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Most candle makers would prefer a shorter cure time, but this is a symptom of impatience.
In reality, most candles created for others will not be burned in the first 24 hours, regardless of cure time.
Add to that the length of time it takes to burn test, which can sometime take weeks.
Even if a candle throws well the first couple burns, if it peters out and fails to generate anything worthwhile later it’s a failed design.
Although some candles end up in customer hands very quickly, most candles suffer from a bout of shelf life.
Shelf life is a good reason to postpone burn testing until the minimum time before a customer has the candle to ensure results reflect real life use cases.
Doubly true for vegetable wax, which continuously changes throughout its life.
The general rule of thumb for testing soy wax is 1 – 2 weeks, but as close to 2 weeks as your patience allows. Also consider that each lot of wax is different given the variability in soybeans, which can radically change curing behavior at times.
Curing is also directly impacted by the fragrance oil in the design.
Some FO is designed for use in all wax while others are brought to market as-is. The various properties of fragrance directly impact the performance in binding capabilities in different wax types.
Some fragrances may take longer to bind with certain waxes, requiring a greater curing period.
Regardless of what you believe the right answer is for curing, testing is the ultimate standard for safety and performance.
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