GETTING READY FOR THE HOLIDAYS…
With 'Cameo Angel Forever Candles',
Snowflake Snowmen & Fairies,
our GLOW RED SANTA & Mistletoe Kissing Candles.

By Patti Smith
Design Artist
BioMax Candle Supply
www.biomax1.com

ALL PICTURES AND REFERENCES ARE TO "NON-EDIBLE" NOT-FOOD ITEMS

This is a favorite time of the year and when we get a chance to become SUPER creative, while incorporating our candle designs with other handcrafted products. Remember we always maintain the same GOOF-PROOF and EASY philosophy to create items for those unique and fast-selling gift baskets. Don't let the great looks intimidate you!!

So let's get ready for the holidays and gift sales with new and fun ideas. [BTW -We had a fantastic time in Augusta, Georgia mid-September !! If you get a chance, by all means join this group next year for a fabulous time!!… similar to the Chicago show (which I believe is already scheduled for August 7, 2004, and we will be there!).

We have a new beautiful Angel and when poured in white with blue background, she makes a gorgeous 'CAMEO candle'… This picture shows the mold being poured as a soap with gold highlights of mica…However, we will be selling the wax piece as an individual white Angel for embedding, OR as a cameo, approx ½ " thick- with background color, OR offering the mold for those wishing to pour their own. This is a one cavity mold but has 'depth levels' so that you can first pour the angel section, allow to set, and then pour the background section with different color wax or melt & pour soap.

For the coordinating candle, we used our bulb-shaped 'child' glassware so that she never burns and stays beautiful, with a covering of clear gel to protect her.

We used a flat bowl piece of glassware, filled with chunks of clear gel and sprinkled with celestial silver and blue glitter.

We inserted the cameo wax on top of the chunks and then poured more semi-cooled clear gel over her--- to seal off the cameo piece and hold the child container in place, housing the wick. Some people like to chill the wax embeds to help reduce risk of melting from the gel.

NOTE: When we have a candle where we want to preserve part (or embed flammable items) .. we house the wick in a second piece of glass and refer to it as a "Forever Candle" because the smaller container can be refilled over and over. In this application above, the gel looks similar to water with floating candle, and the gel gives off wonderful scent whether lit or not.

We refer to the large container as the 'MOTHER CONTAINER' and the smaller container as the CHILD CONTAINER. We recommend pouring the Mother container first and when it starts to set, insert the empty child container. When the gel is set and the child container is level, add the wick and pour the gel into the child container (we placed chunks of blue gel and then over-poured clear liquid gel ).

We scented with DIVINITY fragrance, and added some of our 1" iridescent glitter snowflakes to the top of the candle.

This Cameo candle is stunning and SUPER EASY to make. If you also use the mold for the matching SOAP, you can create a beautiful gift set. We included a matching beaded bracelet in organza bag.

We also have two other shapes which can be used as 'Cameos' using this same technique: our Snowflake Snowman and our Flower Fairy. Let's start with the Snowflake Snowman.

You can see that our Snowflake Snowman is similar in technique to the Angel. He can be poured with only his body, OR as a thin Cameo, OR thicker to be an entire candle inserting wick thru the center. A thin top coating of gel is perfect for a professional shine and finish - similar to what we do with many dessert candles using a paraffin base.

If don't wish to pour paraffin yourself, we will have the (1) snowman body for sale, as well as the (2) cameo version or (3) full size wax candle and you can work it into your own applications.

In our gift set, you can see that we created four products from the one mold:

(1) We poured the full wax piece as the candle-TOP LEFT, scented with Holiday Icicles, then

(2) We poured the melt and pour soap in the same way (to the right of the center SNOW GIRL), then

(3) We poured only the snowman body in mp soap as a 'Guest Soap' (glittered white and to the right of the cloth bow-partially covered), and

(4) Then in heavily scented paraffin, we poured the snowman as an ornament (in green to the right of the glass Santa). We scented with Christmas Balsam FO --to hang on a Christmas tree.

