hi! new to all this

[acacia]

I've read through a zillion pages so far, checked out all the tutorials here, and (I think) I'm ready to get going!

Here's what I did: Money's tight and I didn't want to pay shipping or wait, so I ran off to Hobby Lobby and got one of those 10# slabs of Parrafin wax, two molds (that I've since learned that I paid waaay too much money for), and some wicking. The molds are 3x6 and an oval shaped one (I'm lost on how to wick that dog). The wick I got was the "large square cotton braid". So far I've made about 6 candles. From what I've read, The wick I've got is working (I think, lol). So far the tests I've done look right, the flame doesn't drown out, the melt pool looks about right (from what I've read, anyway). I'm adding stearic at about 1.5 T ppw, is that right?

All the descriptions of the wax and wick are very confusing to me. I got the wax and wicking locally just to see if I would like making candles. Now I'm lost as to what to order online. What I want to do is make pillars (I just love the rustics and mottled ones). I think I want to stick with parrafin.

Can someone help me out with what and where to order? I'm in southern Indiana.

Thanks, this board has been a wealth of information.:smiley2:

[sharyl55]

Try to find a 'local' wax supplier. I think there are several suppliers in IN, KY and OH. This link might help.

http://www.candleandsoapstuff.com/Suppliers_by_State.html

Try using whatever wax your 'local' supplier has. That will really help you control your costs. Unfortunately the closest supplier for me is 6 hrs away so frt is a cost killer for me.

If you want to make pillars, get slabs of their various pillar waxes to test. Also try to get some wick sample packs. I haven't found anyone who had a square braid or flat braid sample pack.

Hopefully some of the pillar experts will chime in with more info for you. Good Luck

[acacia]

thank you for the link Sharyl!

[topofmurrayhill]

Hi acacia.

If you're interested in mottles and rustics, your basic ingredients will be straight paraffin wax and stearic. Don't buy a preblended wax (a mottling "blend" is OK but not the preblends that already have additives). For maximum flexibility, you might want to pick up some Universal Additive too in case you want to try some other type of pillar. You can use it in place of stearic to improve hardness and scent retention when you don't need mottle or frost.

Square and flat braid wicking is pretty cheap when you consider how many candles you can make with a roll. If you can pick up a few sizes around 30 ply flat or #1 square, that should get you off to a good start. Buy the shortest lengths and later you can order a larger roll of what you end up using the most.

Considering your location, Bitter Creek North http://www.candlesupply.com probably should be on your list. That's one of the biggest and if you order from there the IGI 1343 wax should be a good choice. They also have a huge selection of fragrance and dye.

[acacia]

Thanks TOMH! I definetly need help in choosing a wax, all those numbers just bounce around in my noggin. A couple of very nice folks let me know that there is a candle supply about 5 minutes from me! I'm so excited!

I'm a soaper, so I have a ton of good fo's, and have been checking online to see how they will do. I'm not sure if you can add just any fo to a candle or if they need to be specifically for that. So much to learn!

Thanks everyone!

[geekrunner]

Welcome!

I usually work with soy wax for containers, but play around right now with pillars. The closest to me for paraffin is Candlemaker's Store out of Hamilton, OH. Link is http://www.thecandlemakersstore.com/

I'm not sure where you are in beautiful Southern Indiana, so there may be another place closer to you, perhaps in KY.

I like mottled pillars also, and have had sporadic success with them. Good luck!

geek

[Georgia]

hi! I don't know how far south you are, but Alabaster is in Louisville.

I used Hobby Lobby wax in the beginning...it's not a bad wax and if you get it on sale, it's good. I think the wax I buy from a supplier (I use 1343) is "cleaner" - less junk floating around in it. And buying by the case (or pallet, some day) is cheaper in the long run.

Have fun and post some pics for us!

[SatinDucky]

They pretty much covered it. I just wanted to Welcome you to the board

[Breanna]

Welcome to the Board!!!!

[Scented]

Welcome to the board!

I know Alabaster will send you samples of their wax. You just pay shipping. They'll send anywhere around 5 lbs. to 10 lb slabs. I used to use the hobby lobby wax too, but that was before it was from Yaley.

The large square braiding wick you got from them would either be a #2 sb or a #3 sb, if memory serves me right. You're starting the same way I did lol.

For the rustic and mottled candles, stick with the steric. You can add up to 3T of steric for rustic and play around with how much to add for mottles. Something you may want to add in the future is some UV, which will help prolong the colors you chose.

One thing not to try is the scented wax chips from HL. They are a waste of money in my opinion. The FO you need to use is for candles. Most FOs nowadays are candle and B&B safe. That supplier by state link has a lot of reputable companies on it.

In addition, wherever you get your wax from, don't hesitate to ask them for wicking recommendations for that wax. It's another way of getting familiar with what's out there.

[topofmurrayhill]

Thanks I'm a soaper, so I have a ton of good fo's, and have been checking online to see how they will do. I'm not sure if you can add just any fo to a candle or if they need to be specifically for that. So much to learn!

You can use B&B and candle FOs interchangeably, but you should experiment when you can with FOs from different sources, including candle suppliers. Manufacturers can formulate FOs a little differently for candle versus B&B suppliers, so sometimes the candle FOs can work a little better and are less expensive on the average. That's not to say many B&B FOs won't work well too. It's a matter of experimentation.

[acacia]

Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone! I didn't mean to pull a disappearing act but we did our own 'Clean Sweep' and 'Trading Spaces' all in one here. I was planning on doing other things on my vacation! Once I get the hang of things, I will post pics. I'm all for truthful critiquing (sp?), so if you see something wrong or they're just really really ugly, tell me!

Thanks for the advice on FO's! I'm glad I asked about them becuase I need to order more for b&b, and there's no sense wasting money if they're hit & miss. I'm finally through messing with this room swapping, so I'm off to read some more!

I'll give a word of warning. I'm a windbag that's full of questions, so get those ears ready!