
As the days grow shorter, how do you keep your home light and full of cheer? Candles are a perfect solution to stave off winter gloom. With a seemingly endless variety of styles, colors and scents, you can use a different candle each day to suit the occasion, holiday, or mood. Start building your collection at these delightful specialty shops around Northeast Ohio.
9516 Diamond Centre Dr., Mentor, OH 44060
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Brighten your home while showing off your local pride with a purchase from Cleveland Candle Co. Their Cleveland Collection pays tribute to Great Lakes sunsets, Edgewater Park, snow, and other instantly identifiable features of the city. Buy them individually or get all seven in a pre-packaged assortment. Each month, a featured candle is offered at a 20 percent discount. Create your own one-of-a-kind scented candle in-store at the candle bar or via online instruction. All three locations of Cleveland Candle Co., including Coventry and Ohio City, open at 11 a.m. daily.
22935 Lorain Rd., Fairview Park, OH 44126
Josh Ruminski, the college student and entrepreneur who founded Happy Thoughts Candles, considers his company to be a social movement. While fighting his own mental health battles, Josh wanted to find a way to help others with their personal struggles. Each product is labeled with a positive saying to generate encouragement and conversation, while 20 percent of the company's proceeds are donated to support suicide prevention and mental health awareness. Candles come in dozens of refreshing scents, including rainwater, freshly-mown grass, and coffee, that are chosen for their relaxing, therapeutic qualities. Place orders online for pickup or delivery.
100 Park Ave., Suite 122, Beachwood, OH 44122
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Want to boost your green living points? Head to The Candle Studio to make or buy their eco-friendly soy candles. As a source of light that uses no energy, candles are naturally green, but soy burns much cleaner than traditional paraffin. The candle bar is stocked with more than 90 essential oils you can mix and match to create your own personalized scent. You can also use your choice to customize room sprays, body lotions, and other home and body products. If you prefer, shop the extensive inventory of pre-made scented items. The Studio is open Thursday through Sunday and reservations are required. Follow their Facebook page for information about events with their mobile candle pour bar.
533 Trelake Dr., Canal Fulton, OH 44614
Kim Galley, founder of Kinfolk Candles, proudly invites you to "Come Stick Your Nose in Our Business!" After spending years perfecting the optimum natural soy vegetable wax for container candles, Kim started her at-home business in 1998. The thriving business outgrew the family basement, and Kim moved Kinfolk Manufacturing to a roomier facility in Canal Fulton. Kinfolk's best-selling eight-ounce jar candle comes in 100 scents, with unique and whimsical options such as Chocolate Orchid, Fruit Loops, and Santa's Whiskers. A handy glossary provides helpful definitions of each scent. Follow their Facebook page for information about shops carrying Kinfolk Candles or place an order on their website.
1001 W. Main St., Sugarcreek, OH 44681
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Candles, vases, and other decor items let you give your home a seasonal facelift quickly and inexpensively. Located in the heart of Amish country, R Classic Elements makes it easy by changing their own inventory to correspond with the seasons. In 2010, owner Renee Miller decided to expand the shop's offering by making hand-poured soy candles in her home. Production eventually moved to the shop, and the line was named Shanesville Candles. The jar candles, which come in 8-ounce and 12-ounce sizes, feature homey scents such as Lush Linen, Zucchini Bread, and Mint Tea. Store hours are 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. every day but Sunday.
1345 W. 78th St., #2048, Cleveland, OH 44102
In 2009, recent college graduate Sarah Sampsell went to work in her sister's eco-friendly skincare salon. When they couldn't find just the right candles to carry in the salon, Sarah decided to make them herself, and Sweet Dish & Darling was born. The quirky name refers to the original candles, which included a recipe for a "sweet dish." While the recipes are gone, the candles and their trademark burlap packages are still handmade. Candle styles include screw-top jars, enamelware mugs and tumblers, and travel tins. Try the best-selling Sea Salt & Amber or one of the other appealing scents such as Sunday Brunch, with notes of cinnamon, French toast, vanilla bean, and maple syrup. Order online for delivery (free shipping on orders of $75 or more) or select local pickup at their Cleveland workshop.
8125 Columbia Rd., Olmsted Falls, OH 44138
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Wildcrafted Aromatics has a goal to ensure all its products as eco-friendly as possible, even after they've been used. Candles are made with eco-soy and beeswax, eco-cotton, hemp wicks, and natural herbal dyes. Many come in reusable jars, tins, and upcycled glasses that may be reused after the candle has burned. Products come with minimal packaging that is 100-percent recyclable. One of their more popular products is the citronella lavender ceramic lamp, handcrafted from Lake Erie clay. Wildcrafted Aromatics is one of the vendors on display at The RIFT, a Cleveland shop showcasing local craftspeople selling homemade and repurposed items. "RIFT" stands for "Repurposed and Intended for Today." Hours are 11 a.m. - 7 p.m. daily except Sunday, when closing time is 5 p.m.
Cleveland is not generally considered a tropical location, but thanks to Tim & Laura Thornton, you can "bring home the beach." Inspired by sights on a trip to the Panama Canal, the couple came up with the concept for Cleveland Coconut Candles. Their signature product is candles poured into half or whole coconut shells sourced from a supplier in Florida. A wide ribbon-style wick creates a tiki-torch effect as the candle burns. The tropical theme is enhanced with scents such as Jamaica Me Crazy, a blend of pineapple, orange, honeydew melon, coconut, jasmine, rum, and vanilla. Many scents are also available as classic jar candles. Order on the website or follow them on Facebook for information about appearances at festivals and other local events.
Scientists tell us smell is our sense most closely linked to memory. What scent takes you back to a special time or event in your life?