Cozy Home Series: Krista Pischner-Coon

Over the past year, we all have been somewhat forced to realize how much our homes influence our lives. Home has become a space not only to sleep and eat, but a place of rest, recovery, safety, and sanctuary. We have been pushed to actually spend time in our homes, to actually LIVE in our homes in a way we never have been before.

Because of this, candles have become a large part in building these personal sanctuaries. Olfactory senses play a massive role in how your brain perceives space- smell can trigger both positive and negative emotions, which is why fragrance plays such a vital role in making your home.

With so much time spent at home in the past year, we wanted to take a closer look at our customers homes and how our candles have impacted their lives! Our first interview was with Krista Pischner-Coon:

How has your idea of “home” changed over the past year?

“Home has always been a place I look forward to going to after work. But over the last year, with so much more time at home, I never really want to leave my home. All of my extra time spent at home has inspired and motivated me to work on home improvement projects, cleaning and organizing, etc. as well as making my home art studio feel a little bit more like a studio instead of just a place to store my art projects. And over the last year, my home and my art studio have offered me a safe and comforting space to reflect and recover through the really tough year we had.”

“My favorite sable scent is fern + rain. It reminds me of my childhood, growing up up north at my parents’ country home, frolicking with my siblings through fields of wildflowers and building forts in the woods surrounded by big beautiful green ferns.”

What is your favorite room in your home? Why?

“My favorite room in my home is my living room. My living room is quite large and has a lot of different sitting options, coffee table books and my favorite novels, art on the walls and lots and lots of candles! It’s my favorite room to curl up on the couch with a good book, cup of coffee and a candle lit next to me. It’s also my favorite room in the house when we host friends and family. We can pretty much all find a place to sit and when the room is filled with our favorite people, it feels really intimate and cozy.”

How do you make that room your “sanctuary”?

“My living room is filled with all of my favorite things- photos of my husband and I from our wedding day, photos with my sisters and my family, art by local artists and ourselves on the walls, dried lavender and eucalyptus, snake plants, our favorite coffee table books and novels, puzzles, our record player, cat toys (it is also our cat’s favorite room haha!) cozy handmade blankets and of course a variety of candles, depending on our mood or the time of year.”

“I have a lot of candle fragrances in my home that make me feel calm, or that coordinate with the seasons, or that remind me of someone or an experience.”

How does fragrance play a role in your home? Do you have certain candle scents that you light in certain rooms? Why?

“Fragrance is a huge part of my home. When I come back to my home after being away for a long weekend or a week, I immediately smell my “home fragrance” and am happy to be home. My home smells like a mixture of all the scented candles we have about but also “old country farmhouse”. Aside from my parents home fragrance, my house is the only place I have ever lived in that actually smells like home to me. I have a lot of candle fragrances in my home that make me feel calm, or that coordinate with the seasons, or that remind me of someone or an experience. I do like certain candle scents in certain rooms- I love green tea + lemongrass in the kitchen because it’s fresh and makes me think of gardening. I love lavender + chamomile in the bathroom because it’s so calming. I like tobacco + vanilla, pine + scotch or fern + rain in the living room or dining room, because this is the largest space in my house and these scents fill large rooms well plus they’re super cozy and make me feel refreshed.”

What is your favorite sable scent? Why?

“My favorite sable scent is fern + rain. It reminds me of my childhood, growing up up north at my parents' country home, frolicking with my siblings through fields of wildflowers and building forts in the woods surrounded by big beautiful green ferns. But I love all of the sable scents, depending on the season, on my mood, etc. Lavender + chamomile is perfect when I am overwhelmed and I need a simple reminder to calm down, tobacco + vanilla is great when my husband and I are enjoying a cozy night in, and green tea + lemongrass is my favorite kitchen candle, especially in the summer- it’s so fresh!”

“I have so many memories that tie back into smell or certain scents. What really sticks out to me in the last year are memories associated with the lavender + chamomile candle.”

Do you have any memories that tie back into smell, or certain scents?

