Family Tradition Candles… A Sustainable Flame

Artist Statement
Each  summer of my youth, I would trek from Connecticut to Pennsylvania Dutch Country’s Kutztown Folk Festival, where for nine days, under the tutelage of my grand uncle, I would  mesmerize tourists with steady-handed candle dipping.  A wood-fired cast iron stove heated wax to melting point, and a few feet away, a steady three-legged table held a cast iron pot while I dipped tapers.  Our festival tent served as retail shop, workshop, and annual family reunion.  Now, decades later and thousands of miles apart, candle making is a way I stay connected to my past, my family, and centuries of artisans who lit civilization with their work. 

Unlike many commercially produced candles that focus on scent, my focus is on color and light.  Light was the  original reason candles were invented, and light is still what created ambience. I  use post-consumer recycled  wax. Yes, I collect boxes and bags of half-burned candles.  You may well have a bag tucked away somewhere because you can’t bear to throw it away.  Blending the old candles leads to beautiful colors and textures, and although the wax formulas are never exactly the same, burning results are fairly consistent, but may vary some.  This personal recycling project is very important to me.  It’s one way I can personally extend the lifespan of our local landfill, and minimize the use of energy that goes into manufacturing and shipping raw materials. I like that minimal carbon footprint.

My home is littered with the simple tools of candle making. Old pots & pans, boxes of half-burned candles waiting for their turn in the wax pot, boxes of new candles, ready for market are in almost every room of the house.  The daily rhythm of melting wax, pouring pillars, running errands, and dipping tapers every ten  minutes is calming.  Lowering my arm to dip tapers into the wax pot and raising it again, all in slow motion, is a physical meditation.  It is so peaceful and centers me like nothing else.

About Yoleen Faerber
Each summer of my youth, I would trek from Connecticut to Pennsylvania Dutch Country’s Kutztown Folk Festival, where for nine days, under the tutelage of my grand uncle, I would mesmerize tourists with steady-handed candle dipping. A wood-fired cast iron stove heated wax to melting point, and a few feet away, a steady three-legged table held a cast iron pot while I dipped tapers. Our festival tent served as retail shop, workshop, and annual family reunion. Now, decades later and thousands of miles apart, candle making is a way I stay connected to my past, my family, and centuries of artisans who lit civilization with their work.

Unlike many commercially produced candles that focus on scent, my focus is on color and light. Light was the original reason candles were invented, and light is still what created ambience. I use post-consumer recycled wax. Yes, I collect boxes and bags of half-burned candles. You may well have a bag tucked away somewhere because you can’t bear to throw it away. Blending the old candles leads to beautiful colors and textures, and although the wax formulas are never exactly the same, burning results are fairly consistent, but may vary some. This personal recycling project is very important to me. It’s one way I can personally extend the lifespan of our local landfill, and minimize the use of energy that goes into manufacturing and shipping raw materials. I like that minimal carbon footprint.

My home is littered with the simple tools of candle making. Old pots & pans, boxes of half-burned candles waiting for their turn in the wax pot, boxes of new candles, ready for market are in almost every room of the house. The daily rhythm of melting wax, pouring pillars, running errands, and dipping tapers every ten minutes is calming. Lowering my arm to dip tapers into the wax pot and raising it again, all in slow motion, is a physical meditation. It is so peaceful and centers me like nothing else.

Yoleen Faerber – Family Tradition Candles – A Sustainable Flame
Artist Code: YO