Friday = Farmers Market

Every Friday, my town has a Farmers Market where local farmers, crafters, and anyone else can sell their wares. The awesome thing about it is that they don't charge a vendor fee, so it allows us vendors to be able to set  up a table every week without the worry of losing money if sales happen to be slow.

Coincidentally, the Farmers Market is held near the Town Hall, which is practically in my backyard so this has been really great for us...we literally just walk out our door and have a plethora of local produce, baked goods, and crafts right at our fingertips!

Here's one VERY happy customer with a gorgeous gourd grown right here in Hobart.

My friend Catarina and her daughter Emily also sold their homemade Swedish cinnamon buns, fresh from the oven (literally!).

And what Farmers Market would be complete without homemade pies, and local maple syrup and honey? Yum!

In anticipation of the coming Autumn, our friend Dave is now selling his pumpkins, grown right on the same property as my office (my boyfriend and I will be taking a trip over to the pumpkin patch real soon to grab some for ourselves...can't wait!)

We also had some really great crafters this week, offering a nice variety in addition to all of the produce and homemade foods.

Yesterday was also my first time selling at the Farmers Market, and it was a ton of fun! Here am I with some of my happy customers.

We were even lucky enough to enjoy the music of a local guitarist and a brass ensemble. It brought even more life to the already friendly and cheerful atmosphere.

The past few weeks, it's been so much fun to shop at the Farmers Market but it's even more fun to sell there! It's a perfect opportunity to catch up with people I don't see very often and allows the town to just enjoy each other's company. And, of course, it goes without saying that it's wonderful to be able to buy local produce and goods rather than having to shop at the "big box" stores.

Our Farmers Market is still in its first year and already we've seen a great response from the community. I hope you guys enjoyed this little peek into my town. Do you have any Farmers Markets or similar events that you enjoy visiting in your town?

New Seasonal Scents

The weather up here has been kind of wacky lately. It will be summery and warm one day and then brisk and fall-like the next. The poor trees are getting confused and are already starting to drop their leaves!

While I am sad that summer is coming to an end, autumn is my favorite time of year so I'm super excited for the leaves to start changing. The cool weather has made me think I should start working on some new scents to reflect the coming autumn weather.

I just tried out one scent that I'm calling "Apple Orchard". It smells just like fresh apples, I love it! I also found a scent called "Pumpkin Souffle" but it smells more like pumpkin pie to me, so I'm calling it "Pumpkin Harvest Spice".

I'm so happy with both of the new scents and picking out the fragrances and the colors really put me in the mood for autumn. Here's to a hearty welcome to the chilled fall air, comfy sweaters, and an excuse to wear my boots again:

Who I am and Why I'm Here

I originally got into candle-making because I wanted to make homemade, heartfelt gifts for my family and friends. I did a lot of research and knew immediately that I wanted to use soy wax rather than the non-environmentally-friendly alternatives such as paraffin. So I gathered supplies, and kind of just stumbled my way through the first trials. It took awhile before I got my homemade Christmas mug candles to my perfectionist standards, but when I finally completed them the sense of accomplishment was awesome.

After that, I started experimenting with candlesticks, hurricane candles, and container candles in things like teacups, recycled jars, candy dishes, etc. I quickly began accumulating an insane medley of candles that I couldn’t possibly use in my lifetime. So, in an effort to continue my craft without finding myself buried in unused candles, I ventured into selling my wares.

I’ve recently opened an Etsy shop and have sold at local craft fairs and farmer’s markets. My candles are also now being carried at a great shop in New Paltz, NY called American Craftsmen. To be honest, I was incredibly nervous when I first started selling my candles, but it’s turned out to be a really exciting and inspiring experience. For me, my favorite aspect of selling my candles is to hear the feedback from my customers. I can’t help but feel inspired when someone comes up to my booth, picks up a candle, sniffs it and says “This smells delicious!!!” Plus, it’s always nice to talk to people about how I make my candles, and why I have so much fun doing it.

That’s what I’m hoping to do here on my blog, as well. I would love for this to be yet another place for me to babble on with people about candle-making, crafting, and everything else that goes along with them. So please, join in the conversation…I’m always eager to talk to others about my passions and, of course, theirs too!