“I have so many memories that tie back into smell or certain scents. What really sticks out to me in the last year are memories associated with the lavender + chamomile candle. Whenever I burn that candle in my home, I think of 2 things in the last year. I think of when I was gifted the candle when my grandmother passed away. It was in the beginning of the pandemic, and we couldn’t get together as a family to grieve. My dear friend (Courtney!) gifted me the lavender + chamomile candle and I burned it all in one day, while reading, relaxing on the couch with a face mask on and looking through my favorite photos with my grandmother. I also think of when I visited a beautiful northern Michigan lavender farm with my sisters last summer. I was laid off from my job and spent many weeks up north with my family. My sisters and I decided to spend the morning at a lavender farm we had never been to before, and I will never forget the rolling hills of soft purple, white and gray lavender plants, all of the bumble bees busy pollinating and drinking a cold lavender lemonade.”

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Shop Krista’s favorite candles:

$15, Fern + Rain Gold Tin

$28, Tobacco + Vanilla Classic Jar

$28, Green Tea + Lemongrass Classic Jar

$15, Lavender + Chamomile Gold Tin

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5 Candle Safety Guidelines

While candles create a cozy ambiance and delightful home fragrance, there are some general safety tips to make sure your cozy

#1 Always burn within eye sight.

Obviously right?! But this should be taken quite seriously. Keep those flames monitored, away from drafts and other flammable objects, kids & pets. etc.

#2 Stop burning when only 1/2" wax remains.

This one is super important, and it's something we have had to remind customers when they bring their candles in for refills. THERE SHOULD BE WAX LEFT AT THE BOTTOM OF YOUR CONTAINER! this is because at the end of it's life, a candle can get super hot- the container acts like an oven containing heat... and if that heat gets too close to the bottom of the container it can be dangerous. so blow out that flame when there is about 1/2" of wax left!

#3 Burn on an even surface.

If you place your candle on an uneven surface it has the possibility to fall or shift the wick while burning. Both of these situations are fire hazards! Keep that candle on a flat, heat safe surfaces and away from other objects.

#4 Keep the wax pool free of debris.

This is to make sure any debris that may have fallen on your candle wax (dust, pet fur, etc.) doesn’t catch on fire. this is also especially important for wooden wicks- make sure to keep any trimmed wick particles out of the wax pool!

#5 Do not burn over 4 hours at one time.

This is to prevent the candle from getting too hot… which is another fire hazard! if candles get too hot, the vessel could potentially crack (we do tons of testing, as do other candle companies, so don’t freak out) but it is a possibility which is why this is a safety precaution. I know it’s hard, but limit your enjoyment to 4 hours at a time!

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If you need a reminder of these notes, simple check out the warning label on the bottom of your candle!

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The Gilded Collection Launch

I grew up in a small rural town in west Michigan filled with golden fields, green meadows and hidden forests. I would spend hours outside, dreaming a life filled with story and adventure, being the queen of my own backyard kingdom.

Now that i’m an adult, I find that my mind still wanders to these places- I still dream of this magic, and the memory of this brings so much comfort and joy to my heart. This is where my inspiration came from for our GILDED COLLECTION. These scents were mixed with these memories in mind- walking through golden wheat fields, climbing giant hills in the meadow, climbing trees and reaching for something far beyond my tiny perspective on life in reality. These candles are made to inspire- to connect and encourage dreaming, chasing magic, and bring out your inner queen.

Each candle features an image of a woman in her majesty, and is paired an encouraging poem that provides the scent with its own narrative- a story that connects people through courage.

I come from a family full of women; my mom had 3 sisters and I have 2. We all spur from a line of strong women who were not only inspirational, but also kind and full of enduring love. This past year my family said goodbye to my grandmother- a ever cheerful woman full of life, love, and never ending joy. Her memory now joins me in these magical spaces roaming the countryside of west Michigan, and they hold a kind of life that I had to share.

So today as we launch this new collection, we celebrate the magic of dreaming, imagination, and the power of women. We celebrate life, love, and the majesty of all queens everywhere.

