How a pandemic hobby and a woman's memories became a candle business

Rachel Berry, Cincinnati Enquirer
·1 min read
Amber Singleton, of Alexandria, recently started Candle Canvas Studio to sell candles she makes from her kitchen.
Amber Singleton, of Alexandria, recently started Candle Canvas Studio to sell candles she makes from her kitchen.

Alexandria resident Amber Singleton has always loved candles, and at the beginning of the pandemic she ordered a kit as a way to pass the time.

Now, she's turning her pandemic candle-making hobby into a business called Candle Canvas Studio, by launching a website for her products.

Her sister-in-law, Samantha Jaggers, wanted to get involved and began painting landscapes and other images on the candle jars to match the scent.

Samantha Jaggers, Singleton's sister-in-law, paints the jars of the candles that Singleton makes.
Samantha Jaggers, Singleton's sister-in-law, paints the jars of the candles that Singleton makes.

Singleton designs scents that match memories. She once went on a family vacation to the Canadian Rockies and came across a waterfall while hiking. This experience inspired her "secret waterfall" scent, which smells like pine trees and fresh mist.

Another scent called grandmother's cookies smells like lavender and sugar cookies and was inspired by her grandmother's house.

"During the pandemic, a lot of us lost that human interaction," Singleton said. "And I guess as that was going on, I realized that it was really nice to be making these various different scents and having different memories triggered of different social interactions that I've had over the years."

In the future, Singleton would like to open a studio where people can paint their own jars and choose the fragrance. For now, though, this is a part-time business, and the candles are only sold online.

Two weeks ago, Singleton officially launched the business, which makes 16 total scents, including some that are holiday-centered. Single candles in tins are sold for $12, and the candles in hand-painted jars cost $55. Hand-painted jars are also sold in bundles with matching canvas paintings for $125.

These are some of the hand-painted jars offered by Candle Canvas Studio.
These are some of the hand-painted jars offered by Candle Canvas Studio.

Northern Kentucky reporter Rachel Berry can be reached at rberry@enquirer.com. Follow her on Twitter @racheldberry.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Christmas gifts: Homemade candles in Northern Kentucky