What the studio makes and teaches

A small batch pour is the heart of the studio. We melt a measured quantity of wax, blend the scent at temperature, and fill a numbered set of vessels in a single sitting so every piece in the run shares the same pour conditions. A standard batch holds twelve to thirty pieces, and the count is set before the kettle warms rather than after, which keeps the studio from stretching a batch to fill a late request.

Each vessel is wicked by hand, pinned straight, and poured on a level bench while the wax is still at the right temperature to hold the note. The pieces then rest without disturbance for the first set, because the surface finish is decided in those quiet hours. After the initial set, the batch moves to the resting shelf for a full cure before it is tested or released.

The batch sheet records the wax, the scent ratio, the wick size and the cure date. If you reorder the same pour months later, the sheet is the reference that keeps the second run close to the first. Small batch pours are the right choice for a household shelf, a small shop order or a wedding favour set where the pieces need to feel like one family rather than a pile of near matches.

Lead time: roughly six weeks from melt to shelf

A scent blending session is a quiet two-hour appointment at the cabinet. We open the studio scent families, smell them on strips, and talk about the room the finished piece will live in. Dry cedar, warm amber, salt air, citrus peel, smoke and a soft floral each behave differently once they meet hot wax, and the session is where that behaviour gets mapped before a drop is measured.

From there we build a profile with a top note, a heart and a base, adjusting the ratio until the blend holds together at the bench. You leave with a small test pour cured in the studio and a written card listing the parts, so a later reorder does not depend on memory. Most people find that the third or fourth blend is the one that feels like theirs, and that is exactly the point of taking the time.

Sessions work well for a personal signature pour, a small brand that needs a house note, or a gift that should smell like a specific place. We keep the recipe on file with your permission so the studio can reproduce it when the shelf empties.

Duration: about two hours, by appointment

A poured candle lasts far longer when it is lit correctly, and the wax care clinic exists to teach that in one short hands-on hour. We cover the first burn, the trim length before every light, and the draft problem that causes a piece to tunnel down one side while the rim stays clean. These are simple lessons, but they are the difference between a piece that looks spent after a week and one that holds its pool for months.

The clinic is taught at the bench with a live piece, so you see the pool spread rather than hear about it. We show how to read a wick that is too long, how to rescue a tunnel that has already started, and how to store a piece between seasons without dust settling into the surface. Guests leave with a short printed sheet that repeats the steps in plain language.

Clinics are open to anyone who owns one of our pieces and to anyone who has struggled with a poured candle from elsewhere. Bring the piece if you can. Seeing the actual burn pattern makes the advice specific rather than general.

Duration: one hour, small group or one to one

Custom label painting turns the face of a poured piece into a small painted panel. We mix the colour in the studio, work on a flat label stock that takes the paint cleanly, and seal the finished panel so it sits flush against the vessel without lifting at the edge. The result is a candle that reads as a made object rather than a printed product.

Most clients come with a colour direction, a short line of text or a small mark they want carried onto the label. We paint a sample first and photograph it at the bench so the direction is agreed before the full set is started. Because the set is painted by hand, small variations between pieces are part of the finish rather than a defect, and we keep the same mix notes so a repeat order stays close.

Painting is available on our standard vessels and on a client supplied vessel when the surface takes the seal. Turnaround depends on the number of pieces and the complexity of the panel, and we will always tell you the shelf date before the first brush touches the stock.

Lead time: one to three weeks depending on the set

A studio pour night opens the bench to a small group for an evening pour. The kettle is warm, the shelf lamps are low, and each guest fills a vessel of their own from a short list of blends chosen for the session. The night is paced so nobody feels rushed, and the pour itself is done with guidance rather than watched from a distance.

Groups are kept small so the bench stays clear and every guest gets a turn at the fill. We handle the melt, the temperature and the wick, and guests handle the blend and the pour. Pieces are left in the studio to set and cure, then collected or packed for pickup once they are ready to travel without sloshing.

Pour nights suit a birthday, a small team evening or a group of friends who want an evening that ends with something made rather than bought. We can work around a theme, a colour palette for the vessels, or a set of note cards to go with each piece.

Group size: four to eight guests per night

A gift set assembly pairs poured pieces with the small tools and cards that make the gift complete. We build each set at the same table where the wax was poured, so the box carries a matched finish rather than a collection of parts from different shelves. A typical set holds two or three pieces, a wick trimmer, a match card and a short note printed on studio card stock.

We plan the pack order before assembly so the box opens in a deliberate sequence: the card first, then the largest piece, then the smaller pieces nested with a wrap. Colour of the wrap, wording of the card and the choice of blends are all agreed in advance and kept on file, which makes a repeat order land the same way the second time.

Assemblies are reserved during the winter gift set window and by appointment through the rest of the year. Tell us the date the set needs to be in hand and we will work backward from there, because the cure cannot be shortened and a rush on the pack never makes up for a rushed pour.

Reservation: appointment only, winter window in November