$28, Aurelian Birch Tin

$28, Bronze Jasmine Tin

$28, Wheat Field Tin

$28, Wild Ochre Tin

$28, Goldenrod Tin

$28, Smoldering Saffron Tin

$34, Aurelian Birch Jar

$34, Bronze Jasmine Jar

$34, Wheat Field Jar

$34, Wild Ochre Jar

$34, Goldenrod Jar

$34, Smoldering Saffron Jar

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gilded inspiration

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How to Refill Your Candle

candle gone? that’s ok! you can now get a refill insert for your favorite sable candle either online or in store:

1. order online: order your refill online to have it shipped to you. when it arrives, simply clean out your used container, insert the refill, and light up!

2. refill at our studio: if you are local to grand rapids michigan, you can shop refills at our studio:

LOCATION: 620 wealthy st se, grand rapids michigan 49503

questions about refills? email sablecandleco@gmail.com

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3 Scents to Destress

The holidays bring on extra stress, so we put together a short guide on some of our candles that are the perfect way to calm your space and help de-stress.

We know candles often have a calming impact, just in their nature + aesthetic (especially with our crackling wooden wicks!), but we also know that the ingredients in candles play a role in their influence. our aromatherapy blends are made with thereputic grade essential oils that are free of toxins, and can have calming effects. browse each blend below to read about the benefits of the oils used!

lavender + chamomile

both lavender and chamomile are often associated with creating a sense of calm- their aromatic scents help ease stress, reduce heart rate, and improves sleep.

this signature sable blend is inspired by cozy evenings with a good book and an early bedtime- an elegant dance between soft lavender, warm chamomile, and sweet vanilla.

green tea + lemongrass

a fresh rejuvenating blend that can help stimulate the brain, freshen your home, and re-energize you after a time of stress.

this scent is inspired by dewy fresh citrus , green tea, + soft lemongrass- the perfect candle to illuminate any room.

tea tree + peppermint

this blend is so fresh and bright! tea tree and peppermint oils both help reduce anxiety, boost your immune system and open up nasal congestion. this scent is a purifying and rejuvenating blend that could help you reset in just the perfect way.

this signature sable blend is bold minty mixture inspired by brisk fresh air, crisp frost and falling snow.

3 Candles For The Fall Season

Fall is here!! and we all know what that means- Fall candles 🍂

Seriously, it is (in my opinion) the BEST time of the year to light a candle and cozy up with a glass of wine and a good book in the evening. who can say no to that?! smoky bonfires, earthy forests, spiced wine... fall is calling and no one is safe! so here are 3 scents that will be sure to cozy up your space for those crisp fall nights…

1. Harvest Moon: Inspired by crisp fall nights, spiced wine, and smoky bonfires. enjoy the complex blend of cinnamon, apple, pumpkin, allspice, sage, and blood orange. a classic spiced fall candle with a smoky twist.

2. Pine + Scotch: Inspired by smoky pine forests, crisp scotch, and classic fall shenanigans. enjoy notes of smoky pine forests, crisp scotch, cypress + crisp forest air. a rustic candle bringing the fall forest inside.

3. Tobacco + Vanilla: Inspired by baking cookies, playing board games, and reading old books. enjoy our original scent with timeless notes of classic vanilla, clove, cedar + tobacco. a nostalgic fall scent with a hint of smolder.

So choose your own smoky scent and light up your Fall season!

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$15, Harvest Moon Mini Tin Candle

$15, Tobacco + Vanilla Mini Tin Candle

$15, Pine + Scotch Mini Tin Candle

$34, Harvest Moon Tumbler

$34, Tobacco + Vanilla Tumbler

$34, Pine + Scotch Tumbler

The Benefits of Wooden Wick Candles

we often get questions on our wooden wicks, so we thought we would share why we use them, their benefits and how they are different from regular cotton wicks.

1. A clean burn: say goodbye to sooty residue and hello to a clean burning candle! because wooden wicks don’t “mushroom” they provide minimal carbon, soot, and debris build up. just trim off any charred wood from previous burns, and your flame will shine clean + bright.

2. Long lasting: who wouldn’t want a longer life?! the life of your candle is another fantastic reason to buy wooden wick candles- they burn slower than regular cotton wicks. simply add a bit of life to your candle by simply choosing a wood wick.

