The Demo Site

• 16 oz of weighed Paraffin Wax = 20 fluid oz
• 16 oz of weighed Soy Wax = 18 fluid oz

1. If performing a second pour, make sure the re-pour wax is not too hot. This will cause thermal shock and candle cracks.
2. Candle may have cooled too quickly causing cracks or mottling.
3. Use only quality fragrance oils that have not been diluted to improve cost. This can cause wax to mottle.
4. Prior pouring, make sure the mold is clean and free of old wax.

1. Do not re-pour candle after it has become cool and started to pull away from the mold.
2. Make sure mold is clean and in good condition.
3. As a last resort, put the candle (and mold) in the freezer for 5 minutes. This will cause the wax to shrink and pull away from the mold.

1. Pour slowly and use minimal stirring to avoid the creation of bubbles.
2. Prior to pouring, ensure your mold is clear and free from residual wax.
3. Pit marks can happen when a candle takes too long to cool.

1. Try using a higher quality fragrance oil. Often fragrances smell good out of the bottle but lack the depth to create a candle with a good "hot throw" (smell while burning) and a good "cold throw" (smell while cold).
2. Try adding fragrance just prior to pouring candle.
3. Try adding more fragrance (do not exceed wax recommendations).
4. Try changing waxes. All wax formulas perform differently.

1. Immediately prior to pouring candles, carefully warm containers in the over at 150º for 15 minutes. This will allow the wax to cool very slowly thus lessening the changes of sink holes.
2. Do you heat the wax beyond the pouring temperature? Overheating causes the wax to over expand.
3. Make sure you candle cools slowly. Avoid drafts in the room.
4. Visible Horizontal Lines
5. When pouring a second time, make sure your wax is not too cool.
6. When doing a second pour, retain some wax from your first pour and use this reheated wax as your second pour. This ensures the color of the two waxes will be exactly the same.
7. Lower your pouring temperature.

A Professional Shrink Wrap System is a great packaging option for "high production" soap makers. The time is saves can add up to real dollars!

Two years ago I met Art Marko of National Shrink Wrap at the Handcrafted Soapmakers Guild Conference in Portland, Oregon. It was my pleasure to see him again last year.

The nice thing about Art is that when you buy from him.....you are buying direct from the manufacturer. If you have equipment replacement needs or special requirements...he is the one to help you. He has been in the shrink wrap business for over 30 years.

I have included Art's instructional soap shrink wrap video for your review. Click the forward arrow to watch the demonstration. Wrapping 24 bars in less than one minute is truly amazing!

If you have an expanding business or you feel like you no longer do it all, I highly encourage you to look into a Professional Shrink Wrap System! His Package Master 18 is the most popular among soapmakers.

On the other hand, if you are seeking shrink wrap bags that do not require equipment and instead only a hair dryer for shrinking…check out the bags at Wholesale Supplies Plus!

Wishing You Much Success!
Debbie May
http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com/
1-800-359-0944

1. We have eliminated the 12 and 25 pound price breaks. This allows us to lower our prices on the smaller "more popular" sizes.
2. We eliminated the 1/2 oz and 1 oz essential oil sizes. These sizes are very costly to bottle and eliminating them has allowed better efficiency and lower overall costs.
3. Not all refiners are the same and we do not believe in switching refiners/importers based on price fluctuations yet there is pressure to lower prices on several very popular essential oils. We sampled several essential oils that were from "lower cost" refiners and found them to be aromatically a bit different...good...but different. Instead of eliminating our traditional refiners, we have added the "low cost" oils to our line. These low cost essential oils are 100% pure and not diluted.
4. Essential oils are a commodity. Our new lower prices mean that when our costs change, our internet price will change also.

Click here to view our new essentail oil prices.

Wishing You Much Success!
Debbie May
http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com/

Today I bought this beautiful pendant the artist named "Berried". This piece is a spoon that has been recycled and artistically enhanced to become a beautiful piece of jewelry. All pieces retail for $80-95 each. Not cheap by any means!

As I was trying to decide on if I should splurge on this beautiful piece of art, I surfed the artists site and was suddenly reminded how a sharing a passionate story can help customers identify and connect...thus resulting in a sale.

In this case SpoonFed Art is handmade by a woman (Karin) that found her passion while fashioning spoons as a means of therapy for an eating disorder. In 2004 she left the corporate banking industry and launched her business. Sales from her handmade jewelry now helps support herself as well as the National Eating Disorders Association.

My guess is we all have a story. I think it is natural to want to keep some stories private....but "sharing a little" can mean a lot to customers.

For those of you that wish to read about my story...click here. I would love to hear your passionate stories in the comment section of this blog!

Wishing You Much Success!
Debbie May

http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com/

My birthday is next week and I will be 43....not as hard as 40....but not as easy as 21!

I have always loved this song. I hope the auto play doesn't drive you nuts. This video upload thing is new to me and have not figured out how to disable the autoplay.

My goal this year will be to take time to enjoy each moment. Sometimes it is so easy to get caught up in business. Before you know it....I will be 100!

Debbie May