old world Santa candles

What's winter with out a white as snow reindeer?

A less stressful one.

These may be beautiful but those antlers are fragile and I break them off on a regular basis when de-molding.  They are difficult to package and ship as well.  As much as I love them I honestly don't see them in next years production.

I've been having so much fun making these old world Santa candles.  I started making these back in May..I think.  Pouring cores and storing them until the holiday season.   They take a long time from start to finish.  There's a lot of hand painting going on and over dips in the antiquing finish has to be at the perfect temperature so at not to alter the paint.  

Planning a candle studio remodel

In my non candle making part of life our family spent most of 2012 remodeling our kitchen, dining room and living room.  It was an interesting experience and I'm glad to be done with it!  We lived in perpetual dust for months

2013 will by my studio's chance to get it's make-over.

I'm beyond excited to get started and I want to share a little of what's planned.

The goal is to have a light, airy room where the clutter of candle making can be easily stored out of sight but readily accessible.

Finished product can be stored and retrieved quickly.  

Ikea has a useful 3d computer program for designing kitchens and with it's help I was able to layout the entire room minus the main pour tables, packing area and the office.

The photo above shows half of the room, the other half is the office which is competed.

Pinterest was my favorite friend during the planning stages, where I found cleaver ways to organize the items I use most often.   Pinterest also led me to several amazing bloggers who shared how they created and organized their craft rooms.  I am eternally grateful to them

 Still haven't picked out the dates of our closure, I'm hoping for Jan but knowing us it'll be Aug and 118 outside.

Snowflake candles

Now that the office is finished I've been sitting back here building a new site and organizing computer files.  

Those are two projects in my planner that I've ignoring for months.

What I haven't ignored was the need for snowflake candles. 

Making changes

The first change is one no one noticed. I like it that way, it makes for a smooth transitions.

I think it was good call too as I'm sold out of cauldrons.  Last year I was left with a few dozen orange and green cauldrons while purples enjoyed all the glory so the purples are here to stay and the other colors are a thing of the past.

I really love the new pumpkins and they making for great floating candles too.  Look for these in bulk sets soon. 

An old friend who may see retirement is the floating moon candles, or I may bring them out in limited quantities.  I think I mentioned before how I feel stretch thin making all these different candles, I really love making them too, but time isn't always on my side. and I'm starting feel the weight of it all.

At some point in 2013 we will have to close for a short time as our planning for the studio remodel is completed and although I'm eager for it to be underway I absolutely loathe having to close the shop.

There are a few things we are able to accomplish in the mean time.

The first set of upper cabinets are in and a welcome addition.  They replace several rows of shelves that always appeared cluttered no matter how tidy I tried to keep them.

The next project is the office, which can be done easily with no interference in production.  I do most computer work from the couch anyway.  I tried to get away with not having an office at all, but file cabinets and printers and paper cutters don't go with our living room decor.

more pumpkin candles

As we're moving into the Autumn season I wanted share a few things I've been working on.

These new pumpkins and gourds are being poured in a soy blend and have an off white/ ivory color.

Trends are pulling me toward more neutral shades and I like them so much I think I see a few changes on the horizon for other candles too.

Wine cork candle New Packaging

If you're in need of retail packaging for wine cork candles, we now offer sets of 4 candles in clear acetate boxes with tissue padding, front and back labeled.

Glowlite Candles online

Our newest color

Gem

Is it blue? Is it green? Would it match my peacock palette? {this one is in my inbox nearly every day}

From dark blues to rich greens and teals the peacock has a lot of color inspiration to draw from and the word "peacock" can be used to describe many blue or green colors, making it difficult to know if it's the right one for your wedding. 

Luckily you can order a sample candle  to see if our new GEM color will match to your wedding color palette.

Sun Goddess Candle

I hope you are all having a wonderful summer.  I'm doing my best to stay cool.  Weekends have been full of pool parties and backyard bbq's and weeks are spent pouring roses and packaging orders and hoping they don't melt when I ship them.

Making mini frog candles

Sweet puppy

I don't remember if I already shared our puppy on the blog or not.
We brought her home last August.  The photo above was her first evening with us and all remember of that day is giggling non stop at everything she did.

She bounces like a bunny when she tries to run and pounces at everything she see's

Sample Candles

I wanted to share a bit about the Sample Candles that are available

They are a full size use-able candle in the color and shape of your choosing.  Currently you can order single rose and butterfly shaped candles for a nominal cost. Shipping is free.

I wanted to be able help out anyone who's not quite sure if the candle will fit in their holders or are wondering if the color would match their palette.

tropical fish candles

I get a lot of requests from customers looking for unique shapes, like lobsters, sand dollars, star fish.... trout.

I make notes and do a few searches to locate molds for their desires but I often come up empty.

Last year I was able to pull out my fish molds and start pouring them by request of someone who needed "a few tropical fish, nothing fancy"  She was delighted with them and I enjoyed making them so much I added them to my pour rotation for summer.

I love the soft beachy colors and the rustic finish.

turtle candles

I've been making these little turtle candles for over four years and I just realized that I've never shared them here.

These waxy reptiles aren't going to get that make-over like the other critter candles.  I really like this style of finish.

They are poured into multi-cavity molds using a white core wax and then dipped in a green wax.  Their eyes are painted black eyes before getting a coating of glaze.  A long process, but worth it!

Glowlite Candles online 

A good hard look

and a time for change

Around 5 or so years ago I purchased the molds and equipment from one of the last great american candle manufacturers.  I had no plans to make any of the novelty pieces that came with the purchase but after playing around with them getting a feel for how they were made, I found that I was enjoying myself too much to let them all go.  

