Indeed, innovative and interesting appears to be the way forward for the Irish candle sector. To create these, I work on blending fragrances – it’s a lot of trial and error. Turf for me captures the memory of Connemara. Memory and placeĭo her candles really smell of turf and whiskey? “They do, but what they really capture is memory and place. With support from her Local Enterprise Office, Soilse now operates out of Dundalk innovation hub Creative Spark. Moving home to Dundalk, in 2008 she started making candles at her kitchen table while at home with her children. "Fashion was always my love, but once I had babies it became difficult to travel and I just wanted to break away from mass-produced products." "When you light a candle, that flicker of light can definitely make a house a home." A graduate of fashion at the National College of Art and Design, Lavelle emigrated to New York, working for Donna Karan and GAP. "People are spending more time at home and they want to make it comforting," says founder Karen Lavelle. Its Turf candle – "with top notes of bergamot, sitting above eucalyptus and on a base of red cedar" – has sold out. Its Instagram page tells a tale of all-hands-on deck endeavour as a small team works day and night to fulfil Christmas orders for candles, with names such as Whiskey, Strand and Soft Day. ‘Little rituals are comforting in an incredibly chaotic and unpredictable world’ĭundalk-based candle company Soilse is experiencing unprecedented demand. If you want something different to the usual cinnamon-scented Christmas candle, she recommends Field Day Ireland’s Fir candle (€19.95), which she describes as “Freshly chopped fir, herbal balsam, and outdoorsy.”Īlix Mulholland. “Every day, we were writing these really lovely messages where people were using our candles as a way to show their love to somebody.” Offering a gift-messaging service with online orders throughout lockdown has been “really heart-warming”, Mulholland says. The pandemic has meant juggling candle-making with home-schooling. It’s been slow and organic growth for her business, which has wended its way around the birth of her children. “It’s really about making sure your supply chain all the way back can be certified.” We needed to dial up our messages on packs to make it really obvious that this is what we stand for.” Her candles are made from vegetable wax, no ingredients are tested on animals, and packaging is either recyclable or from sustainable sources. “We’ve always been doing that, but about two years ago, a lot of customers were starting to ask questions. Her candles are vegan, cruelty-free and from sustainable sources. I like celebrating the things other people don’t notice so much.”Ĭonsumers are more demanding of green and clean products too. “You’ll never get me doing a ‘Pomegranate Noir’ because it doesn’t feel Irish. Her candles have names such as Nettle & Mint, Buttercup, Moss as well as Peat, Hay, Lichen and Ivy. This back-to-nature simplicity chimes with a zeitgeist that sees us all rediscovering the wonder in things closer to home. They are the backdrop to our lives, part of the fabric and the DNA of nature here.” Closer to home “I’ve always really enjoyed celebrating those weedy wildflowers, those really indigenous plants that grow in every field in Ireland. Her candles capture the unsung scents of Ireland. The next generation of makers is taking the craft in new directions. Once our light, candles are now sources of therapy, comfort and communication. On a Saturday in April of this pandemic year, President Michael D Higgins asked Irish households to shine a light from their window "as a gesture of shared solidarity, and hope in a time of darkness". In the last century, folklorists recorded that Christmas Eve in rural Ireland meant a long thick candle placed in the hole of a scooped-out turnip, lit by the child of the house. In 1616 the Candlelight Law passed in Dublin required every fifth house to display a candle to light the way for passersby. Statistics for candle usage in Ireland are less defined, but they have burned throughout our history. It's all part of having a nice hyggelig time with friends and family. The Danes are noted for their love of candles, burning more of them per person (about 6kg a year) than in any other country in Europe, says the European Candle Association. They are all about light and symbolism, so it’s no wonder Ireland’s candle-makers are experiencing a boom through this time of pandemic. Candles have long been a comfort in our homes and a signal of community in our windows.
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