Some exciting news and a peek inside the Glo workshop

I thought I'd take this opportunity to share some exciting news with you.

Last year I took part in a new education initiative called the Yes Programme. It is a collection of videos rolled out to primary schools showing pupils a range of jobs and careers and how they relate to what they learn at school in the National Curriculum. The videos are 2-3 minutes each and the subject matter is people like you and me and what we do for a living. My video showed me making some candles and more specifically turning liquids(wax) into solids (candles). I was delighted to take part as the first (and only) 'career guidance' I received was at age 15 when I was asked what I wanted to do after leaving school. My view is that primary schoolchildren can be made aware of opportunities early on (and why they are taught some of the stuff they learn in class) without it being rammed down their throats so I was enthusiastic apart participating. I believe the day they filmed me the film crew had been filming a rocket powered car in Bristol that is aiming to break every land speed record ever!

Anyway - following on from this a Press Release was sent to local press in Somerset and very shortly afterwards I received an email from a paper asking if they could do a piece on Glo Candles as a local business.'Of course' was my reply. So maybe the word will be spreading a little more widely in the near future. I will update you in due course.....


An here's a peek inside the Glo workshop this morning

Spring at last

The sun finally put in an appearance so it was out in the garden and here are some photos to brighten up the day. Our tea garden (Charterhouse Tea Garden) is now open on nicer days so anyone passing can come and have a nose in our workshop and see what we are up to.

Lavender pillar candle

Square Yellow Pillar Candle

We were commissioned to make some special scented candles this week - a small prize for anyone guessing the fragrance.
Just email me at jane@glocandles.co.uk

Well hello everyone. It's been a while. I really will try and update the Glo blog more often. It's a busy week - making lots of heart candles for Valentines Day. Here are some of the most poplular Valentines candles.

Floting Heart Candles (Red)

Floting Heart Candles (Pink)

Orcio Jar Candles - Rose Scented

Heart Pillar Candle

3D Heart Candle

As I'm writing the snow is gently falling outside. This time I am hoping it doesn't settle. Pretty though it is I have had enough of floods and snow and am now looking forward to some warm Spring sunshine. The snowdrops have appeared (we are so high up here in the Mendips that we are usually behind other people) and the crocuses are popping up although not in flower yet.
Only a few days to go and then we'll be thinking of Easter....
Whatever you are doing for Valentines Day I wish you a wonderful time and much love

Jane x

Making our Candles Part 4

Packing

Just a note on the care and time that goes into packing our candles.
Candles are very delicate and bruise very easily. Because the majority of our candles are sent via post or courier they can take a bit of a bashing so I wrap and package them so carefully.

Firstly with some polystyrene foam.

Wrapping - 1st layer - polystyrene foam

In polystyrene foam with Glo logo

 Then with some small bubble wrap.



2nd layer - small bubble wrap

 Then with some large bubble wrap.



3rd layer - large bubble wrap

In large bubble wrap



Sometimes they are packed in boxes like this but sometimes a layer of corrugated card is added before sealing in a plastic mailing bag.

Having taken such care making the candles the last thing we want is for them to arrive damaged, so this is an important part of the process. We don't make any profit from package and postage and are happy to receive glowing comments about the condition of the candles when they arrive at their destinations.

So that's it. Amopther time I will show you how we make some of our scented / aromatherapy candles.

If you ever have any questions please ask. We are always happy to show you around if you want to come and visit. Just contact jane@glocandles.co.uk

Making our Candles Part 3

Finishing Off - Pillar Candles

Once the candle is out of the mould we check for blemishes. Some can be rubbed out with a tea towel. As the candles are solid colour all the way through and not dipped we can rub pretty hard to remove marks and flaws.

Small water bubbles or white marks can be removed by using a hairdryer. This essentially melts the wax a little but when it cools down again it returns to the colour of the wax used.

Waiting to be finished




Checking straightness and
smoothing the bottom

A word about bottoms:

The bottom of the candle is in fact the top that you saw in the open mould. It is usually quite rough and needs flattening and moothing off. Candles of 75mm diameter and more are gently placed on a metal heated plate that melts excess wax and smooths it down. 75mm and under go under the rotary saw to make sure they are straight.
We then place a sticker with all important burning and safety instructions on the base.



The saw

Cutting the candle base





.




Polishing

TOP TIP!

I polish the finished candle with a shoe shiner which removes any smudges and fingermarks and gives it a beautiful sheen. Now all ready for packing.

Polishing the candle

Next time - not very exciting but I want to share how carefully every single candle is packed so it reaches you safely.

Making our Candles Part 2

Melting & Pouring - Pillar Candles

Whilst the moulds are being wicked the wax granules have been in a sort of bain-marie melting.
Any dye that needs to be added to the wax is added at this time and stirred in. This is dependent on the colour of candles that have been ordered.

Melting & Pouring area

Melting jugs in bain-marie

When the wax reaches 80-84 degrees Centigrade (depending on wax type used) it is ready to pour. But before we do we need to warm the moulds in a heater. They don't need to stay in for long; around 5-10 minutes, raising them to 30-35 degrees Centigrade.