I decided to mimicked their candle making techniques and marketed them wholesale similar to how they did, not only to honor their customer base which was use to a certain style, but also because making the candles that way was really fast to produce.

But times change..and I think it's time to incorporate my own style into the wax sculptures. 

The first piece to have a change is the mom and baby giraffe candle. Elephants, sealife and dragons are soon to follow. 

I hope you like them as much I do.

Floating silver & gold star candles.

I was suppose to have these shimmering star candles out for the 2011 Christmas holiday season, but with so much going on they were pushed aside.

The next thing I knew it was Jan and those star candles were still sitting on the back counters collecting dust and being forgotten about completely.  Valentine day was consuming my time and it wasn't until two days ago I noticed the trays of cores.

A core  is what I call unfinished candle. I decided to make a short video on dipping the cores and creating the metallic like finish.

These candles have an extra long burn time of over 8 hours and since they have a coating of silver or gold wax over them..it might take a bit of patience to get them lit.  The coating of wax is thick and it will need to melt a bit off the wick before it can fully ignite.

Glowlite Candles online

Glowlite Candles on Etsy

scrap wax

and what to do with it all.

If I had to guess I would say that 98% of our scrap wax comes from custom orders of floating rose candles.

Over spill, leaky silicone molds, and re-pours create enough to fill up these buckets in a day or two.   Once the buckets are filled to the brim the wax is strained and slabbed.

I store it away in these tubs and play around with it occasionally when I'm trying new waxy techniques but for the most part it sits there, taking up valuable space.

I can't reuse it in normal rose production, it's all from color and scent requests that are very different from the roses we pour and offer on our site.

My mind is in tunnel vision mode where all I see is it blocking my way, but I know somewhere deep inside its full of possibilities. 

a waxy memory lane

I remember the day I fell in love with sculptured wax..  It was a cool December Sunday morning.  I was 16 and family friends had come to visit from out of state.   

They wanted to spend the day strolling along the shops of Old Town.  I was bored and convinced my mom to allow me to roam the nearby park as they shopped for antiques and artsy stuff.   

I was waiting in line for a carriage ride when a lady in front of me showed her husband the "cutest soaps I just bought."   I spied as she pulled from her bag a folded piece of tissue and began unwrapping it.  The soaps where in the shape of Indian head pennies and about the size of the palm of her hand.  I was intrigued, they looked like worn copper and I wondered to myself how they made something like that look so real.  

She tucked the soap pennies back in their wrapping and then pulled out a white box, she was struggling to open it and I was getting worried that the carriage would come and whisk them away and I would never get to see what was in that little box.  She tugged at the cardboard and the flap shot open, and I leaned forward, the curiosity was making me a bit too excited.

She stopped and looked at me.

I can't image what she thought as she looked me over.  I was wearing a Metallica concert t-shirt and my hair was sticking up at odd angles and dyed in two toned colors. In 92 the laid back styles of grunge hadn't quite hit the valley yet.  I was still rocking the aqua-net/blow dyer look. 

And then the kindest thing happened.  She smiled at me and said "isn't that pretty" as she shared her treasure with me.  It was a little Eiffel Tower candle, couldn't have been more than two inches tall but the detail in the wax was exquisite and its varying shades of gray gave it a stone like appearance.  It was beautiful and I wanted to say as much but the only thing I could get out was "I wonder how they make that" 

She chuckled and replied "they make them right there, you can go watch" I thanked her and left the carriage line in search of this shop.  I didn't think at the time to ask her what the name of the store was or which lane it was on.  My head was filled with wonder and day dreams of what other type wax and soap creations they made.  

Sadly I never did find the shop.  Later when I asked my mom if she knew of it and could we please please please go back; she mentioned a flower shop that might be store I was looking for.   But the holidays rushed us through December and the next thing I knew it was February before we had time to stroll the stores again. 

The flower shop was gone.  In it's place, a typical kitschy Arizona tourist gift shop.  Although crestfallen at the thought of never seeing how they created that candle I didn't stop wondering how candles were made and in every shop I walk in to, when I pick up a candle and wonder "how'd they do that"  I think of that day and the sweet lady who looked past a messy looking teenager and saw a young girls wide eyed wonder. 

And even though I have yet to figured out how they created that stone look out of wax, I do get to make my own Eiffel Tower candles.  Mine are a bit bigger standing in at over 7 inches tall and are poured in a creamy ivory color.  I'm still practicing though and one day I'll know the waxy secrets of that stone look.  

glowlitecandles online

glowlitecandles on etsy 

mustache candles

I made a promise to myself that I wouldn't spend the month of February blogging about Valentines day.

My goal for the blog is to be more personable and share my wax creations without it seeming like a marketing campaign, it's been an odd line to walk.

I'm still learning and trying new things and I suppose the blog will be a reflection of that.

New Crown Candles

I love the detail on these crown candles.  That little nub right at the top is a bit tricky to remove from the mold with out breaking it but who cares, they are to pretty to pass up.

Dipping kitty cat candles.

Sold out of the little kitty candle sets two weeks in to December.   The orders came in so fast for these cuties I was shocked when my husband said. "the cats are gone"

With his help I was able to keep up with demand and by then it was getting closer to the big day and much more manageable.

Now it's time to restock.

Big Red heart candle.

Back in April I shared one of the silicone molds I was making.

Here is the finished candle from that mold.
I call it the Big Red Heart and is deliciously scented in black raspberry vanilla.

Glowlite Candles online
Glowlite Candles on Etsy.