3. Wider fragrance throw: In a burn test between a wooden wick vs cotton wick candle, results showed that the wooden wicks diffuse heat more rapidly into the wax, and can push up to 35% more fragrance throw into a room, compared to cotton wicks. so what does this mean…? it means your candle is working better, stronger, and faster at spreading it’s fragrance!

4. The crackling ambiance: wooden wick candle wicks have a distinct crackling sound when burning, and a generally more calming and appealing aspect in creating ambiance- in a consumer-facing study, a whopping 96% of consumers said that wooden wick candles are more calming vs. their cotton wick counterparts, and 92% of consumers stated that wooden wick candles create more ambiance. you can’t argue with those numbers!

5. A modern aesthetic: in addition to an awesome ambiance, wooden wicks have a distinctive flat horizontal flame, giving your candle a modern feel that you won’t get with a cotton wick.

6. Toxin free: because our wicks are 100% wood, they are not only eco-friendly and sustainable, but also toxin and phthalate free.

7. Eco friendly + charitable: our wooden wick supplier uses wood sourced from FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified mills and for every $100 spent with them, they plant a tree with the “Trees for the Future” - and organization working to end hunger and poverty for small farmers through revitalizing degraded lands. this means that with every sable candle purchase, you are not only helping to plant trees, but also help support the lives of farming families. read more about this organization at trees.org.

share your wicks!

we want to see your sable candles in action + tag us (@sablecandleco)

Wooden Wick Candle Care

Wooden wicks are a bit different from a traditional cotton wick- they burn longer, cleaner, and have a cozy crackling ambiance. But they do require a bit of extra care. here are our tips and tricks to get the most out of your sable candle:

1. Always trim your wick before each use, removing all charred wood from previous burns. if you don’t, the wick may not stay lit long enough to fuel the flame, causing it to extinguish itself. to trim a wooden wick remove all charred wood (we suggest a wick trimmer).

2. Make sure to allow the wax to melt across the entire diameter of your candle on the first burn- this helps prevent tunneling, which can impact how well the candle burns.

These two simple tips will help your candle burn clean and long for the entire life of your wooden wick candle.

We choose our ingredients with intention and precision- shop all of our handcrafted wooden wick candles below:

$15.00 Black Wick Trimmers

$15.00 Gold Wick Trimmers

Best Practices for Soy Wax + Wooden Wick Candles

Did you know there are things you can do to help your candle burn cleaner and longer?! Here are a few tips on how to max out the life of your candle.

Step #1

On your first burn, make sure to allow the wax to melt the full diameter of the candle. Soy wax has a memory, so you need to provide this path for it to take for the rest of its life. This process will avoid “tunneling” where the candle burns straight down the center of the container, leaving walls of wax around the edges. not fun.

(*see picture to the right to see how a memory line looks like. this candle will tunnel straight down from that line, leaving about wall of wax along the edges.)

Step #2

Do not burn your candle for more than 4 hours at a time. this will prevent the container from getting too hot, which not only makes your candle burn through faster, but also becomes a potential fire hazard… so stay safe and pace yourself.

Step #3

always, ALWAYS, trim your wick before burning. wooden wicks are similar to a campfire- it cannot burn well on charred wood. so before relighting, make sure to trim off the burned wood to keep your candle burning bright!

(*watch video below to see a candle struggling to stay lit. after trimming the flame comes back!)

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The Benefits of Naturally Fragranced Soy Wax Candles

Do you know someone who avoids candles due to headaches? Have you ever wondered why candle companies use different types of wax, like paraffin, soy, or beeswax? What many people may not realize is that candles can be crafted from a variety of ingredients—some of which can be quite harmful and hazardous to your health. which is why we meticulous vet all the materials used in our candles here at Sable Candle Co. Our candles are crafted with natural soy wax, toxin-free fragrance oils, pure therapeutic-grade essential oils, and clean burning wooden wicks. Each one of these components was thoughtfully selected during the development of our candle line to create the highest quality candle for your home.

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OUR WAX

We only use natural soy wax in all of our candles, and there are a few reasons for that. The main reason is that it provides a cleaner, toxin-free burn compared to it’s counterpart paraffin.

