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There is a moment in every maker’s life when curiosity becomes something more—when a simple experiment transforms into a calling, and a kitchen table becomes the birthplace of a dream.
For many candle artisans, that moment arrives unexpectedly. It arrives in the form of a migraine triggered by a store-bought candle-. It arrives as a creative outlet during a pandemic when jobs disappear overnight-. It arrives as a childhood passion, rekindled years later with a $200 candle-making kit-. And for some, it arrives in the quiet realization that the candles they have been making for friends and family could become something far greater.
This is the story of one such journey—a decade-long pursuit of the perfect flame, the purest wax, and the most evocative scents. It is a story that began on a kitchen stovetop and led, through countless trials, to an independent website and a brand built on integrity, craftsmanship, and an unshakable belief in the power of light.
Every journey begins with a single step—or in this case, a single candle.
“I made my first candle in 2012, pouring it into one of the vintage teacups I had been collecting,” recalls Melissa Warnke, founder of Melissa Warnke Candles. Like so many artisans, she started small, with no grand ambitions beyond the simple joy of creation. “Over time, friends and family began to request candles, and I started selling them at holiday markets and local craft shows.”
That pattern is remarkably common among candle makers. Julie Maskulka, founder of Anecdote Candles, started making candles at her kitchen table more out of curiosity than ambition. She had been working long hours at a creative agency when a store-bought candle triggered a migraine-. “I went down a rabbit hole about why candles can give you headaches,” she says. “I found myself on a Reddit thread about making candles and thought, why not try it? I bought some supplies and started experimenting at home.”
For Lauren Burke, founder of Burning Flame Candle Company, the motivation was more urgent. In March 2020, her hospitality job disappeared overnight. “I didn’t have the luxury of waiting things out,” she says. “I had to figure something out, and fast.” There was no formal business plan, no branding agency, and no safety net. There was a kitchen, a box of candle-making supplies, a young son, and an urgent need to create income.
For Teri Johnson, founder of Harlem Candle Company, the spark came from a desire to give thoughtful holiday gifts she could afford. She started pouring candles in her Harlem kitchen with no budget and no team—just a clear sense of purpose.
And for Cate, founder of Queen B in Australia, the journey began with a doctor’s advice. Disgruntled and stressed with work as a corporate lawyer and marketing strategist, she was told to take up a relaxing hobby. In 1998, she started rolling candles made from pure beeswax. She gave handmade candles to family and friends, and they soon developed a following.
What unites all these stories is a common thread: none of these artisans set out to build an empire. They set out to make something beautiful, something meaningful, something true. The business came later.
The path from kitchen table to independent website is rarely straight. It is paved with burned batches, failed experiments, and the quiet hum of a wax melter running late into the night.
“Back then there were no professional candle labels, no set plans. It was all trial and error,” Lauren Burke recalls of her early days. “COVID was a strange time, but for me it became a turning point. It pushed me to build something from nothing.”
Time was the first constraint-1. Still working full-time, weekends were the only chance to move the idea forward. Melissa Warnke balanced her candle-making with a demanding career in communications. Julie Maskulka poured candles on weekends while maintaining her agency job.
Quality was another challenge. When Anecdote Candles initially outsourced production to meet growing demand, quality issues emerged-1. The decision was clear: in 2021, production moved fully in-house. “It’s not easy,” Julie admits. “Building the right team and culture takes time. But owning the supply chain gave us control, flexibility, and the ability to say yes to custom in a way that felt authentic.”
For Kristen Pumphrey, founder of P.F. Candle Co., the challenge was finding her niche. When she started her brand, most candle companies were marketed toward women, with both feminine scents and packaging. That left an opportunity for candles that felt gender-neutral, with clean design and scents that appealed across the board. “You have to figure out what’s not being fulfilled in the market,” Kristen says. “For us, that was creating a unisex candle.”
For beeswax artisans like Cate of Queen B, the trials extended beyond the workshop. “I am passionate about making the purest light in the world in a completely ethical way, touching lives and making a difference every single step of the process,” she says. “There is a certain quality that a handmade product achieves that churning a product out of a machine doesn’t.” She has formed deep relationships with her beekeepers over the years, understanding that if her beekeepers are experiencing drought, then so is she. “If bushfires are affecting the forests where our beekeepers place their bees to forage, that affects us too.”
For every candle maker, there comes a moment when the business shifts from hobby to enterprise—when the scales tip, and what was once a side project becomes a livelihood.
For Julie Maskulka, that moment came when she paired her scents with playful “smells like” anecdotes at her first pop-up. “The labels made people laugh or nod in recognition. They felt like inside jokes, but they also smelled good. That’s when I realized that it wasn’t just a scent. It was storytelling.” The trade show gave her deadlines to hit: a website to launch, packaging to design, and candles to pour. That work helped her land wholesale accounts from major retailers. “Being on Nordstrom’s holiday list helped us get featured everywhere from The Cut to affiliate gift guides.”
For Lauren Burke, the breakthrough came through custom and white-label work. In her first year, she landed a custom candle partnership starting with a 400-unit order that quickly scaled into the thousands. Additional collaborations followed, including a 1,000-unit order. “Custom work became this steady flame behind the scenes,” she says. “It funded growth, built credibility, and introduced the brand to a much wider audience.”
