Esther.R
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Anyone know anything about candlemaking?Have the option to buy up some candle-making stuff that would be suitable to start a small business.....however I need help on two fronts
1. does anyone on here do this and has it been worthwhile?
2. can anyone help me come up with a sensible offer for this equipment - I can find a rough idea of the value of the wax and moulds they have online, but they have a large double boiler that I cannot find a price for online?
They are just asking for sensible offers and it is everything ready to go to start up a small candle-making business, and I was looking for something like this to start running beside my felt work as a small craft business.
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Martin
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It's one of many things in which I've "dabbled" - it's great fun, and if you're really frugal (ok, a cheapskate) like me, if you're nice to a local pub/restaurant that uses candles, and get them to save you the stubs, you can melt them all down, scoop the bits of wick out, then all you need to buy is some wicking......... 
BUT, I have a feeling that you'd be very wise not to spend much at all on equipment - firstly the market is saturated, and anyone with £10 can start making candles, and secondly, the market is flooded with cheap chinese imports - I suspect you can buy chinese wax candles cheaper than the raw materials........
About the only way I can think of to make money is to go for the "luxury" end, and make pure beeswax candles.......and please, a heartfelt plea from me, if you are going to perfume your candles, please don't use the usual 'orrible chemical niffs most people use -it's positively puke-making!
(Offer them £20 for the lot - a double boiler is only one saucepan inside another........)
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Esther.R
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Thanks for the advice - there is a LOT of wax involved here and most of it is beeswax, we are talking 50kg + and a very posh electric double boiler, might pass on that one then and offer for the wax and moulds.
oh and I hate nasty chemical smells too so don't worry on that count 
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Julie
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I melt my wax in an enamel jug on the hotplate of the Rayburn. If it is really hot, I stand the jug on a trivet - no need for expensive double boilers imo.
I'm really stingy too, I also melt down the left over candle stubs to make into new candles.
I made some tallow candles (with rendered down lamb fat from a lardy old wether) too. I stuck the wicks to the bottom of jam jars with blu tack and tied the top ends to lollipop sticks across the top of the jars. They work very well and are fairly slow burning compared to wax - plus the jars can be lidded for storage. They're not as smelly as you would expect either.
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Esther.R
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Well I got it, for what I consider was a reasonable offer considering what quantities were involved. I spent more than £20 but didn't bankrupt myself either and managed to get the boiler thrown in
Now I have to start experimenting. I am planning to aim for the high end of the market, I have been there, got the t-shirt trying to compete with things that can be mass produced cheaply.
eta- that was interesting about melting the wax on the Rayburn, I have a solid fuel range (a cheaper import rather than an Aga/Rayburn) thats good to know.
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Forget-me-Not
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Candle MakingHaven't any knowledge to pass on. I just dabble with the children.
Good luck though, sounds exciting!
Beth
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jaydee67
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I wondered who would buy that lot when I heard about it!
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MJ
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ooh, boiler, where? up here?
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jaydee67
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Esther has it now - the COPE place was selling it.
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MJ
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just went in there for the first time yesterday, sort of reminded me of the Blue Door before it had to move out of Newtondee Village.
Oh well back to the trying to rationalise how I can justify getting a full 3 can boiler for 7 brownies. Well I can dream, bairn seems to be saying I can stop spending money on her until I can afford one of my very own, no hockeyf
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MJ
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she bit me!
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Esther.R
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Beat you to it MJ  I dithered about it for weeks, thought I would have missed it but they still had it in. They didn't have it advertised in there, they advertised it on Shetlink. I am feeling very smug, I think I got a very good deal, ok I paid considerably over the £20 if I am honest but it was a huge bargain still.....especially when I discovered it was a £300 burco boiler with it...
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