We wanted to make sure our Basket is considered USER FRIENDLY :o) so to the right of the red berries, we also included a 'plain' bar of soap (featuring make-your-own embedded soap rack on the bottom). This will fulfill the needs of the customers who just can't bring themselves to USE the showcase Snowman Soap-we give them a guilt-free alternative :o)

October 2000


Halloween Candles Using Various Types of Glass and Decorations

The Holidays are such a fun time to be creative. Our challenge is to keep our eyes open and thoughts constantly buzzing with new ideas and ways to decorate our homes and offices.

In this special Halloween edition, we present a whole variety of gel candles and include a couple soaps too.

One soap is from a jack-o-lantern mold Using a bronze mica and scented with Apple Cinnamon FO. A delight for the young and old.

A second soap, also made from m&p base, has a spooky spider ring embedded... both being just perfect to decorate and scent a half-bath for the month of October.

Now on to the candles...

Make sure you don't miss the chance to take advantage of all the inexpensive and fun glassware and candle holders. We found a terra cotta pumpkin face resting in a wire rack and inside the perfect fit.. a little glass flower pot poured with bright orange gel. Just as simple as that and we used pumpkin pie FO.

The orange gel shines brightly through the face pattern and attaching a glow-in-the-dark spider to a leg of the wire rack adds that final detail for fun.

We then found a wire candleholder in the shape of a black cat which had a podium behind its head for a pillar candle, perfect to hold our glass gel candle.

We took a large glass container and used our wonderful clear silicone sealant to attach a large tarantula spider climbing up the side. EEEEEEK..

Finishing off our centerpiece collection are some extra glow-in-the- dark spiders, a hologram Halloween sign and paper pumpkin.

Make sure as you go about your holiday shopping, to keep an eye out for the marvelous ideas just waiting to spring into your mind. How about using the Halloween earrings for embeds?? Remember to find the ones which are NOT flammable and make this the perfect, fun and safe Halloween for all!

Hoot Hoot Hoot. so let your Halloween candles illuminate the passage for all the gremlins and goblins. If you utilize the illuminating bags for your driveway, the Gel candles votives will burn for many hours. Remember to keep an eye on them especially on the windy nights of Fall.

Start saving those plastic milk jugs for your Christmas illuminators too. Just a bit of sand for weight with a votive candle in the center of the milk jug (hole cut in the side) is all you need. Can't get easier than that!

Coming next month.. a Thanksgiving Colossal Candle Centerpiece.. Don't miss it!



October 2001
America Unites Together…. And Watches Light from Shore to Shore … and receives support from around the whole World …



Not one heart has gone untouched during the past month. We have witnessed such a joining of hearts which most of us had never seen before. Now is a time for healing. Yesterday is history, tomorrow is unknown…. So we live for our Todays ……with a little different importance and meaning.

During this past month I have witnessed candlemakers from around the country heating their melting pots, pouring candles and warming hearts. We have poured Donations by the hundreds of dollars into the various causes from our candle sales… and we have filled many thousands of American homes with heartfelt remembrances thru the lighting of candles. My personal email box has been flooded with words of support and encouragement from every continent of the World. This speaks a Voice; our work and effort indicates our Stand.

So this month our Article is two-fold -- first, the most simple of Unity Candles… for those who are newer and also for those needing to produce quantity. Our second -- is to show continued prosperity and direction, for we are not a people who will ever relinquish. So we continue on in our learning… and our second candle this month is the Wax Candy-Jar Candle….safety being our issue and with a relaxed, light-hearted attitude.

