Frequently Asked Question - Learn How To Make Soy Candles at Home

Naming Your Candles-Should You Worry About Trademarks?

April 22, 2016 by SoyCandleMakingTime 7 Comments

Many of us just use the name that’s on the fragrance oil bottle from our supplier when naming your candles. While that is usually perfectly fine, there are cases where you cannot use that particular fragrance name.

Usually fragrance oil suppliers will have “Type” after the fragrance name if it is a popular name brand fragrance which could mean it is trademarked. That’s not always the case though, as I’ve looked up a few that had the word “Type” next to it and didn’t find a trademark on them.

A few examples of popular fragrances that are trademarked however are…..

Love Spell by Victoria’s Secret

Cotton Blossom by Bath and Body Works

Clean Cotton by Yankee Candles

Buttercream by Yankee Candles

Fragrance oil suppliers put “Type” on the end of popular fragrance names so you know that it is a dupe of that fragrance. They are able to use the name for their fragrance oils because the trademark for a fragrance like Love Spell is for use in candles, not the fragrance oil itself, so the supplier/oil manufacturer is allowed to use the name.

After reading some incorrect information a few years ago, I used to think that if you just put “Type” after the name then it would be fine, but after doing more research I’ve found that that is not the case. You can, however, add that it is “comparable to Love Spell by VS” or some similar wording.

Just because a name is trademarked doesn’t always mean you can’t use it though. If you do a search on TESS (US Trademark Electronic Search System , you’ll find that Cotton Blossom has several trademarks on it. They are for different things, however. Bath and Body Works has specified that it is for their bath and body products such as room sprays, bubble bath, body wash, etc…. so we cannot use that as a name for our candles.

There is another trademark on Cotton Blossom that is no longer active, but it was for ladies and children’s undergarments, so not related to candles or fragrance at all.

Usually these trademarks are only for the fragrance name, not the fragrance itself. That is why you can find duplications or copies of the fragrance from suppliers. From my research, if a company wanted to trademark the actual fragrance so it couldn’t be duplicated, they would have to get a chemical patent, and a very strict process where only a very few are approved.

Also, did you know?

If a company has a TM(™) by the name of the fragrance that means it is an unregistered trademark? Anyone can us the TM mark without registering anything, however it offers only limited protection. You will only find registered trademarks in the TESS search.

Registered trademarks are ones that have an R(®) next to the name. You CANNOT use the R on your fragrance name unless you have first officially registered it with the US Patent and Trademark Office and it has been accepted. Using the R without first registering it is a federal crime.

You can read more about the differences between TM(™) and R(®) in trademarking here: http://www.clickandcopyright.com/blog/tm-vs-r-which-is-right-for-my-trademark/

So if you have a fragrance name you would like to use, and you see that it has a trademark on it, be sure to check and see what the trademark is for. If there are none that are for bath and body products, perfumes and candles, then you should be okay to use it in naming your candles.

Search TESS here: http://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=tess&state=4802:p3rnxj.1.

You can also easily search on the Yankee Candle Company website to see what fragrances they have trademarked.

What Wax Should I Use for Soy Wax Melts?

September 25, 2014 by SoyCandleMakingTime 10 Comments

Here is a question I was asked a little while ago, and I thought I would go ahead and post it and answer it here:

Question

“Hi there! First off love your site and have found it very helpful! My question is can I make soy melts using my 100% soy wax that I use for my container, jar and tealights candles? Or do I need to buy a soy wax specific to pillar candles? Thanks, your help would be greatly appreciated ” Stevie

Answer

You can use the 100% soy wax, but the problem is, it most likely isn’t going to release from the molds very well so you would need something like a mold release spray. The other problem with making tarts with that is when someone uses them in a warmer, they won’t be able to pop them out very easy when they want to put a new one in. So I recommend using a votive/pillar blend wax or you can add an all natural modifier to the 100% soy.

Here are a couple votive blends you can use:

Ecosoya PB (Pillar Blend) turns out beautiful votives and tarts. (Available at quite a few places online, so you can just do a search for it to find someplace closest to you)

P-100 Ultimate Pillar Blend. This is a new one by American Soy Organics . I have recently tested this wax out and I really like it. Turned out beautiful votives as well. You can now get this wax at CandleSoylutions too.

Candle Cocoon Soy Votive Wax Haven’t tried this one yet, but I’ve heard it is a good one too.

Soy Modifier (all vegetable). This hardens the wax, supposed to reduce frosting, and I have used it in Golden Brands 416 wax to make some test votives. It did help with release from the molds, but it kind of got a frosted look and didn’t keep a nice smooth color. I still need to do more testing with this modifier though. It may work better with a different wax or different amounts.
You can get the soy modifier from American Soy Organics and Candlesoylutions.

So, for those of you reading this post…. Have you used 100% soy wax for making wax melts or tarts? If so, how do they turn out for you?

When To Add Fragrance To Soy Candles?

June 4, 2013 by SoyCandleMakingTime 12 Comments

It’s important to know when to add fragrance to soy candles. You can’t just melt the soy wax and dump the fragrance oil in. So many people watch a quick Youtube video on making soy candles, or any candle making for that matter, and the video doesn’t go into any detail on the proper way to do things. Then you have people just throwing candles together and thinking it’s good enough because they don’t know any better. With soy wax, it’s especially important to get the right fragrance oils and to know when to add the fragrance to the soy wax. Soy wax tends to have a harder time with fragrance throw when burning. You have to test your soy candles to find out which fragrance oils are best, how much to use and make sure you add them at the right temperature.

