FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs)
Q: Do you have a pricelist that I can print out or have sent out?
A: Yes. We now have a printable pricelist which you can access from the following link. This will reflect our current range on the day you access it. Please note, things with bulk-buys (eg ornaments) will show up as $0, multiple price options cannot show up in this format.
http://tillymin.com.au/index.php?main_page=pricelist
We can send pricelists out if the need arises, but our most up-to-date prices are always online, and there can be time delays in us sending out pricelists depending on how busy we are.
Please note: Anything that is coming up in our standard catalogue (ie as you click through the main website) as $0.00 has not had a price entered into the system yet; please contact us for a price on these items while they are being updated/edited!!
Q: Do you sell supplies to make soy and other wax candles?
A: Yes. You can find these supplies under the "Candle Making Supplies" heading (above), then the sub category "Gel and Wax: Raw Product" contains all of the gel, soy and paraffin waxes plus additives, colours, wicks etc that we have available for sale.
Q: Is it hard to make a gel candle?
A: No! We have had all ages from children under ten to those in nursing homes make gel candles! A very "brief" summary of how to make a gel candle is below:-
- Melt the gel in any standard saucepan (eg stainless steel, enamel etc - non porous ones);
- Add any colour(s) and mix thoroughly
- To minimise bubbles, allow to sit on a "middle" setting on the stove for an extra 10+ minutes after melting - not too hot, but not so cool that it sets
- At the last minute before pouring the candle add your gel-safe fragrances (tested to not cause cloudiness or explosions!) and mix gently but thoroughly
- Pour your candle into your container where you have already positioned your wick and any sand/shells/ornaments/etc to decorate your candle. (Some ornaments may be added after pouring to look like they are floating).
- Allow to set for 30-60 minutes with minimal disturbance - although they are often cool enough to touch the outside and move ealier than this if you are careful
Q: Do you offer wholesale prices?
A: Yes. More information about our wholesale conditions can be found under the "wholesale" information (left hand side of this page!).
There are some products where we only offer them as a bulk purchase. This means that you do not have to be a business to buy in bulk and save money. The main items which can be purchased in bulk by anyone are our candle making supplies items (eg gel, fragrances, the bulk wick, decal paper, etc). If you are a business wanting to sell the pre-packaged smaller quantities and get wholesale prices, we can discuss options with you at any time, please just contact us.
We are happy to discuss further wholesale pricing on some items if you wish to buy regular, bulk amounts of any of our products.
Q: Do you sell pre-made gel and wax candles?
A: Yes. You can find these items under "gel candles" and "Wax Candles, Giftware & Miscell" (respectively). There are sub categories under each product type which cover the many different styles we offer for sale. We often list only some of the styles or sizes which may be available. It is simply too hard to list all items that we can get but may not always have in stock. If you are looking for a specific size in pillar or church candles for instance, please contact us if it is not listed as there are many more we can get.
Q: I am looking for coloured pillar (or church) candles for my wedding or event - do you sell these?
A: Absolutely. Again, we do not necessarily keep pillars in stock of any particular size - although we do try to keep the basic smaller sizes in stock at all times. We can get almost any size, and most colours/fragrances too. The dipping costs a little extra per candle, but the surface of these dipped candles looks fantastic and the colours are very strong and vibrant.
We are in the process of updating the online catalogue all the time to include the various options for colours/fragrances - but this is a gradual process so will have to be semi-manual for now! If you would like to order, please place an order through our system and add comments about the colour you require and we will get back to you with a cost and time line for that product.
Normally we would expect to send out dipped coloured candles within 2 weeks of ordering - although this does depend on our distributor who does the dipping on our behalf. PLEASE order in advance if you are ordering in a peak time of year (eg Spring weddings, Christmas time).
Q: Is it cheaper for me to make my own gel candles for a wedding or other occasion?
A: Generally it is because you can buy things in bulk and there is not the factor of our time to make the candles in the purchase price. If you only need one or two candles made, it may not be much different to get us to make them for you, but often bulk quantities are cheaper to do it yourself.
Whether it is a viable option to make your own candles or DIY decals on candles/glasses will come down to the confidence you have in yourself to do them, but also how much time you have to get things "just right" for your requirements. Gel candles are not hard to make, even if you haven't got much experience. Decals are not too hard to apply yourself either - so as long as you allow a bit of time to practise!
