Velvet meets three creative talents who put the magic into Christmas with their gorgeous handcrafted cards and giftwrap, exquisite wreaths and beautiful scented candles

The Candle Company Cambridge

Joelle Bouttell runs The Candle Company Cambridge and her hand-poured Christmas candle is a festive fusion of cinnamon, clove, vanilla and plum

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What inspired you to launch The Candle Company Cambridge?

I began pouring candles nine years ago. My dad used to organise Collectors’ Fairs and I was inspired by the whimsical collections of glasses and pots. I thought it would be wonderful to learn to pour candles and give these old vessels a new lease of life. I am as excited today as I was then to refill and repurpose someone’s precious find. While I also use new recycled aluminium tins and glasses (which I refill at a reduced price) my passion is upcycling.

Which is your most popular candle?

My bestselling fragrance is New York, which is a blend of ginger flower, florals and citrus on a musky base. This is the signature fragrance of The Hyatt Centric Hotel at Eddington and used by many businesses, from gyms to bridal shops. Tuscany, which blends orange blossom, jasmine and sandalwood, is also a firm favourite and a reception choice at Bidwells’ HQ in Trumpington. Cambridge is another great seller, fusing bergamot, patchouli, oakmoss, ambergris and vanilla, which is quite a masculine fragrance and smells expensive. And of course, Christmas which smells of cinnamon and clove with vanilla and plum.

You're passionate about eco-friendly practices too, aren't you?

Yes, I am! I am committed to finding the best eco-friendly products that go into the production of my candles. My biggest recent change has been to replace soy wax with rapeseed and coconut wax as there has been an awful lot of negativity associated with mass soy farming and deforestation. My rapeseed and coconut wax candles have the tiniest of carbon footprints, the wicks are made of cotton and I am zero plastic. My aluminium tins have high ethical, social and environmental standards using recycled, safe and sustainable materials.

Let's talk Christmas! What festive products do you offer?

I have a fragrance called Christmas that I absolutely adore. I love the look on faces when it is smelt for the first time. Everyone says the same thing: ‘Oh goodness, you have Christmas in a tin!’ For those who prefer an alternative, I have an orange and cocoa blend, fig and cassis and black pomegranate. The latter is a good alternative to gift between Christmas and New Year.

Why do candles make such a great gift?

If you’re buying a gift for a close friend, work colleague or distant relative, candles are a great choice no matter what the relationship. Candles can vary in price, making them affordable to all. My prices start from £5 and I also offer free personalisation.

Where do you sell your candles?

The majority of my customers come to me to purchase their candles. I have some larger candles at The Swoop Tap Room on Green Street in Cambridge. Smaller tins are available at David Parr House on Gwydir Street in Cambridge and you can buy my reed diffusers as part of a gift package at The Hyatt Centric Hotel. Some smaller tins are available at Dulcedo at Eddington too.

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Finally, what gift is top of your Christmas wishlist this year?

As a family we decided during the pandemic to no longer to do gifts for the grownups. We realised that there was more to Christmas than gifting. Although my husband and I plan to take a mini break to Cadiz in the Spring so guess that will be our gift to one and other.

Find out more about The Candle Company Cambridge at thecandlecompanycambridge.co.uk

Jane Crick

Jane Crick is a Bury-based designer and illustrator of greetings cards, giftwrap and prints whose festive creations are merry and bright

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How long have you been an artist, and which products do you handcraft?

I trained as a graphic designer straight from school and worked in the industry for over 20 years. It was around 10 years ago when I started to use some of those skills to make the transition to becoming an independent card and gift wrap designer. Initially I produced just a few cards and some digital canvasses – my range now consists of more than 100 cards and over 20 gift wrap and art print designs.

What inspires your gorgeous designs?

I am constantly inspired by the East Anglian landscape, especially the coastline and gardens. I take many photos of flowers and shrubs when gardening for clients and in my own allotment. My core ranges are Alliums, Floral, British Birds, British Seaside and Christmas designs.

How do you incorporate planet-friendly practices into your business?

The environment is very important to me. I believe we should all do whatever we can to make a difference – however small. New giftwrap designs are printed on FSC Mix Credit paper and Carbon Offset by the World Land Trust. They are printed locally by my partner Adrian at The Lavenham Press, using traditional litho printing methods with vegetable oil-based inks. They are all 100 per cent recyclable or compostable, with no nasty coatings or glitter! I’m constantly looking for new ways to make my business more sustainable.

