Creative Sarah Yelle has been selling candles for a year under Own Glow Candle Co, their candle company focused on unlocking your inner glow.
“I started off with lavender, because that’s so classic and so chic … I really liked the idea of coming up with my own signature scents, so taking a few different essential oils and mixing them together,” Yelle said.
After lavender, Yelle has since released Protecting My Peace, an “earthy, wintery vibe,” and Wind Down, what Yelle describes as “hugging a teddy bear or sitting down with a book on a rainy day.” Candles come in 10 ounce and 2 ounce sizes, as well as wax melts.
“Candle making is a lot more time intensive than I ever thought,” Yelle said. “If you are using a certain type of wax, it needs to be melted to a certain temperature so the fragrance can fully dissolve … you have your wax to fragrance ratio, so I am using a pound of wax but can only use an ounce of fragrance. Then, if I am using multiple fragrances in a scent, I need to divide that up and figure out the proportions.”
“Depending on the batch I am doing, it could take just a couple hours to pour a whole batch with all the cooling I have to wait for the wax to do, and on top of that, it takes two weeks after I have poured it for them to be ready,” Yelle added.
In the last year, Yelle says they have had lots of opportunities to connect with the community through their candle making. They provided dozens of mini sets of candles for Campfire Alaska last fall, and recently was part of a queer community fundraiser through A Couple of Plants. This month, Yelle will be at several markets.
“I’ve been really preparing for that, because I have nothing — I had to buy a table, make a banner, so I’ve been pouring all my creative energy, when I have it, into that,” Yelle said.
Own Glow Candles can be purchased through Yelle’s Instagram page.
“I love self-care, I love a luxurious little bath at home,” Yelle said. “I think I have these ideas for different scent collections I want to do, like themed collections. I love a good, clean burning candle. I know what is in it. I made it myself and I can feel good about that.”
Sam Davenport is a writer residing in Anchorage. She's a leo and a plant-person, and loves spending quality time with her dog, Aspen. She is a Real Housewives fan and has been called a Bravo historian.
