What you can ask Ellie to do

Ellie isn't just a search box. She knows what's in your pantry, what recipes you've built, and what you're working on — and she can take action on your behalf. Here's what she can help with.

Answer questions about your studio

Ask Ellie anything about your inventory or recipes:

"What colorants do I have in purple tones?"
"How much Alumilite resin do I have left?"
"Which of my recipes uses Black Diamond Pigments?"
"What's the cost of the Cobalt Royale recipe?"
"Do I have enough colorant for another batch of this?"

She has full access to your pantry and recipe library, so her answers reflect your actual stock — not generic advice.

Help with color and technique

Ellie knows your craft — resin and candle making alike. Ask her about color theory, mixing and blending, and troubleshooting:

"What colorants should I combine for an ocean effect?"
"My resin is yellowing — what could cause that?"
"What's the difference between alcohol ink and mica powder in resin?"
"How do I get cells in a pour?"
"Why is my candle tunneling, and what wick should I try?"
"What fragrance load should I use for this wax?"

Make changes to your studio

Important: Ellie can make real changes to your data. She'll always tell you what she's about to do before doing it — but it's worth knowing she's not just browsing.

Things Ellie can do:

Add items to your pantry
Update stock quantities
Mark items as low stock or out of stock
Create a new recipe
Update recipe notes or steps
Start a pour session

When Ellie is about to make a change, she'll describe what she's going to do and ask you to confirm. You can always say "don't do that" or "cancel" to stop.

Help you restock

Ellie can look at your pantry and tell you what needs ordering:

"What do I need to restock?"
"What's running low?"
"Build me a shopping list for the next month"

She can also open your Shopping List directly with the relevant items ready.

Work with your Inspiration Diary

After running an Inspire session, you can feed the results to Ellie for a deeper conversation:

"Turn this palette into a recipe"
"What colorants from my pantry would work for this?"
"What technique would produce this effect?"

Use the Feed to Ellie button on any Inspire result or Diary card to open Ellie with that context already loaded.

Help during a pour

In Bench Mode, Ellie can answer questions while you work:

"Ellie, what happens if my resin starts heating up?"
"Ellie, can I substitute this colorant?"
"Ellie, how long should this layer cure before I add the next one?"

She has the context of your current pour session, so she knows which recipe and step you're on without you having to explain.

Talk to Ellie on Alexa

If you've linked your Hi Ellie account to the Alexa skill, you can talk to Ellie through your Echo device:

"Alexa, ask hi ellie what step I'm on"
"Alexa, ask hi ellie what's running low in my pantry"
"Alexa, ask hi ellie to start my Cobalt Royale pour"

See Using Ellie on Alexa for setup instructions.

What Ellie can't do

A few things are outside Ellie's scope:

She can't place orders or contact suppliers on your behalf
She can't access information outside your Hi Ellie studio (no web browsing)
She can't modify your account settings or billing
She won't make changes without telling you first

If Ellie isn't sure about something, she'll say so rather than guess.

Tips for better conversations

A few habits that make Ellie more useful:

Be specific

Narrow questions get better answers. Compare:

"What purple colorants do I have under 10 grams?"
"What colorants do I have?"

The first tells Ellie exactly what to look up.

Use natural language

You don't need special commands. Talk to her the way you'd talk to a knowledgeable friend.

Follow up

If the first answer isn't quite right, say so — "that's not what I meant" or "show me just the mica powders" both work.

Check her work

For quantities or costs, verify against your pantry before you rely on the answer.