For Teri Johnson, the breakthrough came through storytelling rooted in culture. She drew inspiration from the Harlem Renaissance, creating scents named after cultural icons like Josephine Baker. She hired elite fragrance copywriters to describe her scents evocatively and slid into the DMs of a luxury photographer she admired, who agreed to shoot her products. Every touchpoint, from packaging to naming, was designed with intention.
For Kristen Pumphrey, Shopify’s built-in customer data helped her make one of P.F. Candle’s biggest bets: opening a store in Brooklyn. “Without the data we saw using Shopify, I don’t think we would’ve had the guts to go and open it,” she says. After the store opened, Brooklyn quickly moved from P.F.’s fourth-largest market to its second.
For Melissa Warnke, the milestone came in September 2023, when she opened her first storefront in historic Cloverdale, complete with a retail shop, candle-making studio, and event space.
Behind every successful candle brand is a philosophy—a set of principles that guides every decision, from wax selection to packaging to customer relationships.
For Cate of Queen B, the philosophy is rooted in sustainability and integrity. “Layer upon layer of thinking goes into everything they do that has nothing to do with business principles and everything to do with principles of humanity, sustainability and integrity.” She is concerned about the many cheap candles that flood the market, made from petrochemical paraffin and bleached soy wax that pollute the air. “They are much cheaper than pure beeswax but are toxic to burn – also by buying them you may keep someone employed in a factory in China, but if you buy our Australian made beeswax candles you help beekeepers, farmers and regional areas as well.”
For Julie Maskulka, the philosophy is about intentional growth. “At the beginning, the limits of my time and space shaped every decision. Now, I’m setting those limits on purpose. Growth doesn’t mean more for the sake of more. It means focusing on what feels right and letting the rest go.” Her team has poured more than half a million candles at their Brooklyn facility, yet they remain careful about how they grow. Instead of chasing every retailer, they deepen relationships with the right partners.
For Lauren Burke, scaling responsibly means not growing faster than she can support. “Saying yes to everything is the fastest way to lose control of quality and your sanity.” Burning Flame Candle Company continues to use the same traditional, hands-on production methods as day one. What has changed is efficiency, planning, and time management—not the product itself. “Growth only matters if the experience stays consistent and the business remains sustainable long-term.”
For Rae Craig, founder of Hunt Valley Candles, the philosophy is rooted in clean living. Her fascination with candle making began at just 9 years old, and that childhood passion evolved into a brand built on authenticity and quality. Every product is thoughtfully made with clean ingredients, allowing families to enjoy beautiful fragrance with confidence in what they bring into their homes.
The independent website represents a milestone in every candle maker’s journey—a digital storefront that is entirely their own. It is where the brand’s story is told without interruption, where customers can connect directly with the maker, and where the full range of the artisan’s vision can be displayed.
For many candle makers, the website is the culmination of years of learning: mastering the art of fragrance blending, understanding the science of wax and wick, developing a visual identity, and building a community of loyal customers. It is the place where the kitchen table’s humble beginnings are transformed into a professional presence that can reach customers anywhere in the world.
The journey from kitchen table to independent website is not just about selling candles. It is about sharing a story—the story of a maker who refused to settle for mediocrity, who searched for the perfect scent, who poured countless hours into perfecting a craft, and who now offers that craft to the world.
After a decade in the business, what have these artisans learned?
They have learned that quality matters more than quantity. “There is a certain quality that a handmade product achieves that churning a product out of a machine doesn’t,” says Cate. Each candle is an act of care, a testament to the maker’s dedication.
They have learned that constraints can be creative forces. “Every limit forced us to focus on what really mattered,” says Julie Maskulka.
They have learned that storytelling is as important as the product itself. “People tell us they buy a candle because they felt called out by the label, and then they’re thrilled it actually smells amazing too,” she adds. “That combination of humor, quality, and meaning is what keeps them coming back.”
They have learned that growth must be intentional. “Scaling responsibly means not growing faster than I can support,” says Lauren Burke.
And they have learned that the journey itself is the reward. “There’s something special about seeing someone enjoy a product you dreamed up and created with your own hands,” says Melissa Warnke. “As demand grew, I realized this wasn’t just a hobby anymore—it could become a real business.”
Ten years ago, a candle maker stood at a kitchen table, melting wax for the first time. There was no certainty, no guarantee of success, no roadmap. There was only curiosity, creativity, and the quiet belief that something beautiful could be made.
Today, that same maker stands at the helm of an independent brand, with a website that reaches customers around the world, a community of loyal supporters, and a decade of experience that cannot be bought or borrowed.
The journey from kitchen table to independent website is not a straight line. It is a winding path of trial and error, of burned batches and breakthrough moments, of late nights and early mornings. But for those who walk it, the reward is immeasurable: the joy of creating something with one’s own hands, the satisfaction of sharing it with the world, and the light that continues to burn, bright and steady, through every season.
At Tabo, we honor this journey. Every candle we make carries the spirit of the kitchen table—the spirit of curiosity, craftsmanship, and care. We invite you to explore our collection, to light a candle, and to become part of our story.
May your home always be filled with light.
Waiting for our long-terms and friendly cooperation.
EN
