Homes: Two new Cambridge candle brands to love

Few things shift the mood of a room as swiftly as a scented candle. Alice Ryan meets the founders of two new - and already acclaimed - local candle brands

FLORENCE CAMBRIDGE

Candle, fashion and lifestyle brand FLORENCE CAMBRIDGE is the realisation of a long-held dream for Polly Pritchard-Gordon. As she tells Velvet, the brand launched less than six months ago but has already found a following

How it started
FLORENCE CAMBRIDGE was initially inspired by my love of fragrance, fashion and interiors. Having worked in the fashion industry for many years, followed by a stint in property, I have always had a keen eye for detail. I wanted to create a candle which ticked all the boxes: beautifully scented, immaculately presented, luxurious yet affordable and, of course, vegan-friendly.
I have always been fascinated by the individual fragrances of candles and the ingredients that go into each one to make them unique. I love the sense of calm that a candle evokes too; the light, the scent, the instant ambience.
The idea for FLORENCE CAMBRIDGE was born several years ago but we launched just before Christmas 2022. The brand has already grown and it now includes clothing, accessories and a home edit.

The scents
There are currently five fragrances in the luxury candle range: Winter, Wild Fig, Pomegranate, Midnight and Sóller, with an exciting new fragrance to be launched this summer. Winter is our Christmas best-seller. It is a classic scent comprising tangerine, clove and cinnamon, synonymous with the festive period and extremely popular.
Wild Fig is fresh, yet comforting; it has a hint of ginger to promote calm, which creates a subtle fragrance and is one of our most popular scents. Pomegranate is another top-seller and my current favourite! Fruity, comforting, nostalgic.
Midnight was created to have a slightly more masculine aroma; cedarwood is the top note. I wanted something to evoke a feeling of being in a wood-panelled room, evening drinks, a gentleman’s club perhaps. Men love candles but don’t always buy for themselves. Midnight has a seductive scent and this proved to be a winner for Valentine’s Day.
Sóller was created having summered in Mallorca for many years. I wanted to recreate the feeling of sitting amongst the magnificent orange groves whiling away the hours under a Spanish sunset. Needless to say, orange is the significant fragrance for this candle and a favourite amongst my Spanish customers! It is our newest fragrance and one I expect to be popular this summer.

How it’s going
FLORENCE CAMBRIDGE is expanding and I am thrilled that, having taken the time to source and carefully curate, I can now offer a beautiful selection of jewellery, inspired by the classic look that encompasses FLORENCE CAMBRIDGE, whilst yet again keeping it affordable.
Our best-sellers over winter, aside from our luxury candles and candle accessories, included our cashmere-blend cosy socks; it was important to me to be able to provide a cashmere-blend that would wash well, yet give the supreme softness and comfort of pure cashmere.
My personal favourite and another hot seller this winter is our luxury faux-fur trim poncho, available in sage green, camel or black. I love the ease of wearing a poncho; the relaxed glamour it can add to an outfit and perfect fot the transition from autumn to winter and winter to spring.

The trends
I forecast that our scented diffusers will become increasingly popular during the summer months. The trend seems to be shoppers wanting to buy a luxury candle and matching scented diffuser to give the best scent throw and continuity. I curated various hampers and gift boxes for Mothering Sunday and keeping the same fragrance was the most popular buy.

The rewards
The reception since launching FLORENCE CAMBRIDGE has been amazing! From having my idea several years ago to finally going ahead has been incredibly exciting. It has given me so many amazing opportunities and the chance to meet and work with inspirational people.
I love creating new scents and seeing people’s reactions. I feel thrilled to be able to combine my love of candles, fashion and interiors and it makes me so happy knowing that a candle I have created is making someone else happy too!

Visit florencecambridge.com to shop. Message via Instagram @florence_cambridge or email hello@florencecambridge.com for more information, including dates of pending Cambridge pop-ups.