Paraffin wax is commonly used to make candles and wax melts because it is generally cheaper to produce than soy wax. Since paraffin wax is derived from petroleum, coal, or shale oil, it has been found to contain carcinogens (cancer-causing agents) such as benzene, and other toxins like toluene which can cause migraines and other health complications. The chemical toluene found in paraffin wax mainly affects the central nervous system in the brain. Toluene enters your body when it evaporates into the air that you breathe. Research shows that melting paraffin wax-based candles emitted toxic toluene and benzene, while soy candles & wax did not.

Another benefit of soy wax is that it offers a longer, slower burn compared to paraffin- which means you get more out of the life of your candle! For these reasons, we choose soy wax to give you the best value of quality, burn time, and value for your candles.

>>> Read more about where soy wax comes from: What is Soy Wax?

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OUR FRAGRANCES

In addition to choosing natural soy wax, we also vet all of the fragrance oils used in our candle quite carefully. Fragrance oils are often synthetic products made in a laboratory with many additional ingredients being chemicals and petroleum by-products. In fact, according to a report by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), approximately 95 percent of the chemicals used in synthetic fragrance oils are derived from petroleum. Among those chemicals are aldehydes, as well as benzene derivatives and toluene (similar to paraffin wax discussed above).

Other chemicals found in fragrance oils are phthalates and parabens- they are used to extend the aromatic strength and lengthen the shelf life of the candle. Both paraben and phthalates have been linked to adverse health effects, including cancer, reproductive problems, endocrine disruptions (hormones), allergic reactions, and respiratory issues.

Because of this, we intentionally find toxin free oils for our candles- we often used pure therapeutic grade essential oils, as well as toxin free clean natural fragrance oils. What is the difference between the two? Essential oils are truly from nature- they are collected through a distillation process that carefully separates the essential oil from the flowers, needles, twigs, fruit peels, seeds or roots where it is found. It is a process that requires far greater effort and expense than the manufacturing of synthetic fragrance oils.

Clean natural fragrance oils are man made, but are developed intentionally without any of the preservatives and toxins that are often found in synthetics- they are phthalate + paraben free, and put through rigorous standards to ensure they are free of any carcinogens or other toxins known to cause health problems.

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OUR WICKS

We want to craft the best, high quality, clean candles for your home and we believe wooden wicks are the best option to do so. They offer a cleaner and longer burn, wider fragrance throw, are eco friendly and offer a cozy atmospheric experience.

When you burn a wooden wick, they burn slower than their cotton counterpart, which means you get more out your candle. They also don't “mushroom”, like cotton wicks, so they provide minimal soot and debris build up when burning. Wooden wicks also burn stronger than cotton wicks, dispersing fragrance with a wider throw. In a burn test between a wooden wick vs cotton wick candle, results showed that the wooden wicks can push up to 35% more fragrance throw into a room, compared to cotton wicks.

They are also a sustainable option- our wooden wick supplier uses wood sourced from FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified mills and for every $100 spent with them, they plant a tree with the “Trees for the Future” - and organization working to end hunger and poverty for small farmers through revitalizing degraded lands. this means that with every sable candle purchase, you are not only helping to plant trees, but also help support the lives of farming families. read more about this organization at trees.org.

Lastly, they offer a unique experience through their cracking ambiance. Wooden wick candle wicks have a distinct crackling sound when burning, and a generally more calming and appealing aspect in creating ambiance- in a consumer-facing study, a whopping 96% of consumers said that wooden wick candles are more calming vs. their cotton wick counterparts, and 92% of consumers stated that wooden wick candles create more ambiance. you can’t argue with those numbers!

>>> Read more about wooden wick benefits: Why Wooden Wicks?

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We have built our recipes with healthy, clean ingredients to make sure our product creates a toxin-free environment. All of this development, along with creating our custom unique scents has taken us YEARS of work. We love the science behind concocting a clean + healthy scent for your home- nothing is added without deliberation and intention. This is our signature- gorgeous, simple, spot-on-scents made with purpose.

Make sure to read each description to find out what each candle is made with and meant for… there is a little something for everyone and every setting. we hope you appreciate and enjoy our craft!

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RELATED POSTS:

• Why Wooden Wicks?

• What is Soy Wax?