Making Candles

I will be making candles today. Our most recent order is for a local Relay for Life Team fundraiser. It is fun to make the candles since every one is a custom creation. We allow our organizations to take orders where the customer specifies size in ounces, fragrance and color of candle. It is interesting to see what people come up with. I am still waiting for an order for a hunter green chocolate candle.

I am invited to listen to a 13 year old friend who went to Peru after raising her support through selling our candles. She raised more than a $1,000 this way and I was so proud of Bethany and her parents! It is neat to have a part in that ministry opportunity.

It is for that reason that we have decided that all who choose us as a fundraiser will receive 50 percent of the retail price. I have seen way too many fundraisers where the organization ends up with 20 - 30% and those people work just as hard.

The other part of the candle business that keeps us busy is filling containers for folk. The amish in our area love soy candles and we have several families that we "fill" for. We pick up the containers, custom fill and then return the candles to them. It is so much fun to deliver the finished candles as it seems a little bit like Christmas each time with the excitement of the recipients and their joy at checking out the new scents and colors. We charge 50 cents an ounce for this service.

A couple of our small business ideas at work.