July 2003 How to Make Candles, Candle Making Newsletter

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The En-Light-ener
Candle Making Newsletter

Welcome to the En-light-ener, Candlewic's newsletter for the candle making community. As always, we thank everyone who has taken the time to read our En-Light-ener. We do have a complete list of the backissues on our website if you would like to review some of the topics covered in previous editions.

Sunscreen For Your Candles???
As the warm summer sun ushers in the fun days of outdoor activities and bright warm days, candle makers everywhere are out and about selling their candles. Unfortunately the same sun, which brings us the beautiful days of summer, also causes havoc on our candles. Candle makers everywhere are forced to hide their beautiful masterpieces in an effort to keep their candles from fading or melting in the warm heat. There are a few simple tips and additives that can help protect your candles from the damaging rays from the sun, resulting in an increased shelf life as well as raise your candle’s marketability as a premium product.

Ultra Violet Light Absorbers (UVLA’s) were designed to reduce the fading of candles that are displayed in natural or artificial light. Think of them as sunscreen for your candles. Ugly fading (photo degradation) can be caused by a variety of factors, but nearly always can be avoided by the addition of UVLA. Usage levels vary greatly depending upon application, but a general rule of thumb for large batch lots is to use about 45 grams per 100 pounds of wax. Smaller batches use 1/2 teaspoon to 10 lbs of wax. Some testing will be required for different colors to maximize effectiveness. Some candle makers view UVLA as an unnecessary increase in the cost of materials while others realize the value of UVLA as an extremely simple way to increase the shelf life of their candles. On average, UVLA only costs about 4 or 5 cents per gram, which equates to less than $2.25 per 100 pounds of wax (just over 2 cents per one pound candle). You can even announce the added value protection on your label and charge an extra 50 cents per candle. That is over 2000% mark-up on investment!

There are simple additives that can be used to increase the melt point of your candle for the warm summer months.

Soy Wax

Candle makers have been using Stearic Acid for well over 150 years as a way to increase the melting point of lower melt point waxes. With a melt point of 150 degrees F, it is a fatty acid that is available in two types. Regular Stearic Acid is great for paraffin candles, while its vegetable counterpart Palm Stearic is great for using in Soy Waxes. Another popular additive is Micro 180, which is a microcrystalline wax. Used anywhere form 2% to 10%, Micro 180 can help eliminate saggy candles in real hot weather. A word of caution: any additives you introduce to your candles may alter the appearance or burn properties and proper testing must be performed.

This last tip is 100% free and 100% effective. As the old adage states, an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure. Quite simply, keep candles out of light whenever possible. Many of our Libby Branded Jars are

shipped to you in a sturdy reusable box that makes a great protector for your finished candles. If you are selling your candles in an outdoor venue, purchase a shade tent to keep you and your candles out of the sun. On really sunny days, consider keeping fewer products out on the open table, and when a customer makes a purchase, you can give them a candle that was stored below in a box. For those of you who ship your candles to retail stores, a quick chat with the store owner to explain the importance of displaying the candles away from the windows will save you a lot of money in returns. Some dedicated shop keepers have even gone as far as having their windows lightly tinted to help ward off the damaging sun, not to mention the energy bill decrease by having less stress on the air conditioner.

CHANDLERS CORNER

Hi! I'm Chandler!
I can help you
learn how to make candles.

Many people ask me to use my magic wand and transport their wax for free, but even my powers have their limits. Although I may not be able to ship you wax with a tap of my wand, there are options available to reduce your shipping costs.

UPS has what is called a “hundred weight” service for shipments over 200 pounds. This service dramatically reduces the per pound weight of your wax shipment as well as decreases the quantity of orders being shipped to you, which saves you money and time. A good rule of thumb is that it will cost you roughly the same amount to ship 4 cases of wax as it does to ship 2 or 3 cases at regular rates. Many of our case rates decrease in price once you order 5 or more cases, so combine the shipping savings and the bulk purchase price savings to really save yourself some money.

The number one waste of money is shipping any item by using expedited service. Time is money. Most candle supplies have a long shelf life, and if you make candles you will need supplies – no surprises. It is not a good practice to order items at the last minute and have them shipped over night. Take advantage of bulk discounts and order supplies early. By doubling your quantities, you will decrease your shipments by half.

For larger shipments, you can rest assured that our transportation manager will get the best rate possible. If you live in a residential neighborhood, the trucking company may charge you a fee of $40. We have no control over this fee. If you do not have a way to unload the truck, do not depend on the driver to help you. They are not obligated to help with the unloading. If they should help, you may receive a bill after the fact. Many people form buying groups and purchase wax by the pallet for bulk savings and lower shipping rates. If none of the members have a loading dock, sometimes a local business will do it for you in exchange for candles, or a small fee in order to buy their employees lunch.