Heating the moulds

Wax ready to be melted

Reaching the right temperature

Pouring

Still pouring

The wax is poured very carefully into the mould so as not to create air bubbles. We fill to to the very top taking care not to spill over. This is then left to cool, usually the next day. As the wax cools it shrinks and visibly dips in the centre. The candles need to be topped up - sometimes several times - being very careful not to come over the level of the original wax.


Wax poured to top

With larger candles the surface skin is pierced to prevent air bubbles inside the finished candle. See below:

Topping up - see how the wax has shrunk


When the candles are totally cooled they are ready for the big reveal.
Sealing putty and tape are removed from the bottom and the wick is again visible. A sharp tap should release the candle, but as often as not the candle needs to be placed in a fridge to cool a little more. It is then easier to release.

The Moment of Truth

This is the moment of truth. Until the candle is actually out of the mould we never know if it is a good candle or not. Some minor blemishes are natural with hand poured candles and we have ways of improving the finish (more on that next time). If they look as though they have been run over by a truck or aren't going to pass my quality control then it's back into the jug to be melted and made again. Sometimes little blemishes such as one teeny drop of water can cause enough of a blemish for me to refuse to send a candle out.

NEXT TIME: It's all about bottoms and finishing off

Making our Candles Part 1

Preparing the Moulds

I thought I would share with you the way we make our pillar candles. There are many steps and every candle is lovingly hand poured. We take great care every step of the way - there are so many things that can go wrong so we put a lot of effort into making sure things go as smoothly as possible.





Clean aluminium moulds on the shelf




Wick (cotton) is inserted into hole in mould



Wick is pulled through and wick pin is pushed through the wick

The wick pin holds the wick central and straight

Mould is turned upside down to secure the wick

Wick is secured using plastic tape



White tac is used to seal wick down (to stop wax escaping after it is poured in)

Mould is now ready for the pouring process (see other shapes in background)


NEXT TIME: Melting and Pouring

Candles for Spring and some new colours

Well it seems as though Spring is well and truly here. The sun is shining , the sky is blue and all the daffs and primroses are out and all is good with the world.

See our new egg candles - made of mottled wax but of course we can make any colour you like (although the mottled wax works best in a cream colour). These will go down well for Easter.

With all this talk of primroses we have a brand new Primrose Yellow candle - such a fresh, happy colour. This along with a new Purple, Peppermint Green, Lime Green, Peach and Raspberry.



Primrose Yellow



Peach



Peppermint Green



Purple



Raspberry



As always we can make any shape or size from our repertoire in the colour of your choice! We now have 37 colours to choose from as well as our colour matching service which is going really well, especially for brides who can't find the colour candles in the shops. I love to think that in a small way, we are part of their wedding day.

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Peach candle arrangement by Sharon of S Cooper Floral Design

Primrose Yellow 50mm Trio

Happy New Year!

A belated but nonetheless very Happy New Year to to you all.

We have just had our first Xmas and experienced the rush. To be honest we had no idea what to expect but about 5 weeks before Xmas the order started flying in. We hardly had time to stop and take a breath. Thanks to eveyone who placed orders with us. Royal Mail did us proud, unlike a courier company who shall remain nameless, that we dropped a few weeks prior to Xmas. As far as we are aware only one parcel never arrived over the holiday period and most arrived at their destinations in double quick time according to our ebay feedback.

Then just as suddenly as it had started the orders stopped. It seems that although we were geared up to keep going at a mnaic pace until the last first class post had departed on 21st December the majority of customers stopped a week before that. It was a gentle last week of posting but our aim was to fulfill all orders and we succeeded.

After a  lovely festive break we expected January to be really quiet but 'No'. New Years Eve the order started flooding in again (maybe because it was a Saturday and everyone was hitting the Internet before getting ready for their New Year's celebrations. And it hasn't stopped since. So much for being able to take a breath and do a stock take and a spring clean. (I'm sure we will get around to all that at some time)

And now we are in the midst of preparing for Valentines Day. We ordered some moulds from Germany as they seem a lot more into candles than we are with amazing selections of moulds and fantastic ideas wbout what to do with a basic candle. The moulds arrived last week and here are our Valentines candles - again a huge thank you to Sharon of S. Cooper Floral Design, who has made them look extra pretty!


Pillar Heart




3D Heart



















These are available on our site www.glocandles.co.uk

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Where are the elves?

Well the last few weeks have been so busy with the Christmas rush. Glo Candles have also celebrated our first year in business.

Right now I could really do with some elves to help out. Phil has been making candles flat out and I have been polishing and shining them before packing with the utmost care. There are certainly going to be some totally unique candles in people's homes this Christmas.

We now have large balls (wax ones) measuring 120mm in diameter and currently one display in Hampshire and a similar size but in the round pillar variety will be making an appearance on Christmas Day in another part of the country.

Phil is busy producing some candles to go with a customer's new decor. we sent some samples to her after she told us the Dulux paint she was using and have colour matched a unique candle colour for her.

Sharon of S. Cooper Contemporary Floral Design has been creating some lovely decorations with some of our candles - a couple of them are here! Thanks Sharon - they are amazing!

The elves still haven't turned up so it's on with hand finishing and packing for me.

I wish you all a wonderful Christmas - there will be a few more Glo Candles burning this year.

Jane x