Q: Can you put a kit together for my wedding? How do I calculate how much I need?
A: We can help you work out how much you might need for any situation. You do not necessarily need "a kit" for it - but we can help you work out all the components including glassware, gel (or wax!), wicks, colours, fragrances, decal paper and of course instructions.
If you already have glasses you want to use, if you fill one of them with water as if it were the wax, and use a kitchen measuring cup to see what the volume of water is, you will have a basic idea of how much gel you will need per glass. Obviously if you want to add sand, shells or other ornaments, this volume may change, but the initial calculation of gel is useful as a guide.
So say your glass holds 150ml of water, and you want to make 30 of them, you will need a minimum of about 4.5L - so one of our 5L containers should allow for a little wastage. As a rule, there isn't much wastage with gel candles - so you only would need to order a little over what you calculate to be your "minimum" required. Remember - its easier to start with a bit extra than to have to order more!
Q: I am having problems with too many bubbles in my gel candles - can you please help me?!
A: Bubbles generally form in gel candles because the gel cools so quickly that they get trapped in the gel before they can escape.
You can attack this in two ways - either you can pull apart your candle and start again, or you can heat the candle to get the air bubbles to rise out.
If you start again, the best way to stop it happening again is to heat your gel so it melts to look like water, then mix in colours & check they are correct, then leave your gel on a slightly lower heat (eg on our hotplates, they go up to "level 6" and we generally melt small pots of gel on about 4-5, then turn down to 3). You can leave gel on this lower heat for an extended time without any damage occuring - but generally 10-20 minutes should be enough. You will need to add fragrance at the last minute before pouring otherwise at least some of it will come out of the gel while its sitting there warm! Just very gently mix with a spoon or metal skewer so you don't re-introduce the bubbles in.
The alternative of heating your candle can mean a few different options too. You could put it in a very low-heat, but warm oven. I have been known to put candles in the oven after cooking to use the residual heat in the oven for the hour or more after cooking. Otherwise you can often turn the oven so its "just" turned on - most ovens the lowest heat is listed as 100C - so you will need to watch out to see how efficient your oven is! Ours isn't very efficient at low temps, so the candles just melt and sit melted, but not smoking etc (which would indicate too hot!).
Now I need to add a special note here... if you have fragrance in your candle and its too bubbly, you may want to consider whether you want your oven to smell like that candle! Always put the candles on a tray, and perhaps a tray covered with foil incase you spill any on bringing the candles out. You can leave the candles to set in the oven too after you have turned it off.
Another quite nifty way of getting rid of bubbles if you aren't in a hurry is to place them in a warm spot in your house, car etc. PLEASE be careful with your choice of location! I have only ever put candles in the car if I know its not going to be a very hot day because you cannot control or easily monitor the temperature in the car and hence of the candles. That said, throughout most of Australia on the 30C or less days, your car is not a bad temperature to get rid of bubbles! For the first time you try this, you need to check the candles regularly to ensure they are ok and the temperature of the car isn't too high. I have also put the candles in a weather-proof plastic tub and had them in the sun on cooler days. The candles will get quite warm so being in the tub protects things from falling in the candles but also gives you a way to easily get them inside afterwards too.
The key to bubble removal however you do it is to do some experimentation. Learn what works for you and what you are comfortable with. Take things easy to begin with and work your way up to doing more complicated things and you should find it hard to go wrong!
Q: I am having trouble with my decals having bubbles stuck behind them - how can I improve my results? Also, the edges of my decals sometimes don't stick... what can I do to fix it?
A: Bubbles generally form behind a decal because it has dried off too quickly after being positioned and you haven't been able to 'squidgee' the air out. The loose edges of the decal can be for several reasons... a few tips below may help you solve both problems:
I have found that putting the candle on reasonably wet helps in general with getting the decals straight and in the long run, bubble free. The water often takes the place of the bubbles I think, and then when everything is "right" with position etc, then you can use the cloth to soak up the water without the need to do anything much that could move it.
If you put the decal on your candle while still quite wet (ie don't let all the water drip off first etc)... then you will find you have longer to position the decal and get the bubbles out before it sticks properly. If you use a lint-free cloth or a tissue or two, and start from the middle of the decal and move outwards in a pattern starting from middle to "12 oclock", then go middle to 3 oclock, middle to 6 oclock, and then middle to 9 oclock, and then once you have done that, you fill in the gaps still moving from the centre outwards. The more you work systematically, the more the bubbles will work their way out.
