CandleCrazyGal Posted December 13, 2011 Share Posted December 13, 2011 When you are trying a new wax, how much do you typically order to test? 5lbs? 10? Candles and Supplies (where I ultimately would like to get my wax as it is only a 3 hour drive from me) is offering a 5 different soy wax sampler at 5lbs per type for 71.99 (Ecosoya CB-Xcel, PB, CB-135 and GW444 and 464). Is that a good price? I want to start testing waxes for tarts, containers and pillars right after the holidays so I want to order the waxes soon but am at a loss as to how much is a good start. And no I won't be crazy enough to try creating and testing all of them at once lolol, I'll perfect one at a time. TIA!CCG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
001 Posted December 13, 2011 Share Posted December 13, 2011 (edited) I think 10 pounds is good, and test them with all the same fragrance and figure out what wicking is best for them. It is an ok price for those waxes but I think it misses two of the most important waxes- c3 and 415. I think these two are the best throwing soy waxes. Xcel sort of sucks, 135 is picky about fragrances 444/464 are very similar the biggest difference is the melt point. 444 melts at a higher temp than 464. If I were you I'd buy 10 lbs of c3, 415, 464 and pb then test with those.If you are a 3 hour drive from them you might be close to fillmore container (lancaster, PA) They sell c3 and will give you 5 lbs for the price of shipping and CandleWic (Doylestown, PA) and they carry a wider array of products and have them in stock more reliably than CAS. I purchase from both of these places and am very satisfied. For 415 you might want to try candlescience.com they are in NC but their shipping is not bad. They also carry all of the above waxes. Candlewic says their soy 125 is identical to 415 but I am not sure about that. Edited December 13, 2011 by 001 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SliverOfWax Posted December 13, 2011 Share Posted December 13, 2011 You'll have to test again when you get your next batch of wax. Batches change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjdaines Posted December 13, 2011 Share Posted December 13, 2011 (edited) While you may not be testing them all at once, that is still a major effort to test 5 waxes. Four that you mentioned are container waxes and one is a pillar/votive wax (PB). Do you have a system already worked out of some other soy wax and just plan to substitute the new waxes? What trait of the wax are you testing for, CT, HT, frosting, smoothness, wet spots, all of these? Some of those waxes are easier to for with than others, 415 vs. 464 for example. In anycase, if I were starting out again, I'd pick C3, 415 and 464. Ten pounds of each. Edited December 13, 2011 by rjdaines Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted December 13, 2011 Share Posted December 13, 2011 You'll have to test again when you get your next batch of wax. Batches change. Yep. And when you test FO samples, you have to test each new resupply of FO. And when you purchase new wicks from the same supplier, you should test to make sure the properties of those have not changed. And if you use additives on a regular basis, you have to test each new supply of those...Testing is forever.Pick ONE wax at a time to test and learn that wax inside out before moving on. Testing a bunch of waxes, different brand/size wicks and an array of FOs can be the road to hell unless one is incredibly methodical and even then, there is stuff you learn along the way that usually skews the early data. Keep excellent notes and record more data than you think you'll ever need so you can review in the future. Buy a lab coat and have fun. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CandleCrazyGal Posted December 13, 2011 Author Share Posted December 13, 2011 I think 10 pounds is good, and test them with all the same fragrance and figure out what wicking is best for them. It is an ok price for those waxes but I think it misses two of the most important waxes- c3 and 415. I think these two are the best throwing soy waxes. Xcel sort of sucks, 135 is picky about fragrances 444/464 are very similar the biggest difference is the melt point. 444 melts at a higher temp than 464. If I were you I'd buy 10 lbs of c3, 415, 464 and pb then test with those.If you are a 3 hour drive from them you might be close to fillmore container (lancaster, PA) They sell c3 and will give you 5 lbs for the price of shipping and CandleWic (Doylestown, PA) and they carry a wider array of products and have them in stock more reliably than CAS. I purchase from both of these places and am very satisfied. For 415 you might want to try candlescience.com they are in NC but their shipping is not bad. They also carry all of the above waxes. Candlewic says their soy 125 is identical to 415 but I am not sure about that.Thanks, 001! Fillmore is the closest to me at only about 2 hours, but they are limited in what they offer all around. And I know I'm crazy if I think I can keep it to one or two suppliers, lolol but I'm going to try! I was CandleWic is only 30 minutes more than CAS and I'm glad to hear you have had good experiences with them. I'll take a harder look at their inventory and maybe just order with them to begin with. Thank you for the advice on the waxes!While you may not be testing them all at once, that is still a major effort to test 5 waxes. Four that you mentioned are container waxes and one is a pillar/votive wax (PB). Do you have a system already worked out of some other soy wax and just plan to substitute the new waxes? What trait of the wax are you testing for, CT, HT, frosting, smoothness, wet spots, all of these? Some of those waxes are easier to for with than others, 415 vs. 464 for example. In anycase, if I were starting out again, I'd pick C3, 415 and 464. Ten pounds of each.RJ, I'll be testing all of the above as I am starting from scratch. And I see that you recommend the same waxes as 001. I do have an outline I am following as to what I want to create first, which is scent blox, then on to pillar beeswax candles and finally containers. Thanks for your input!Testing is forever.Pick ONE wax at a time to test and learn that wax inside out before moving on. Testing a bunch of waxes, different brand/size wicks and an array of FOs can be the road to hell unless one is incredibly methodical and even then, there is stuff you learn along the way that usually skews the early data. Keep excellent notes and record more data than you think you'll ever need so you can review in the future. Buy a lab coat and have fun. :-)Thank you Sliver and Stella for the testing reminder. I really hadn't thought about each time a new batch of anything arrives that it may give slightly different results other than previously tested. I'm a pretty methodical person and sometimes forget to step back and see the big picture! Stella, I don't have the actual lab coat, but a friend had a t-shirt made with "Mad Scientist" on the back! I really appreciate all the advice! I'm soaking it in and making additional notes and changes as I go! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted December 13, 2011 Share Posted December 13, 2011 Stella, I don't have the actual lab coat, but a friend had a t-shirt made with "Mad Scientist" on the back!Excellent!! BTW, those eye protection goggles come in all colors... I love my hot pink and lime green ones. May as well look good while testing, eh? ROTFLMAO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blacktieaffair Posted December 14, 2011 Share Posted December 14, 2011 ( peeking my head in ) After reading all this......... NOW do yall know why I DON'T do candles ????? lmao!That pure hurt my wittle head just readin it ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CandleCrazyGal Posted December 14, 2011 Author Share Posted December 14, 2011 May as well look good while testing, eh? ROTFLMAOLOLOL You got it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CandleCrazyGal Posted December 14, 2011 Author Share Posted December 14, 2011 ( peeking my head in ) After reading all this......... NOW do yall know why I DON'T do candles ????? lmao!That pure hurt my wittle head just readin it !Do you only do melts BTA? And just out of curiosity do you use clamshells or the tart molds? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blacktieaffair Posted December 14, 2011 Share Posted December 14, 2011 (edited) Melts ( tons ) , dipped and decorated out the ying yang TPs, bears, pinecones, lotion, hand sanitizer, sugar scrubs, room sprays, linen sprays, car freshener blanks (think little tree thingys you hand from the rearview mirror ) and just about anything else you can do to scent a home without lighting it on fire ! lol And yep, I use clamshells. Every so often when Im testing a new scent, I will make up the wax in those tiny lil muffin pans, and then take different ones, and put them in a "grab bag" of different scents. I just like the clams... pour , close, label, gone ! Edited December 14, 2011 by blacktieaffair Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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