Imagine walking into a room and suddenly being taken straight back to your childhood fair with cotton candy in arm, just waiting to catch the next trip around the ferris wheel. Well, you may feel complete nostalgia as memories like that pop up when you shop from this next maker. Today's maker feature is Jenna from Prairie Candle Co. She has the sweetest interview - up there as one of our favourites to date. We feel like we're in the room with her experiencing all of the emotions and she takes us down memory lane and shares so much about herself and her business. We hope you enjoy this interview as much as we did... it's time to dig in.

 

The business side of the interview...

Tell us more about your company - what's your business' story or something unique that we'd love to hear?

There is something so comforting about lighting your favorite, scented candle. I love how a scent can trigger a memory, (like the smell of the cake my Mom bakes every year for my birthday) or a feeling like comfort, excitement and inspiration. 

 

When I started this candle business in 2016, It was a creative outlet for me and a start to having my own company (girl power?). Being asthmatic, I also wanted to create a beautiful, clean burning candle, free of phthalates and cheap wax. I fell in love with the hunt of finding the perfect scent, the perfect wick, high quality wax and the cutest jars. Shortly after, Prairie Candle Co came to be! I soon realized that candle making was a science with so, so much trial and error. It really has been a journey! I truly hope my customers enjoy their new candles as much as I have enjoyed making them.

 

 

 

What time of day do you feel most creative? How do you get past the lulls?

 

I find my most creative time is late at night, when the house is quiet and my family is safe in their beds. I get an arrangement of ideas and I can't stop thinking about it until I created it. I've had some pretty late nights trying to source the materials I see in my head or concoct a new fragrance.

 

What does your dream storefront look like? Is it online or brick and mortar, do you work all week long, do you have employees, etc?

 

I'd love to one day have my own brick and mortar shop. Big glass windows, a parlour, a more muted decor with pops of colour. My shop would be filled with the inspiring fragrance of my candles. I have kind, confidant staff but also work the floor myself part time to build customer relations and grass roots marketing.....oh and plants! My store would have an array of rich, green plants.

 

 

 

Now the fun personal side...

 

What is your favorite colour? Why?

 

My favourite colour is black. In school, I remember my art teacher telling us that black was not a colour, it was a neutral. But recently one of my favourite artists (Amanda Cook) put it this way when asked why she wore black alot of the time. She said, and I quote loosely, that black wasn't void of colour, it is actually a mixture of all the colours together. So I think I'll go with that.

 

If you could only choose one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?

 

Favourite food? Mexican/Central American...I can't stand Pasta.

 

 

Would you rather spend your vacation at the beach or sight-seeing?

 

For Vacations, I'm a beach girl all the way. I love playing in the warm sand and the cooling waves. Hawaii is my favourite. I do like seeing the sights and in Hawaii, those sights are almost always accompanied by water, sand, roadside bbq and fresh coconut. I also collect sea shells. Maybe that could be my job when I grow up.

 

What is your biggest fear?

 

My biggest fear? Being pantsed. This may seem irrational. maybe it's a little bit of ptsd from 5th grade when a kid named Alex, pantsed me in front of the entire class....fun fact...I later went on to be friends with his Mom. I was managing a small business and his Mom was a regular. She was just great. There was such a light in her and I was so fond of her. When I found out she was Alex's Mom, I remember thinking 'but she's so sweet'. 

 

You can eliminate one world problem, which would you choose? Why?