Also, when positioning the decal in the first place, you can get to a point where when you first put the decal on, you won't have that many bubbles to begin with - thats comes with experience I think!
To generally improve the look and stickiness of your decal, please read the following:-
* Allow the ink to dry very well before spraying with the sealer; allow the sealer to dry for as long as you can (eg a few hours if possible); then soak in water until the decal peels away and then apply to the candle -eg using a rubber squeezy or a good quality paper towel to wipe the excess water away. It might be worth ensuring at this point that your fingers are wet when applying then try to leave them about 3 hours minimum before we decorating or touching them.
* The sealer that you are using makes a BIG difference - we have found that some sealers do not work as well as others - and for some reason produce less than ideal results. We recommend using our brand of acrylic sealer (which has provided us the most consistent results), or else a close second is "White Knight" acrylic spray-on sealer. These provide the best coverage and protection of the decal. White Knight is available from Bunnings or probably other hardware stores too. PLEASE NOTE: The sealers are only relevant to inkjet/bubblejet paper that requires sealing - the laser version does not require any spray].
* The sealer that you are using makes a BIG difference - we have found that some sealers do not work as well as others - and for some reason produce less than ideal results. We recommend using our brand of acrylic sealer (which has provided us the most consistent results), or else a close second is "White Knight" acrylic spray-on sealer. These provide the best coverage and protection of the decal. White Knight is available from Bunnings or probably other hardware stores too. PLEASE NOTE: The sealers are only relevant to inkjet/bubblejet paper that requires sealing - the laser version does not require any spray].
Additional notes from our supplier:-
1) Make sure you put the decal on and use a tissue/good quality paper towel/clean dry cloth or small rubber 'squidgee' to wipe outwards from the centre to remove excess water left on the decal and make sure you leave the decal for a few hours to dry before touching the candle/decal combination
2) The surface of the candle may not be smooth enough - it needs to be well finished/smooth & clean (eg wipe over with a cloth first, make sure no dust or excess wax (etc) is on the surface)
3) Candles - sometimes cheaper candles have a surface that the decal doesn't bond to as well... the surface of the candle might be too oily and the distributor (of the paper) suggests in this case trying another type of candle. (They suggest the incidence of this is only 1 in 10 candles that people use/have trouble with...)...
{Side note: our candles have provided consistent results from our experience!}
2) The surface of the candle may not be smooth enough - it needs to be well finished/smooth & clean (eg wipe over with a cloth first, make sure no dust or excess wax (etc) is on the surface)
3) Candles - sometimes cheaper candles have a surface that the decal doesn't bond to as well... the surface of the candle might be too oily and the distributor (of the paper) suggests in this case trying another type of candle. (They suggest the incidence of this is only 1 in 10 candles that people use/have trouble with...)...
{Side note: our candles have provided consistent results from our experience!}
GEL CANDLE EXTRA INFORMATION
Why are gel candles SO special?
• Last 4-5 times longer than normal wax candles.
• Often burn "cleaner" and much brighter than traditional candles.
• Are more unique and versatile than traditional candles including more themes and overall appeal!
• There's no such thing as an 'aquarium', 'beer', 'champagne' or 'midori' wax candle!!!
• Both men and women (+ children!!) can enjoy a gift of a gel candle - more traditional or 'boring' candles may not appeal to men in particular.
• Easy to make your own - DIY kits available and anyone from children to the elderly can use them.
Why are OUR gel candles so special?
• Handmade product
• Each candle is individual and can easily be personalised.
• We pride ourselves in top quality products.
• We make all of our gel candles locally, we do not import inferior overseas versions.
• Top quality customer service. We aim to please and will go out of our way to assist you to find everything you need!
Why get your supplies from Tillymin?
• Top service is provided before AND after your purchase.
• Very competitively priced items! If you can find gel advertised at a cheaper price, we will match it if we *humanly* can!
• Huge variety - if you can find a bigger variety of gel candle making supplies in Australia, let us know!
• We can help source unusual and smaller items... and do it with a smile!
• Supplies sourced from all over the world to suit everyone's taste
