Where to Buy Supplies for Soy Candles

Soy candles are beautiful, clean-burning, natural candles that make GREAT gifts. During the holiday season, I was privileged to make and sell a few of my soy candles in large glass jars (they were about 22 oz) for a good price, and the recipients loved them.

Soy candles are very easy to make, but finding the right materials supplier can be challenging. It's best to get all of your materials from the same place, to save money on shipping and handling, as well as for consistency in quality. You also want to keep an eye on price; if you're selling the candles, you've obviously got to be able to sell the candle for more than it cost you to make it, in order to see any profit.

When choosing a candle supply wholesaler, you also want to choose one that is reputable, teaches by example, and has a HUGE variety of wax. In fact, when you check out a candle supply wholesaler's website, go straight to the wax section.

Look for several options of soy wax, beeswax, and also wax that melts at different temperatures. When I first started making candles, I lived in the mid-Atlantic area, and so I could get away with a standard soy wax. Now that I live in a hot climate, I have to choose waxes that won't melt easily in our hot weather.

In my experience, the very best place to buy soy candle supplies is CandleScience.com. I have been purchasing supplies from them for years, and have never been disappointed.

You will find everything you need to make candles - from the wax, to the items you need to melt and measure the wax, to fragrances, colors, jars, wicks, and labels. At this point their packaging supply is non-existent, but I find that Michael's stores carry enough variety of packaging at low cost, so that's okay.

Highlights

• Easy, user-friendly online ordering
• Customer service by phone
• Same day shipping (GREAT)
• Bulk ordering available
• Located in the U.S.
• Very competitive, low pricing
• Wide variety of unique fragrances and colors
• Helpful guides, especially for soy candle making

Available Wax

• Soy
• Beeswax
• Paraffin
• Palm

Downside

• Very few options for packaging/shipping (boxes, etc.)

Depending on where you live, local farmers may produce soy wax or beeswax for you to purchase. In Pennsylvania, the options are almost endless! It really depends on your area's agriculture. Growing and harvesting soybeans is on the rise, so you should check out your local farmer's market and ask if there are soybean farmers who are producing soy wax for sale.

Ideally, you should buy supplies from the country where you live. When you do that, it supports local agriculture and manufacturing, and reduces costs associated with transportation. If you're going as far as making soy candles and participating in a cleaner environment, you might as well go the whole way and make smart choices in terms of where you purchase supplies.

What can't be purchased online can be purchased at a store like Michael's. They have very low cost packaging and shipping materials. However, they DO NOT have a good supply of candle wax or any other items necessary for making candles.