of time, money, and resources in research, development, and testing. Thats what it will take to make a good candle that's safe, throws well, burns well, and has a nice appearance.

If I were you and I wanted to learn about candlemaking I would start out with a candle kit from a good supplier like Peaks. A kit will have everything and instructions that you need to make a candle. Its a great intro to candlemaking and one of the cheapest ways to start off.

Good luck! And welcome to Craftserver! Lots of great info here and a great place to do some real research.

[candlentn]

Thanks for your reply and yea, I realize right now it's cheaper to buy them premade.

But honestly, I really enjoyed my first candlemaking try...dunno why, I just did.

[Pam W]

#1 - you need a scale - everything to do with candlemaking is by weight....no measuring with teaspoons.

#2 - No crayons for coloring - use only dyes made specifically for candles (liquid or blocks) I prefer liquid.

#3 - Using a coffee can is ok for now, but life is easier with a pour pot. Craftstores usually have them but their wax, FOs & wicks are overpriced and not really good quality.

#4 - Not all scents work in soy - it's all a matter of testing. (heck, even some scents don't have much of a throw in paraffin either) Some scents like Patchouli can be difficult to wick along with vanilla & cinnamon. Essential oils don't usually have much of a hot throw and they are rather expensive to use in candles.

#5 - cleaning the pots - heating in the oven is fine. If you cleaned the equip well, the little bit of lingering scent won't make any difference once you scent your next batch. You'll do well if you get yourself a heatgun - a Chandler's best friend!!

#6 - Get your supplies from a reputable candle supply company.

[Faerywren]

To all the good advice already given, I'll add that wood wicks are buggers.

[candlentn]

Mod please delete...thanks.

Edited March 6, 2011 by candlentn

[candlentn]

#1 - you need a scale - everything to do with candlemaking is by weight....no measuring with teaspoons.

"]Will do..tried at WalMart and Lowes last nite and to my surprise, neither had one.

#2 - No crayons for coloring - use only dyes made specifically for candles (liquid or blocks) I prefer liquid.

Ya, I thought it wouldn't be a good idea, but I'm just testing and playing around now. But, it made it a lil blue and that's what i was going for.

#3 - Using a coffee can is ok for now, but life is easier with a pour pot. Craftstores usually have them but their wax, FOs & wicks are overpriced and not really good quality.

Will look for one. Some say they just get an old coffeepot. Google said FO is fragrance oil.

#4 - Not all scents work in soy - it's all a matter of testing. (heck, even some scents don't have much of a throw in paraffin either) Some scents like Patchouli can be difficult to wick along with vanilla & cinnamon. Essential oils don't usually have much of a hot throw and they are rather expensive to use in candles.

"throw"..I guess that means how the scent spreads in the house. I guess this means also that I'll just have to play around with diff scents and such. Yes, the FO is expensive, I found some that were just Fragrance and were a LOT cheaper. But, I had read somewhere online to only use Essential oil, so here again, lesson learned.

#5 - cleaning the pots - heating in the oven is fine. If you cleaned the equip well, the little bit of lingering scent won't make any difference once you scent your next batch. You'll do well if you get yourself a heatgun - a Chandler's best friend!!

"A candle manufacturer is traditionally known as a chandler." I'd have missed that on a trivia question. How'd I live this long and not know that? I'll have to find out why I need a heatgun.

#6 - Get your supplies from a reputable candle supply company.

See here in my city we don't have any except one and he's very expensive. I will just have to do some searching I guess.

Again, thanks for the answers here.

[PAgirl89]

For cleaning pour pots I use (and I think many of us do) A LOT of paper towels. I clean my pouring pots with paper towels and can use up to 8 BIG rolls a week and I'm a small batch maker, usually less than 3lbs at a time.

Unless I'm using a wax that sets really fast, like palm wax, I rarely use the oven to clean my pots.

[chuck_35550]

I recommend a kit. Its the easiest way to get your feet wet without spending a ton of money. You will find a rather large hook in your mouth and no amount of running will tire out your desire to get up to your hips in crafting. You have my deepest sympathies.

Steve

[Pam W]

I wipe down my pouring pots immediately after pouring and that gets out most of any left over wax, if not I hit them with the heat gun and wipe again. I'm in AZ and don't like to heat up my oven if I don't have to.

You can get some liquid dyes from craftstores along with pouring pot - heat gun at Wal-Mart or embossing gun at craft store....the 1st time you have to clean up a wax spill you'll know why you needed one. Plus they are great for leveling the top of the candle if you need to do that.

You can use an old coffee pot, just do not set it directly on the stove burner; set it in a pan of hot water to heat....you'll just have to trust me on this one~~

[cedar_lea]

Being pretty noob myself I know the answer to some of these questions.

Scale: You want digital, no really, and one that does .1 oz because sometime you're going to be doing as small of a batch as possible to save supplies when testing and need it, or mixing FOs. Scales are found hiding on the bottom shelf near dishes or blenders depending on the store. Walmart has a $30 one and a $50 one. I suggest the $50 one. I have the $30 and it's not very good at small measurements (sometimes it doesn't seem to register) and likes to shut off if it goes too long without use --which is pretty obnoxious because you usually have a half full container that now you can't get a tare weight on.

Pour pot: Someone suggested using pyrex containers for pour pots and I love it. I put it in my pan of water on the oven and balance it on those metal cookie cutters and let it boil. I can see the color and it has a pour spout, which I am WAY too messy to live without.

[Pam W]

likes to shut off if it goes too long without use --which is pretty obnoxious because you usually have a half full container that now you can't get a tare weight on.

=============

It's far more obnoxious when your battery goes dead in the middle of a project. I know the tare weights of all my pouring utensils..has come in handy many times

[SatinDucky]

Welcome to the board and your new addiction

This is an expensive learning process but oh so satisfying feeling when you finally get one to burn just right, then are able to repeat it

As soon as you start reading here, you'll start learning all kinds of new things.

[soy327]

I recommend a kit. Its the easiest way to get your feet wet without spending a ton of money. You will find a rather large hook in your mouth and no amount of running will tire out your desire to get up to your hips in crafting. You have my deepest sympathies.

Steve

Yep Ditto :laugh2:You have my deepest sympathies too. A BIG GOOD LUCK FROM COLORADO

[se2653]

I'm a newbie too- and started with a container kit from Peaks- which comes with a pouring pot. I loved the kit, it came with great wax, dye chips and frag. oils- a great way to start! I highly recommend it- it got me hooked on this hobby, it's fun to create something unique and useful. Good luck and welcome!