The Candlemaker's Store Natural Soy Wax, 10 lb. Bag

I wanted a large three-wick container candle for use on my patio. I don't like most candle scents, so I wanted to stick with an unscented product. After realizing such a thing was going to be very hard to find (or insanely expensive), I read a little bit about making my own, and decided it was worth a shot. I ordered this and a bag of fifty "medium" wicks.I melted this wax in a double boiler made from a saucepan and cereal bowl, and ladled it into a cheap flowerpot from the dollar store. I am absolutely thrilled with the results.The wax melts fast and clean, with a very mild, slightly savory scent. It's yellowish when melted, but it hardens to a perfect snowy white. I made a test candle with some Gulf paraffin from Walmart and had some serious contraction problems as it hardened (leaving a big divot in the center), but the soy wax didn't seem to contract nearly as much. The surface finish was smooth and attractive.But the real test came when I lit it for the first time. I get three perfect, clean, uniform flames from the three wicks spaced 2-3 inches apart. They make great melt pools, which eventually grow together after 30-45 minutes of burning. The flames are stable and strong even in windy conditions. The success was probably partly attributable to the good wicks, but the wax is definitely doing its job. The candle doesn't put off any appreciable scent (unless you put your face right down in it), which is exactly what I wanted.Misc. notes: The wax flakes came shipped in two separate non-resealable five-pound bags. The bags were inside another bag, which was inside the shipping box. I didn't have any of the open-package problems people are experiencing. The price for the 10lb quantity is amazing at the time of this writing. It's just about the cheapest wax you can find, so the quality was an extremely pleasant surprise. I figure I can make nice candles for my family for Christmas, since they would all appreciate lack of scent. All told, I have enough supplies to make probably five large three-wick container candles, for less than $30.Echoing what others have said, this stuff is probably too soft for freestanding candle types.Forgive the artsy picture, it was the only one I had at the time.

My first time making large container candles and my first time using 444 turned out to be a really excellent experience. I just decided to try this after spending a zillion dollars on commercial candles for gifts and myself. Masculine scented candles are hard to find and when you can find them they seem to have a 'testosterone mark-up'. I had tried to make soy candles with a small all-in-one kit a couple of weeks ago. They were ok, but this stuff made amazing creamy, smooth candles. The tops are beautiful and professional looking - not at all the experience I had with the kit's wax. I accidentally heated the wax to about 210 degrees before I realized it, so I took the pour pot out of the double boiler and let the wax cool to 185 or so before mixing in the fragrance oil (Tobacco with a 210 flash point). I mixed the snot out of it and then I let it cool down to about 125 before pouring. I used wood wicks in some cool tumblers I found at a discount store. I made two 1lb candles and had enough left over for a little jelly jar. If I had been thinking, I would have been more 'mathy' to get exactly the right amount, but it was my first time.Some things I noticed:1. Use weight - not volume - even for the fragrance oil. This, as it turns out, is vital to your sanity.2. Heat the wax to at least 185 and pour the fragrance oil in at that point if it has a higher flash point than 185. If it's lower, wait until the wax is in the 130 range.3. You should pour into your containers between 120 and 140. I heated my containers in the over at 170 under someone's recommendation. I'm not sure it did anything, but it made me more confident to pour into jars that were hotter than the wax.4. Use wick stickers instead of wax to position your wick tabs. Otherwise your pour will just melt it and your wicks will move. The stickers don't melt.5. If your wick says it's specifically for a size of container, go up at least one size of wick or use two to get a good clean, even melt pool.I will definitely use the 444 again.Update: After burning these candles for several hours, I can say that the scent throw is excellent. It fills a small room pretty quickly. After just a few minutes, I could smell the fragrance from a few feet away. Also, it works really well with the wood wicks. Absolutely no soot and I haven't had to trim any wicks. The candles also seem to be really efficient. I've been burning a 22oz Colonial Candle (paraffin) for a few days at it is 1/3 gone. The soy candles have hardly changed. I'm very impressed with how easy this has been. It's a no brainer for me.

I use this wax for candlemaking pretty much exclusively. It's easy to work with, melts quickly, and has a nice rich white color when used without dye and is yellowish when melted. This is also one of the best brands and quality for the price, especially for the amount you get (10 lbs).The smell is very mild on its own, but is a fantastic carrier for adding in essential oils.The wax arrives in two separate 5 pound bags containing the soy wax chips, and was packaged perfectly. Each 5 pound bag can make approximately 40oz worth of candles.Please note that especially with soy wax, it's important to not move the candles for at least 12-24 hours after making them! You cannot rush this. Putting them in the fridge to rush the process will make your candles end up cracked and brittle on the top, so let them rest at room temperature. Additionally, if you end up with cracks on the top of your wax, you can either heat up a small amount of wax and pour it over the top after its cooled to about 110 degrees, or melt the top layer with a hairdryer.To prevent cracks, make sure you're adding your fragrance and pouring your wax at as low of a temperature as possible (usually 100-120 degrees) into a slightly warmed container. Room temperature matters too - ideally, you want the room to be warm as well (around 70 degrees).This is not a wax suitable for freestanding candles; use this with a container only! It's far too soft otherwise.