So Let’s Begin…. UNITY CANDLES …. The Red, White and Blue theme has found a whole new popularity in the candle industry. From our picture you can see how simply Unity Candles can be created. Have some red, white and blue gel on hand, pre-colored. For those who are new, ‘white’ gel can be created with several techniques…. using a white color block, adding stearic flakes, or by adding sprinkles of our whitening powder - remember a little goes a long way. You don't want to overuse the white powder pigments or they will clog the wick; they are strong and quickly get the gel to an opaque bright white (also used for milk and cookie candles). And of course some blue gel. Add some red, white, blue metallic stars, gold stars, red hearts and you have everything you need. Use a variety of shapes and sizes of glassware.

Seat the wick by dipping the tab into some melted gel and use your BET embedding tool to push the wick tab tight to the bottom of the glass and snip the height of the zinc-core wick just above the top of the glass. Next drop 'chunks' of unmelted red, white and blue AROUND* the wick, and sprinkle with glitters of your choice. Then overpour your color chunks with clear melted, scented gel. Finish off by a sparse sprinkling of glitter on the top of the candle. (* keep chunk piece slightly away from the wick so their weight will not bend the wick when you overpour.)

This will produce gorgeous bright Red, White and Blue candles which will be a favorite of your customers. A sprinkling of fine gold glitter on the chunks also gives a great look. You can add some patriotic foil garlands to decorate the outside of the glassware if you choose. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Candy Jar Candles

Our second theme this month focuses on Candle Safety. Sugar products can flame in gel candles and are unsafe. Therefore, we designed a whole new line of wax cookies and candies to fulfill the popularity of the Cookie and Candy Jar Candles that will be popular for the holidays. We have candy canes, Christmas trees, chocolate chip and a teddy-graham 'type' cookie… along with chocolate kisses, starlight mints, candy corn, and a Christmas red/green mint candy.

Remember the key to successfully embedding of wax pieces is to allow the gel to COOL before embedding. This takes some patience and some practice. Pour the gel at cooler temperature to lessen the wait and remember.. you only need to create a wall of the wax pieces up close to the glass so that the interior cylinder of the candle is pure gel to keep your long burn-time that customers love. This technique will also keep your candle burning 'more neat', and keep the original appearance attractive after many burning hours.

We used coordinating fragrances to go with the candies… i.e. Chocolate Fudge for the kisses, Candy Cane for the mints, and Candy Corn for the Halloween candy corn jar. We used clear, scented gel and filled the container about 3/4 full to allow for the displacement of the added wax candies. When the gel has started to 'set' and you can comfortably put your finger down into the gel, it is time to embed wax pieces. We also used our BET embedding tool to help push the pieces all the way to the bottom of the glass. Just 'jigsaw' the pieces around the Glass wall to get the look you desire. Then snip the wick to 1/4" and you are done….with a candle that customers will love.

We hope you enjoy both of these candle ideas…. And that you will continue to share your talents, which is a bit of 'yourself'….. as you spread light and warmth and love. Together we Stand… together we Comfort, and together we are Strong. Also don't miss the new 'Prayer Incense Bottle' instruction on our Miscellaneous Embed Page. You can make it in about 5 minutes from materials you have around the house.

Enjoy!

Patti
and the Crew at
www.biomax1.com

Wick Reminders

We recommend that you use only ZINC core wicks--you need the added heat from the metal core for sufficient temperature to burn the gel well... a 50s series for up to 3" opening and 60s series for 3.5 and higher, when you don't go to three 50s.

The biggest mistake we encounter: you should trim the wick to 1/4" for the initial burn, say first half hour. This is the time that the wick actually 'seats' itself into the candle. After that, to avoid smoking, trim the wick back to just a bare 'nub' meaning 1/16th of an inch. When a seated gel candle wick smokes.. 95% of the time, it is because it has too much length. People are used to the height of a wick in paraffin candles which is too much for gel candles. When you extinguish.. teach customers to do a little wick maintenance.. use toothpick to remove any wick droppings. Keep the wick at
the nub height to avoid excessive mushrooming.

This should help you immensely.

Beginning & Advanced Videos by Patti HERE

More Info about the Book & Video Set HERE