I mentioned in my last post that I started making candles in 2017, but I'm often asked how I got started. At first it was just for fun. I started by making essential oil candles like these, using the name Chiltern Botanicals...inspired by my home on the northern edge of the Chiltern Hills.
I found though that while the idea of essential oil candles was lovely, the reality wasn't always that good. They don't produce the same results that other oils do and lots of people and animals have sensitivities to different essential oils.
I wanted to experiment with colour so I started making sculptural pillar candles like this David candle which was my best seller for a time. I had a lot of fun but I wanted to use candles to build a business and raise money for charity and unfortunately the market for these candles is saturated with cheap versions where candlemakers are not properly accounting for their costs, so it wasn't viable for me.
I had so much fun developing all of the different colours for my customers that I realised how much I love the innovation involved in making candles so I decided to focus on that. Now I make candles with the best quality wax and fragrance, and I try to innovate through my choices to give my customers new and exciting experiences.
My Forgotten Spaces collection uses plain glass and minimal labels to give exciting fragrances a minimal luxe look to fit in any home.