July 2003

PROJECT:
To Dip or
Not To Dip

For those of you who may not own a Dipping Tank or a vessel large enough to use a Dipping Wheel, there are plenty of ways to use dipping techniques to create fantastic candles. Before dipping anything into melted wax, be sure the item is suitable for such a purpose and will not be harmed or cause bodily harm by being dipped. Always keep all body parts safely away from melted wax and wear approved safety glasses.

The easiest item to make is a mini taper or birthday candle. Use pliers to grasp a piece of flat braided wick such as a 12 Ply or 15 Ply and dip the wick repeatedly in any pillar or freestanding candle wax with a melt point higher than 140 degrees F melt point. Let cool between dips. Keep dipping until desired diameter matches your wick size. Hand dipped birthday candles really show how much you care about a person.

Another dipping technique involves the use of Pigment Dye. Pigment dyes can only be used to color the outside of the candle and will clog the wick if you color the core. Make a small batch of wax using .5 to 2 percent pigment dye. By dipping any freestanding candle into the mixture, you can transform its color almost instantly. Some people dip Pre-Made White Candles to instantly match any color scheme for any occasion. For an added touch of elegance, take a blunt instrument and carve designs into the over-dip so the core color shows through. Don’t limit yourself to pillars and votives. Our Apple Mold dipped halfway in brown makes a candle almost worth biting into, or our Christmas Tree Mold dipped halfway in white looks just like wintertime.

Candlemaking Kits!

Pillar/Votive Candlemaking Kit
[KIT-1] as low as $27.75

This exciting kit is a great introduction to make pillars, votives and floaters. The kit will provide you the opportunity to use many of the different types of molds available at Candlewic including aluminum, poly carbonate, votive and floater. What a great way to start your candlemaking business or hobby.

Order this kit by end of July and get a bonus 2 pounds of wax.

[ ORDER NOW ]

We hope you enjoyed this issue of the En-Light-ener.
Thank you for your continued interest and support.
Our goal is to make this newsletter as entertaining and educational as possible.
Let us know if you have any ideas on how we can improve.

Issue Index

July 2008 -- Sunscreen For Your Candles, How To Make Dipped Tapers, and more...

June 2008 -- Fall Candle Season Starts Now, Extraordinary Candle Making Project, and more...

May 2008 -- Green Candle Making, Green Candle Projects, and more...

April 2008 -- Recent Candle Industry Price Increases, Aluminum Mold Candle Project, and more...

March 2008 -- Straight Wax, Exciting New Candle Making Products, and more...

February 2008 -- Business Side of Candle Making, Ice Candle Project, and more...

January 2008 -- Basics of Blended Wax Candles, Rose Floater Candle Project, and more...

December 2007 -- 12 Days of Business, 2007 Candle Making Projects, and more...

November 2007 -- Show Time for Candle Making, Making Snow Candles, and more...

October 2007 -- Ready, Set, GO candle making, Candle Luminaries, and more...

September 2007 -- GREENING Your Product Line and Your Bottom Line…, One-Pour Candle Tins, and more...

August 2007 -- Candle Making's Center of Focus, Making Streak Candles, and more...

July 2007 -- The Latest in Candle Making Products, Votive Candle Project, and more...

June 2007 -- Setting Your Candles' Sale Price, Summer Candle Projects, and more...

May 2007 -- Determining Your Candle Making Costs, Using Extra Candle Wax, and more...

April 2007 -- Natural Wax Buzz Part 2, Layered natural candles, and more...

March 2007--Crucial details of candle making, Candle projects with no melting required, and more...

February 2007--How to choose a candle making mold, Making custom candle molds, and more...

January 2007--"Green" Candle Making, tri-color jar candle project, and more...

December 2006--Looking into the candle making future, 2006 candle projects, and more...

November 2006--Introducing...a candle making introduction, candle projects, and more...

October 2006--Prime time: candle wicks, taper candle projects, and more...

September 2006--Clearly still here:Gel candle making, one-pour tins, and more...

August 2006--Fragrance - the driving force of candle making, a new contest, and more...

July 2006--Planning your production, using granulated wax, and more...

June 2006--Our 35th Year, using aluminum candle molds, how much candle fragrance to use, and more...

May 2006--Summertime candle making, making natural lemon candles and more...

April 2006--Choose the candle wick, making tealight candles and more...

March 2006--Choose the right wick base, blending soy wax with paraffin, making palm wax candles and more...

February 2006--The roll of wax additives in a blended wax world, UV additives, making grubby candles and more...

January 2006--The secrets of soy wax candles, more ways to use candles, making soy wax container candles and more...

December 2005--Planning for the new year, announcing our new home, secrets about wicks, and more...

November 2005--Holiday candle making, ideas to sell more candles, making luminaries and more...

October 2005--Temperture issues when making candles, how to start making candles and more...

September 2005--Choose the right candle mold, ASTM safety standards, and more...

August 2005--Color and Fragrance trends, choosing the right candle making tools, and more...

July 2005--Planning for efficient production, Marketing your Candles, Making Swirl Candles, and more...

June 2005--New market trends in candle shapes and textures, Making Textured Candles, and more...

