FAQ
What type of wax do you use?
We use a blend of soy wax for our candles as in our experience, no other wax performs as well as soy and offers a smooth finish.
The Black Sheep Creations soy wax blend was developed after extensive testing. It has excellent fragrance throw and performs very well for all other properties such as appearance and stability.
What is the difference between soy wax and other waxes, like paraffin?
Both soy and paraffin candles have their strength and weaknesses. There is no such thing as the perfect candle wax for containers. Candle makers have to balance the following competing attributes;
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Smooth/Good appearance
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Fragrance
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Both the cold and hot throw performance.
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Burn Time
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No sooting, smoking, tunnelling or clubbing.
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Stability
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No sweating of the oils
What do the terms 'cold throw' and 'hot throw' mean?
Fragrance throw is how strong the fragrance smells – therefore, cold throw is how the candle smells when it’s not lit and hot throw is the strength of the fragrance when the candle is lit.
How can I get my candle to burn down evenly?
When a candle burns down the centre without melting the wax at the edges, we call it tunnelling. Tunnelling can happen for a variety of reasons. At Black Sheep Creations, we don’t like tunnelling, so we try to make candles that create an even pool of wax as they burn. We do this by formulating our wax to melt evenly and by selecting the right wick for every single blend of wax that we make. But, you can help with this too! Our advice is to always burn your candle until the melted wax reaches the edge before putting out the flame.
How do I stop the build up of black carbon on the wick of my candle?
Clubbing’ is when there is excessive build up of carbon on the end of your wick after burning. You shouldn’t see heavy clubbing on your Black Sheep Creations candle, as we blend our wax and fragrance to avoid it. In the unlikely event that your Black Sheep Creations candle starts clubbing, let us know.
What is 'sooting'?
Sooting is as it sounds – the appearance of soot, whether this is coming off the wick when it burns, or when soot appears on the container of the candle.
Why does my candle wick self-extinguish or drown?
The wick on your candle shouldn’t ever self-extinguish until the wax has burned right down to the bottom of the jar. However, if your candle has been standing in a draught, it may have burned unevenly and in that case, the wick could self-extinguish before it has chance to burn down all the wax.
Do you use different wicks for different candles?
Yes, we do! We have a variety of wicks and we select the best one for the type of wax. We test all our wax and wick combinations to check for sooting, clubbing and tunnelling.
How long will my candle burn for?
This completely depends on the candle – please see each individual candle’s page on the website to see the burn time.
Why do you say not to place your candles on painted, polished or synthetic surfaces?
We want you to enjoy your home fragrance, without having to worry about our products damaging your home decor and furniture. We advise that you always place your candle on a heat proof surface to avoid damage. This is also why we also advise you to discard a candle when 5mm of wax remains.
Black Sheep Creations Top Candle Tips!
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When re-lighting candles, trim the wick to about 0.5cm to avoid sooting and irregular burning. Keep the wax pool free of used matches or any other contaminants. These can act as secondary wicks and cause a much larger flame.
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Tins: always place on a safe surface. Do not use the lid of the tin as a base.
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Do not pour liquid wax down your sink – you will need to put this in a disposable container and once cooled, throw away with your normal household waste.
Our Top 10 tips for safe candle use are as follows:
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Never leave a candle burning unattended.
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Burn well out of reach of children and pets.
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Keep well away from flammable items.
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Observe minimum distance between two burning candles.
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Only stand on inflammable surfaces – use suitable containers or candleholders.
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Do not expose the candle to draughts or other air flows e.g. radiators.
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Keep the burning bowl free of impurities and flammable materials.
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Extinguish sooting, flickering candles – trim the wick and/or rim before re-igniting.
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Do not move the candle so long as the wax in the burning bowl is still liquid.
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Never extinguish burning candles with water.