A Brief Guide On Fragrance Loads
Let's Talk Fragrance Loads
Accurately weighing out fragrance oils is essential when making multiple candles to ensure consistency throughout. A method to achieve this is to use percentages.
What Is A Fragrance Load?
Fragrance load (FL) simply means the percentage of fragrance you’ll mix into your jar along with your candle wax, it is always expressed as a percentage. Typically candle makers will suggest a rule of thumb to use a fragrance load of 10% to ensure a good scent throw (the term for how amazing your candle smells when it is burning). Now that you know how much liquid you’ll be using it’s easy to work out how much fragrance to put in. Just multiply your jar volume by 10%
Measuring Your Fragrance Oil
A good idea when weighing fragrance oil is to use a percentage because you are guaranteed to always get the same results. Generally, you will be looking to achieve at least a 6% fragrance load but would not want to exceed more than 12% for most waxes.
To calculate your fragrance:
- Use a candle and soap scale for weighing your fragrance oil.
- Determine how much wax you're going to melt. Let's use 1 lb. (16 oz.) as an example. If you're going to add 6% fragrance oil, multiply 16 x 6% (or.06). You will get .96 which you can round up to 1 ounce.
- Place a small dixie cup or glass on the scale and "tare" it so that the weight of the cup is removed. You should see 0.
- Pour 1 ounce of fragrance oil into the cup. Fragrance oil can react to some containers, so don't let the fragrance sit in the paper cup for more than a few seconds and be sure not to use any plastic containers.
- When the wax reaches the recommended temperature of 185*F, remove it from heat and add the fragrance. Stir gently and thoroughly.
- If you're making 8-8ounce candles, multiply 8x8=64 oz of wax. Then 64 x 6% (.06) =3.84. You could round that up to 4 ounces of fragrance oil for 64 ounces of wax. If you wanted to add 8% of fragrance oil, then multiply 64 x 8% (.08)=5.12 or about 5 ounces of fragrance oil.
How do I get the fragrance to smell stronger?
The term used to describe the strength of fragrance for a candle is called "scent throw." Scent throw is used to describe how the candle smells while the wax is solid (cold throw) and how much aroma is given off after it has been lit (hot throw). There are a number of things you can do to maximize the scent throw of your candles.
- Use the recommended percentage of fragrance oil for the type of wax you're using.
- Be sure to weigh your fragrance oils on a scale, not measure in a cup or spoon.
- Add fragrance oil at 185Fº and stir gently and thoroughly with the melted wax. This is the optimal temperature for the wax and fragrance to bind in order to provide the best scent throw.
- Let your candles cure before test burning them. The minimum cure time is 3 days, while 1-2 weeks is the preferred curing time, especially for natural waxes such as soy and coconut.
- Place a lid on each candle and store them in a place away from excessive heat or light.
- Keep the container size and room size in mind. The wider the diameter, the stronger the fragrance will be. While a smaller candle, such as a tin or jelly jar, may be sufficient for a bedroom or bathroom, a larger living space may require a candle with a wider diameter to fill the room with fragrance.
- You may also want to evaluate your wick choice to ensure that it is not under or over wicked as that will also affect your hot throw. A wick that is too small or too large will directly impact how strong your candle smells. The following two articles will help you evaluate your wick.
FRAGRANCES IMPACT ON WAX
Every fragrance will affect your wax differently. You may find one particular scent causes your wax to set lumpy or ‘curdle’. If this happens drop the scent percentage back and try making another candle. Keep doing this until you strike a balance. Don’t forget to also experiment with the pour temperature.