Adding a vessel: material, size, and per-piece cost
Add your jars, tins, and ceramics so Ellie can size a wick to fit, fill them to the right pour, and price each candle from what the vessel actually costs you.
Your vessel is what holds the finished candle — and its two measurements do real work. The inner diameter is what Ellie uses to size a wick, and the volume is what she uses to size the pour. Adding a vessel with those numbers is what lets her recommend a wick that fits and a wax amount that fills it. This is the Vessels shelf of your candle pantry; for the four-shelf overview see Your candle pantry.
The two numbers Ellie leans on
Two vessel measurements drive the recipe, so it's worth getting them right:
- Inner diameter — measured across the inside of the vessel at the wax line, in inches. This is the number that decides wick size, so it's the prominent field on the form. The helper text says it plainly: measure the inside of the vessel at the wax line.
- Volume — how much the vessel holds, in fluid ounces. Ellie uses it to work out how much wax a pour needs.
When you add a brand-new vessel, both are required — Ellie can't size a wick or a pour without them. If you save without one, she'll ask for it: "Add the inner diameter and volume — they drive wick sizing and pour size."
Adding a vessel
On the Vessels shelf, tap + Add vessel. That opens a short form titled A new vessel for the shelf. Fill in what you know:
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Name | What you call it — e.g. an 8 oz straight-sided jar, or an amber tin. |
| Inner diameter (in) | The inside width at the wax line, in inches. Drives wick sizing. |
| Volume (fl oz) | How much the vessel holds, in fluid ounces. Drives pour size. |
| Material | Glass, tin, ceramic, plastic, or other (see below). Optional. |
| On hand | How many you have, with a unit. Optional. |
| Reorder at | The count below which the vessel is flagged low. Optional. |
| Purchase price ($) and How many in the pack | Used to work out your per-piece cost (see below). Optional. |
| Notes | Where you buy it, the lid style, anything to remember. Optional. |
Tap Save when you're done, or Save & add another to log the next vessel without closing the form.
You can also add vessels in bulk from a spreadsheet — see Importing and exporting your candle pantry.
Material options
Material is optional — you can leave it Unspecified. If you do set it, you pick from a fixed list:
| Material |
|---|
| Glass |
| Tin |
| Ceramic |
| Plastic |
| Other |
Only these values are accepted. The material field is a fixed dropdown, not free text, so there's nothing to mistype — pick the closest match, or leave it Unspecified.
Per-piece cost
Vessels are counted, not weighed, so their cost is figured per piece. Rather than typing a cost directly, you give Ellie two numbers and she derives it:
- Purchase price ($) — what you paid for the pack.
- How many in the pack — the number of vessels in that pack.
From those, your cost per vessel is purchase price ÷ pack quantity — the form shows the result as a running ≈ $X.XX each as you type. You never enter the per-piece cost yourself; it's always derived, so it can't drift out of step with the price and pack size you recorded. Both fields are optional, but they're worth filling in — the vessel is often the biggest single cost in a candle. Your derived cost per piece shows on the vessel's own card, and it feeds the per-candle and batch cost Ellie works out when you run a batch.
Keeping stock current
Each vessel carries a stock status — In stock, Low, Out, or Needs order — and low vessels flow onto your shopping list like the rest of the pantry. Set a Reorder at count and the vessel is flagged low on its own once you drop below it.
On the free plan, vessels count toward your combined pantry limit along with your waxes, wicks, and fragrances. When you reach the limit the + Add vessel button is disabled until you free up room or upgrade.
Tip: the inner diameter is the one field worth measuring carefully. It's what Ellie matches a wick against, and see Adding wicks for the other half of that pairing.