May 2005--The trends and science of candle fragrances, Making Mottled Candles, and more...

April 2005--How to select the proper candle wick, Top Colors, Making "Earthy" Chunk Candles, and more...

March 2005--Selecting the right wax Part III, Our Top Waxes, Making Floral Candles, Our History and more...

February 2005--Selecting the right wax Part II, Our Top Fragrances, Making Fruit Candles and more...

January 2005--Selecting the right wax, Using blended wax, Coloring wax, Making Layered Jar Candles and more...

December 2004--All about candle making fragrances, Making Grubby Candles and more...

November 2004--Choosing Color for your candle making, Making snowball candles and more...

October 2004--Candle Making Busy Season, Making Palm Wax Candles, Speeding Up Candle Production and more...

September 2004--Candle Wax Melters, Making Sense of your Candle Scents, Making Taper Candles and more...

August 2004--Getting Ready For The Season, Using Votive Pins To Make Votive Candles, No Melt Candle Making and more...

July 2004--Some History & What's New, Paraffin Myths, Making Golf Ball Candles and more...

June 2004--Choosing the Right Candle Wax for Your Needs, Making One-Pour Tins and more...

May 2004--Investigating New Products, Burn Testing, Making Freestanding Gel Pillars & Novelties and more...

April 2004--Candle Making Trends, Rolled Candles with Beeswax Sheets, Making Taper Candles and more...

March 2004--Color Theory & Techniques, Floating Candle Molds, Making Tealight Candles and more...

February 2004--Mold Techniques, Computers and Candlemaking, Making Easter Egg Chunk Candles and more...

January 2004--Marketing Natural Wax and Paraffin Candles, Layering Natural Wax Candles and more...

December 2003--Holiday Greetings, 2003 Year in Review, The 6 P's, Making Icicle Candles and more...

November 2003--Building Your Candle Product Line, Making Holiday Ornaments & Soap-on-a-Wick and more...

October 2003--Marketing Your Candles, Polyurethane Molds, Making Lemon Candles, and more...

September 2003--Packaging & Labeling, Essential Oils, Making Rolled Pillars with Beeswax Sheets, and more...

August 2003--Using Palm Wax, Increasing Your Profit Margins, Using Aluminum Molds, and more...

July 2003--Ultra Violet Light Absorbers, Reducing Shipping Costs, Dipping Techniques, and more...

June 2003--Choosing the Right Wick, Using a Wick Stick, Making Floater Candles, and more...

May 2003--New Products Review, Pouring Temperatures, Finishes For Your Candles, and more...

April 2003--Selecting Paraffin, Natural and “Hybrid” Waxes, Using Pillar Pins, and more...

March 2003--Selling & Marketing Candles, Making it Easier to Make Pillars, Wax Art Crystals and more...

February 2003--Pouring Temperatures, Votive Tips, Making Grubby Candles, and more...

January 2003--Candle Making Safety Tips, Instruction Labels, What To Do With Extra Wax and more...

December 2002--Polycarbonate Molds, Making Clear Snowball Candles, and more...

November 2002--Candle Making as a Second Language, The Story of Chandler, Natural F Wax, and more...

October 2002--Candle Making as a Second Language, Projects Review and more...

September 2002--Accessorizing Your Manufacturing, Making Clear Pillar Candles, and more...

July/August 2002--Making Cinnamon Roll Candles, Clear Pillar Base, New Products, and more...

May/June 2002--Back to Basics, Making F Wax Candles, and more...

April 2002--Making Streaked Candles, Wax 101 part 3: Natural Wax, and more...

March 2002--Making Crackled Candles, Wax 101 part 2: Gel Wax, and more...

February 2002--Making Easter Egg Candles, Wax 101: An Overview, and more...

January 2002 --Review of 2001, Frosty Snowman Candles, New Products, Safety Info and more...

December 2001--Botanical candles, making white candles white and more...

November 2001--Chunk candles, clearance sale!, candlemaking books and more...

October 2001--The new candle market, choosing gels, votive wicks and more...

August 2001--New products, new location , new web site and more...

July 2001--Selling & Marketing Candles (part 3), Candle Burn Times and more...

June 2001--Selling & Marketing Candles (part 2), UV Light Absorbers, Wax Additive Recommendations and more...

May 2001--Selling & Marketing Candles, Burning Instructions, Selecting Sustainer Bases and more...

April 2001--Natural Waxes, Candle Burn Times, Wax Pouring Temperatures and more...

March 2001--Making Wax Inserts, Blended vs. Non-Blended Waxes, Colors, Fragrances and more...

February 2001--Whipped Wax, Wax Art Crystal Wax, Gel Candles, Using Containers and more...


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The Candlewic Company
Supplies the candle making industry with candle making kits, molds and accessories including candle wax, gel, and wicks.

3765 Old Easton Road
Doylestown, Pennsylvania 18901
800-368-3352 | Local: 215-230-3601 | Fax: 215-230-3606

info@candlewic.com

Official Distributors of: Penreco Candle Gels
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