What Temperature Should You Add Fragrance to Soy Candle Wax?

Adding fragrance to your soy candle wax depends on what kind of wax you are using and what brand. Usually with 100% soy wax you want to melt your soy candle wax to 185 degrees and then add your fragrance oil at 175-185. This ensures that the oil mixes well with the wax. If you add it too cool, it will not incorporate with the wax very well. Heating your soy wax too hot can cause it to discolor which is not good if you are using no dye. It could also cause the soy candle not burn well.

With soy votive, soy pillar and soy tart wax blends, you want to melt your wax to 195-200 degrees and then let it cool down to 180-185 to add your fragrance oil. Then you will usually pour the soy wax into the molds at around 160-175 F. Soy votive/pillar/tart wax has natural additives that make the wax harder so they can stand on their own, like pillar candles do. This is why you need to melt the wax at a hotter temperature.

Type of Soy Wax Determines When to Add Fragrance Oil

Different soy wax manufacturers may have different instructions, so follow those first if they differ from what I’ve told you. If that doesn’t work well, then try the above temps to add your fragrance oil. There are many different types of soy wax and they also may have different temperatures to heat them up to so make sure to follow those instructions.

Knowing when to add fragrance to soy candles is an important step in the process of candle making.

Questions? Feel free to ask!

Where to Sell Soy Candles?

May 28, 2013 by SoyCandleMakingTime 20 Comments

You’ve decided to launch your soy candle making business and you’re rarin’ to go! But where to start? Where can you get your amazing soy candles out in the open where people can buy them?

Today I’m going to list different places to sell soy candles. I will go into more detail in another post about each of these, but for now this should give you a great idea where to start. Some may have an easier time starting with one place or another depending on where you live and what’s available to you. I’ll try to list from the easiest to ones that may take more work. ( I even list Etsy down lower on the list, simply because it takes more work for each candle you sell since you have to pack them and ship them and takes time for you to get noticed online.)

Places to Sell Soy Candles….

Yard Sale. I have set my candles out while having a yard sale before and actually sold a few! Plus it gets your name out there locally, and if you make sure they take a business card, they may want to order more down the road!
Home Parties. This one is probably the most cost effective and you can definitely make some good money here! The one home party I did, I didn’t get very many people, but I ended up selling quite a bit, so if you don’t mind talking in front of people for a few minutes, the candles can pretty much sell themselves. It’s a good idea to make a good inventory of candles to take with you though so you can sell them on the spot.
In Store. You might be able to find a small shop that would display your candles. I did this for awhile at a Bi-Rite(plumbing supplies! lol) and it would have worked out better if it had been closer to home. I did get sales there though, and It didn’t take any money for me (except gas to drop off candles now and then) since my husband knew the store owners and they offered to display them in exchange for a couple candles here and there.
Craft Show/Bazaar. There are usually craft shows going on somewhere, especially around the holidays. Many times you can find ones that only cost around $10 for a table too!
Saturday Market. I’ve set up at our saturday market a few times and sold quite a bit there. It does take a little more work to set up and take down and you’ll need a pop up canopy, but the sales could be worth it! This does
Mall Space. I’ve never done this, and I think it’s probably kind of expensive, but if you live near a large mall, it may very well be worth it, so it would be a good idea to contact your local mall and see what the cost is and requirements for setting up. Christmas time would be a great time to try this.
Etsy. You can try Etsy, though I never had much luck selling there(I didn’t try too hard either since I had my own website), plus you have fees and stuff that make it hard to make much if you are wanting to price your candles reasonably since shipping is high for candles because of the weight.
Ebay. Selling your candles on Ebay isn’t the best way to go unless you have extra stock you just need to get rid of at a fairly low price.
Your Own Website. To me, this was the best way to go. Most of my candle sales came from my own website. It does take time to set one up though, and some knowledge in search engine optimization so you can get seen when people search for soy candles. But once your site is established, it can pretty much start growing on it’s own once people find out about you and start coming back. A website takes the most work to set up and maintain, but it can also be the most consistent way to sell your soy candles. You could outsource some of your website work though, like paying for a custom design and search engine optimization. (I do web design and SEO, so that link goes to my own web development site)

So that’s all I’ve got for now! Please feel free to comment if you know where else to sell homemade soy candles.

What Are Soy Blend Candles?

May 28, 2013 by SoyCandleMakingTime 2 Comments

Soy blend candles are candles that are made with a mixture or blend of soy wax and some other type of wax or additive. It is quite common for soy and paraffin to be mixed together to make soy blend candles. Usually people do this to eliminate the frosting that can occur on 100% soy wax candles.

Soy wax can also be blended with Beeswax, Palm wax, Coconut wax, or any other kind of wax to create a soy blend.

I would prefer not to blend soy with paraffin, only because I don’t believe paraffin is completely safe to our healthy and I’d rather not benefit over seas oil companies if I can help it, since paraffin wax is made from petroleum, but that’s my opinion.

I prefer to use all soy wax or some other soy/natural wax blend like the ones mentioned above.

Soy votive/pillar wax is a soy blend. Usually it is made up of mostly soy wax with some vegetable oils added to it. There are also some soy container waxes that are soy blends as well, with additives to help reduce frosting and retain color better, as well as giving the wax a higher fragrance load. There are many different kinds of soy wax to choose from. Some of these soy blends say “all natural soy wax” but that does not usually mean that the wax is 100% soy, that just means that the soy and any additives are natural. If it says anything about reducing frosting, better color retention, then it is not 100% soy wax. If you are wanting 100% soy wax to work with, then you need to make sure it states 100% soy or Pure soy wax.