Dani has been a proponent of aromatherapy for a long time, so when the pandemic began she started making scented candles. She is most inspired by simpler times, and using fragrance to evoke stories and memories in the minds of her customers. She started Amber and Oak in 2020, and has been selling handcrafted candles ever since. Meet Dani!
How long have you been making candles, and how did you get started?
I'm a person who's always felt a strong connection to aromatherapy through fragrance for my mental health, so during lockdown in 2020 I decided to experiment with making candles for myself. We have an old bar from the 60's in our basement, and I turned that into my home studio, blending and pouring candles until all hours of the night.
How long have you been selling your products?
After months of playing around with different wick, wax and vessel combos, I released a fall candle collection, launching Amber & Oak candles for the first time in fall 2020. Along with candles, I also created body care products like shea butter soaps, herbal salves from wildcrafted herbs, and dried floral arrangements as well. Candles have taken over the spotlight, but I do enjoy creating gift boxes for the holidays and bespoke dried flower arrangements for weddings on the side.
What do you love most about making candles?
I quickly fell in love with blending my own fragrances and playing into olfactory memory, the connection between scent and nostalgia/memories. Every candle starts as a story, scribbled in a leatherbound tea stained notebook, and I spend a lot of time testing different fragrance combinations to find the perfect blend for each idea. I really enjoy the act of evoking feelings and memories with aromas, and creating a little escape from reality for people.
What inspires you to create?
My inspiration stems from simpler times, childhood memories, nature, and books. If I feel uninspired, a quiet walk in the woods or a trip to the book store can always be the cure.
What advice would you give to someone who wanted to get started?
It can be very intimidating to start your own business for so many reasons. I think it's important not to rush the process. Take your time having fun and making products for yourself or gifting them to friends and family to get their feedback. I found that asking opinions from my loved ones after letting them smell and burn my candles really helped me get out of my own head about certain things. Every customer is different, and scent is so subjective, so it's important to have other hands (and noses!) on your products before they go out to customers. Turning a hobby into a business is definitely a big switch but with the right testing, planning, research and PASSION - you can absolutely do it and I encourage anyone to follow this dream. You will be amazed with the amount of support that can come your way from customers and other makers you can connect with along the way. I have so many people to thank for the success I've had so far.
Who’s another maker you admire? What do you love about their work?
I deeply admire Erica from Memory Box Candle Co. When starting my candle business, and still to this day, I watch all of her youtube videos. The information she shares is always clear, honest and easy to understand. I love that she creates her own unique scent blends based on her own personal memories and shares that with others in the form of candles in her nostalgia candle collection.
Have you experienced a failure? How did you work through it, and what did you learn?
I've left my double boiler on, had all the water evaporate and smoke fill my basement more than once. One time I believe I even scorched a large amount of wax and had to dispose of it, losing raw materials that I spent my own money on because of my own lack of attention! I've learned to cut down on the multitasking and set timers for myself because I am only one person and one task at a time is truly the best way with making candles! As a solo business owner, you wear many hats and your mind is in so many places at once so it is important to find balance.
What plans do you have for your business moving forward?
Wholesale and private label candles have started to pick up and I would love to reach even more like minded businesses. It's such an amazing feeling to be able to walk into a store and see your products on the shelves within another business or create the perfect custom wedding keepsake favor for a lovely couple. My dream is to have a big barn that I can create in, and people to come shop and maybe even learn to make their own candles too!
What are your 4 must-have Bramble Berry products? Why are they your favorite?
If you're a nature lover like myself, I would highly recommend trying some of the Bramble Berry Natural Fragrance Oils.
I love Natural Cedar and Oakmoss Fragrance Oil. It makes a really great woodsy scent alone but blends well with a floral or citrus scent.
Natural Mineral Springs Fragrance Oil is my favorite clean oceanic scent and is slightly masculine but refreshing.
Natural Citrus and Sage Fragrance Oil and Natural Lavender and Green Tea Fragrance Oil have herbal yet fresh notes to them and never feel overpowering
They have such a wide selection of unique oils for soaps and candles. I love them because of the clean ingredients. I don't make or burn candles with phthalates and potentially toxic fragrances in them.
What’s your favorite Bramble Berry project/What’s the first project you tried?
I love that Bramble Berry offers projects with all the ingredients you'll need together in one place! I personally look forward to trying the soap projects when things slow down a bit after the busy holiday season. I've actually always been intimidated by lye and have only tried melt and pour soaps, but a friend of mine and I have been talking about learning to make soap from scratch and this seems like the perfect way to do it!
Find Amber and Oak