We’d love to hear about your festive product range. . .

I’ve always loved Christmas and wrapping presents – I guess designing your own Christmas gift wrap is the ultimate in obsessive gift-wrapping behaviour! My favourite Christmas design at the moment is my popular ‘Goldfinches with Teazles’ but I also think my new ‘Anemones’ floral design which features beautiful jewel like purple and red flowers will be perfect for wrapping my own Christmas gifts this year!

Currently, I’m busy gilding some British Bird Mini Prints with metallic leaf and framing them for sale – something which has now become a Christmas tradition. I’m also packing up as many Christmas Eco Packs as I can – these have two sheets of paper, two matching tags, one card and a bundle of matching raffia – everything is recyclable, sustainable and/or reusable – including the two paperclips which hold it all together!

You co-own The Handmade Shop & Gallery in Bury St Edmunds. What do you love about it?

I especially love the shop at Christmas – we always put up a tree on which all the makers place their handmade Christmas decorations which are so popular. We have a wide range of gifts from jewellery to ceramics, fabrics to metalwork and everything in between! Our Guest Artist this Christmas is Karen Lomax who makes tiny festive pink cottages out of wood which I’m sure will be popular gifts!

Which gift are you hoping Santa will bring you this year?

I’d love a pair of Fordite earrings by Sasha Garrett or a white bowl with handle for my morning porridge by Dom Upson – both available at The Handmade Shop!

See more of Jane’s work at The Handmade Shop & Gallery in Bury St Edmunds and at janecrick.co.uk

Emily Tallulah Flowers

Emily Watson runs Cambridge-based Emily Tallulah Flowers, creating romantic nature-led florals and hosting wonderful Christmas wreath workshops

Where does your passion for flowers stem from?

My mother and my granny always loved flowers so I’ve grown up with them, then when I was 15, I did some work experience in a flower shop – and loved it. I went off to art college, then years later when I was pregnant with my eldest daughter Daisy I went to London for lunch and walked into this flower shop where I discovered just another level of floristry! They had huge displays of flowers en masse, like nothing I’d seen before. I ended up doing a years’ work experience there before landing my first job at Wild at Heart which was the most exclusive flower shop in London. It was a really exciting time; customers would think nothing of spending £100 on a bouquet, and Lily Allen and Jude Law were regulars!

When did you launch Emily Tallulah Flowers?

I launched in 2008, starting with two weddings a year, and working my way up from there. Floristry has always worked well alongside caring for my five children; I remember Daisy used to take her naps under flower boxes while I was creating!

What areas of floral design do you specialise in?

We offer luxury flowers for weddings and events and one-to-one mentoring for people who love flowers or who want to hone their skills. We use sustainable methods so don’t use floral foam which is full of microplastics.

We run lots of seasonal workshops, host hen parties and baby showers, making flower crowns and serving afternoon tea, so that’s really fun.

We have lots of regular clients too, so do weekly flowers and Christmas installations for The Old Bridge at Huntingdon and The Old Hall at Ely, and run corporate workshops in London.

Tell us about your fabulous new studio in Dry Drayton?

We took that over on June 1 and with the help of my husband David, renovated it for three months. I share the space with another florist Laura, who owns Botanical Nest, and sells bouquets, homeware and gifts.

What’s been your favourite commission?

I love doing large installations which really transform a space, making the flowers look as if they were meant to be there. I did a wedding at Claridge’s in London for the niece of David Austin, the famous rose grower, and that was a real pinch-me moment!

We'd love to hear about your Christmas offerings?

We run wreath-making workshops, which are great for people that have never had their hands on flowers before. We make a traditional moss-based wreath and use blue pine and gorgeous scented foliages, and have an abundance of materials for decoration including seed heads, feathers, berries, baubles, ribbons and sparkle. We also offer parent and child wreath making workshop so you can share the creativity with your little one. I love seeing how different all the wreaths turn out even though people begin with the same ingredients, as well as witnessing the delight people have in achieving a wreath they are proud of!

What gift are you hoping Santa will bring you this year?

I’d really love some Jo Malone bath oils; I love her Pomegranate Noir blend! One of my favourite ways to switch off is having a lovely bath, especially in December, which is such an intense time for a florist in the run up to Christmas!

Visit Emily in her studio at Dry Drayton Industrial Estate or visit emilytallulah.com