Soy wax and essential oils

[yan]

Hiya!
Today I had my first attempt at making a small soywax candle with just some Geranium and Citronella essential oils.
As these were quiet strong I only used 8 drops of Geranium and 2 drops of Citronella in a small votive candle. When pouring the wax it smelled very strong but once the wax had set I burned the candle to see what fragrance it gave off and the candle hardly gave off any scent, after it had een burning about 2 hours the scent got a little stronger but not much.
Is it possible for the oils to sink in the wax and that's why the candle only gave off scent after burning for a while.
Also how much oil should I be using with soywax?
When is the best time to add the oils to the wax?

Many Thanks
Yan:D

[girlyracer]

Hi Yan

I've don't use EO in my candles but I do know that they can be very tricky. Not all EOs work in candle making and some of them can be a bit hazardous due to differing flash points.

Having said that I know of other candle makers who use them and with great success but it took them a long time and lots of effort to narrow down which ones are compatible with soy.

It is possible for oils to sink to the bottom of the candle. How long did you stir for. Some oils because of their viscosity (sp) take longer to combine with the molten wax. I usually stir my oils for a good 3-4 mins. I then always give it another quick stir before I pour.

The best oils to use in soy, hmm, good question as not all oils will throw in soy. Soy is quite tempermental to work with. Always ensure that you use good quality oils made especially for candle making. some oils on sale are 'cut' ie diluted. These tend to be more suited as pot pourri oils.

How are you measuring your oils by weight or by volume? You should be weighing your oils. What ratio are you using? I tend to use a 8% ratio for my soy candles, which I think is pretty much average. Some oils may need less others more. However, as you are using EOs then I think around 5% is the norm.

The best time to add your oil, again this can vary. I tend to add my oil when the wax is at around 76/77C. If the wax is too hot you will burn off the fragrance, too cool and it won't mix in properly.

Hope that helps.

[Oddsox]

To add a couple of points to Ruby's comments, I tend to use essential Oils at 2-3% only - as has been stated the quality of the oils makes a big difference so make sure you know what you're buying! Sometimes you do get what you pay for! I find that even these smaller ratios provide plenty of good dry and wet aromas.

Whenever I make a candle I leave it for at least 48 hours to fully cure and then test burn. Don't now how long you left things but this could affect the scent throw.

Oddsox:)

[JohnP]

To add a couple of points to Ruby's comments, I tend to use essential Oils at 2-3% only - as has been stated the quality of the oils makes a big difference so make sure you know what you're buying! Sometimes you do get what you pay for! I find that even these smaller ratios provide plenty of good dry and wet aromas.

Whenever I make a candle I leave it for at least 48 hours to fully cure and then test burn. Don't now how long you left things but this could affect the scent throw.

Oddsox:)

Do you know which EOs work best Oddsox?

I've tried citronella, lavender, jasmine and orange.

The only one that really had a real scent throw was citronella.

Mozzies beware.

[Oddsox]

JohnP,

I've had reasonable success with a few. Sweet Orange gives out a lovely summery fresh smell - makes you smile! Tea Tree has been good and helps if you're feeing a bit blocked up. Lavener Ditto. Ylang Ylang for the romantic times!!! I have used Citronella but switched to Lemongrass as it is not quite so hard on the nose and is meant to have the same (Mozzie) effect.

I'm far from an expert but have been successful with the above. Just been reading a lot about the different uses etc. Am trying a few new ones all the time and now starting to try out blends. My nose feels like it gets overkill at times though !!!! :rolleyes:

Hope this is useful

Oddsox:)

[craftychickie]

Hi guys - I read that american fo work best in soya wax & uk fo in parafin - is this correct?

[JohnP]

JohnP,

I've had reasonable success with a few. Sweet Orange gives out a lovely summery fresh smell - makes you smile! Tea Tree has been good and helps if you're feeing a bit blocked up. Lavener Ditto. Ylang Ylang for the romantic times!!! I have used Citronella but switched to Lemongrass as it is not quite so hard on the nose and is meant to have the same (Mozzie) effect.

I'm far from an expert but have been successful with the above. Just been reading a lot about the different uses etc. Am trying a few new ones all the time and now starting to try out blends. My nose feels like it gets overkill at times though !!!! :rolleyes:

Hope this is useful

Oddsox:)

Thanks for this Oddsox, that's really good to know. I'll some of these!

[Bubbles And Soap]

Hi All

We use US fragrance with our soy wax at 6% we only make melts but have never had any probs with scent throw...

Also had to set up a nice excel sheet so the other half can just put in her qty of melts she is going to make and then it tells her how much scent is required in weight and soy wax for each type of melt she makes, come in real handy for all the diffrent size melts and qtys she has to make up

[richardgare]

Hi All

We use US fragrance with our soy wax at 6% we only make melts but have never had any probs with scent throw...

Also had to set up a nice excel sheet so the other half can just put in her qty of melts she is going to make and then it tells her how much scent is required in weight and soy wax for each type of melt she makes, come in real handy for all the diffrent size melts and qtys she has to make up

hi,
It seem's interesting. Can u be more in detail about your product. Hope you would respond.
Thanks in advance.