WAXWING CANDLES
Having just won Small Business Saturday, hosted by former Dragon Theo Paphitis, it’s hard to believe Cambridge’s Waxwing Candles is little more than a year old. A-level student Alisa Chirgadze, who runs Waxwing with her mum Oksana, tells Velvet about the brand’s clean, green, refillable concept

How it started
Our refillable candle brand, Waxwing Candles, was created during lockdown in 2021 after we became strong candle lovers. The idea of refillable candles was sparked by our realisation of just how many candle jars we had laying around personally - and how many others likely ended up in landfill. We thought why not refill the jars you already have rather than repurchasing them every time? And that’s when Waxwing Candles was born. What also makes our brand one of a kind is that we provide a range of coloured candle jars for our customers to choose from, so you can personalise your candle specific to your style.

The ethos
By using only clean, vegan, and eco-friendly materials it enables our customers to indulge in our candles worry-free. Our candles and wax melts are made using rapeseed and coconut wax, as it’s biodegradable and more sustainable than the commonly used paraffin wax or soy wax. And they don’t produce any soot, so no more black ceilings!
We use wood wicks as they are made using FSC-certified wood rather than cotton wicks, hence they are more sustainably grown. But we also use wood wicks for the iconic crackling sound they produce, creating a very cosy ambiance.
As for our packaging, it is all biodegradable and recyclable - for example our packing peanuts are made from potato starch, so you can simply dissolve them in water.

The scents
We have a wide range of carefully curated scents to cater to every preference, but our best-selling scent has to be Spa Retreat. With fresh citrus notes of bergamot and orange blended with white, floral jasmine resting on a rich, earthy base of patchouli, it will transport you to a rejuvenating and calming spa experience. A definite crowd-pleaser!
With summer right around the corner we have a few exotic, tropical scents to transport you to your dream holiday. . . Caribbean Escape captures the ultimate escape with notes of coconut and peach blended with creamy vanilla and musk, whilst Tropical Infusion has notes of sun-drenched mangoes, pineapple, and papaya.
If you’re looking for a more light, fresh scent, Spring Meadow is for you. It takes you to the English countryside with notes of ripening pears and freshly bloomed magnolias, with fresh hints of bergamot and lemon.

The refills
Once your Waxwing Candle has half an inch of wax left, it’s time to refill. Our candle refills make reusing your candle jars super-quick in three easy steps. To remove the left-over wax, pour hot water into the jar. Wait five to 10 minutes for the wax to soften up and then you can scoop it out with a spoon. Then wash your jar with warm, soapy water. Lastly, pop in one of our candle refills!

The backstory
Being an 18-year-old co-founder is not an easy task; especially with my A-level exams coming up it is more demanding than ever. However, running Waxwing Candles has been thoroughly fulfilling and highly motivating. Managing my time is crucial to both ensuring operations run smoothly at Waxwing Candles and assignments get completed for college. However, that is not always the case, and I often end up editing upcoming new candles at college. My co-founder, aka my mother, has been an amazing help during these stressful periods enabling us to send out orders more efficiently.

The highlights
We recently won Small Business Sunday, hosted by former Dragons’ Den panellist Theo Paphitis! A weekly initiative, it sees six weekly winners gain a retweet by Theo to his half a million Twitter followers.
It was exhilarating finding out that we were one of the winners; it also gave us such an amazing opportunity to meet Theo Paphitis and other entrepreneurs. The event at Birmingham ICC equipped us with lots of specialist advice and connections to help us push Waxwing Candles to the next level, which we can’t wait to implement.
Overall, it was a very surreal experience, as it made us realise how much Waxwing Candles had grown over the year.

The next step
We hope for Waxwing Candles to keep growing so we can reach more people and change consumer habits. Eventually, we would love for Waxwing Candles to be easily available to everyone - especially through retail stores.

To find out more and to shop, visit waxwingcandles.co.uk. Follow on Instagram @waxwing_candles for updates.