Hi Brenda, Sorry, the directions was in the August newsletter. I e-mailed them to see if I can get old directions. I haven't heard from them. But I did make a copy of the directions. They are easy to make. I just melted some wax (they said to keep the temp. at 155-175) Add vanilla or Ivory color. I used crayons. Then add some scent. Then dip your candles into the wax then roll them in cinnamon do that 4-6 times or till you get the look you like. They are addicting to make. I got candles at the $ store and Big Lots. Big Lots had some that are called a ultilty candle. They are 6 1/2" tall. They are .59 for 5 of them. I just saw a bundle of 3 of these at a craft store yesterday for 7.99. They also talked about dipping ornies, hang tags, stuffed hearts and stars, cinnamon sticks, dried apples and oranges. They also say be careful not to burn yourself. Have fun making these, Cheri

I just did a search by typing in "waxed dipped chenille crafts" and got lots of sites to check but couldn't find a simple explanation. I've heard of this and would be curious myself to know the inside scoop.

I use the "firm ball" stage, or 244 degrees on the candy thermometer. Any cooler than that, and it will not be firm when cooled. Here's the recipe I use: Ingredients: 1 cup sugar 1 cup dark corn syrup (or 3/4 cup light corn syrup and 1/4 cup molasses) 1/2 cup unsalted butter 1 cup heavy cream, divided Directions: Dissolve 1 cup sugar, 1 cup dark corn syrup, 1/2 cup butter, and 1/2 cup cream in a large heavy saucepan, stirring until the mixture boils. [Note: you will need a very large pan because mixture will bubble up when it boils and increase three-fold in volume.] Cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly, to the firm-ball stage, 244 degrees. Remove from heat and add very gradually the remaining half cup of cream. *I use this recipe when making chocolate turtles, and it's very rich because it uses all cream and no milk. You can probably substitute half and half or all milk if you are putting it on pretzels. For me the salt on the pretzels would ruin it, as I prefer it with no salt at all - it has a sweeter, richer flavor when salt is absent. If you can find unsalted preztels, they would be preferable - to me at least. I have never made it with milk, and so I cannot say from experience how the substitution would work, but the recipe as it is will firm up enough to stay on a pretzel, but I would still refrigerate them. It does not get firm enough to cut the caramel into squares. The best way to keep the caramel in place would be to dip the chilled caramel pretzels in melted chocolate and then chill them again. I add 10-15% paraffin wax to the chocolate if it is going to be handled, but if you leave a portion of the stick uncovered, that would not be necessary. Lars

I was watching Alton Brown the other day with a friend (I don't have cable) and he actually melted chocolate with a heating pad! He put the heating pad in a large glass bowl. Then, put the chocolate in a smaller glass bowl and put that bowl inside the larger one on top of the heating pad. I didn't see him add anything special to the chocolate. This was the episode where he taught how to make homemade marshmallows. I'd have never thought to use a heating pad!