Why Did I Choose Candles?

My Candle Making Journey

So I've been interested in candles since I was a kid - unscented because I was and still am hypersensitive to scents in general - it drove my mum nuts as she also loves candles, even scented ones. Up until 3 years ago - 2021 - I just bought the candles (more often beeswax than others) that I liked and carried on like most other folks do.

Then of course, COVID hit and everything went to chaos in a handbag with pretty little ribbons and...well....I got bored.

Cue my beginning research into candles! For the first year I gathered as much information as I could about candles, waxes, vessels, colourants, eco-friendly options, etc. Heck, I even read a bunch of research papers on the environmental impacts of different candles - from what I could find at the time, there was a surprising amount but not much concrete and definitive proof over what type of candle was best, just what was and wasn't as good as other candles.

Year 1:

Anyways, I spent the first year just researching candles and chandlery - the official name for candle-making. It took just that long because I was doing multiple things: Figuring out what I wanted to do, if I even wanted to make candles, what sort of candles I wanted to make if I did and even going into the rabbit hole that is Pinterest to find pretty candles and inspiration. I have a very large folder for candles only and there is...quite a lot of photos.

Year 2:

This year was all about the safety, sourcing supplies and researching laws and regulations and everything else I could find on commercial and small business candle manufacturing/making.

This was honestly the biggest project I've ever undergone for something I had originally intended to be a hobby. My autism is one where I don't spend too much time on things unless it's intensely interesting or whimsical or pertains to something I need to get done NOW, so to spend 3 years (granted it was off and on rather than continuous all-day-every-day

What I Wanted In A Candle:

I wanted to make my own candles that smelled good without being ridiculously overwhelming for scent.

The candles had to be made with as natural a product as possible so for this year I nixed the idea of using paraffin wax (petroleum by-product) and then did a whackload of research into more natural waxes such as Soy, Coconut, and Beeswax.

I wanted to make candles that you could burn for several hours without needing to put the flame out due to a scent-bomb that takes out your sinuses.

I wanted to make pretty candles with colors preferably in marbling effects since each candle would literally be entirely unique so - not boring!

I had to have toppings on the candles and it HAD TO HAVE A SURPRISE INSIDE OF IT!

At that point I wasn't sure what sort of surprise I wanted to have in the candles - and here is where I began to consider the idea of selling them because if I already know what's in the candle then...well, it's not so much a surprise anymore, right? But it was all in the planning phase still and I had that idea of selling candles written down!

Year 3:

Starting this year, after a final bit of decision-making and a huge amount of writing - I began my testing.

And testing....testing....testing...SO. MUCH. TESTING. Did you know that it takes at least 3 tests of a candle before you can determine if it's safe to use? The first burn of a candle is a good start to figuring out how the wick works with the wax, but it's the second, third and up to the 10th burn that actually determines whether the wick and wax and fragrance oil and color and all the extras work together properly. To have them not work together will result in...well, not good results.

Things that can happen to a candle or vessel can be found at my other post on Candle Safety 101 so go ahead and check that out for more info!

In June I found stainless steel pendants that are absolutely gorgeous - they are embedded into the candles at random so even I have no idea which jewelry is in which candle, they don't discolour, don't catch fire and are still lovely after removing and cleaning up from the wax - I'm debating whether to buy gold jewelry but that research will happen sometime in 2025!

The vessels I chose for these candles are clear glass 10oz jars with bamboo lids that fit snugly onto their tops. I'm also working on a set of smaller 8oz matte black tins that are in testing as of September 10, 2024 (hoping to release them October 1!)

So long story short: Welcome to my shop dear peoples of all sorts! For surprise items, check out my candles and body care products (they have their own little surprise in them~!) And I am happy to announce that after 3 years, my candle line is officially available for purchase!