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I’m not an entrepreneur…

My background in tech and social media has made me hate the word entrepreneur and start-up. They are buzz words to me now, I never wanted to be an entrepreneur, it wasn’t one of my goals. People would always ask me when I was going to start something of my own, well guess what, I have! 

As much as I hate to admit it, Simply Curated makes me an entrepreneur. Last year I really started to take Simply Curated seriously as a business, it’s not easy by any means but there is something so fulfilling in making something new out of something old and having people enjoy it. 

The holiday season was awesome and it was a great learning experience. I loved being at Artists & Fleas and being able to meet my customers. With the new year upon us I decided to take the risky plunge of having a permanent space at Artists & Fleas in Willamsburg. I’ve partnered with another awesome seller and together we have created a little store within Artists & Fleas that feels really cohesive. I’m sure the space will evolve over time, but I have been loving where it’s going so far. 

My goals for 2013 are to really take the candle making part of the business to the next level. I will be using Kickstarter to help me get the candles into retail stores and hopefully grow that part of the company into something more sustainable. 

I’ve found amazing vintage glassware patterns to make candles out of and I can’t wait to share what I have in the works right now. 

Also, keep an eye out for new curated decor items on the site, and come visit me at Artists & Fleas to see the products in person. 

-Sarah

Holiday update:

Hi everyone! I know I’ve been quiet here on the blog for a while but that’s only because so many awesome things have been happening offline. If you follow Simply Curated on Facebook, you probably already know about the market we participated in this past weekend at Artists & Fleas in Brooklyn. 

via Artists & Fleas Instagram

We had an awesome time getting to interact with our customers in person and watching people fall in love with vintage finds and take them home. 

Our hand poured candles were a big hit, but it was clear that customers wanted a scented candle option. I’ve been hard at work curating new vintage glass for scented candles. 

I’m hoping that you guys will embrace me making candles a bigger part of my business. I have multiplies of all of this glassware so in the future I’m hoping I’ll be able to put whichever fragrance you want in the glass you want. 

If you live in NYC, we will be at Artists & Fleas again on November 24-25 and December 15-16. We will also be at The Shops at Studio J on December 1st in LIC. Like us on Facebook to keep up with all the upcoming market dates. 

Sometimes I find vintage glasses that aren’t in perfect condition. So when my friend sent me a link to make DIY teacup candles, it sparked an idea. If you can make candles in teacups, why not in vintage glasses.  I looked at a number of different poured candle DIYs and I knew I wanted to make soy candles and I was really interested in making wooden wick candles because I’ve always thought that the flame was so pretty. I picked up all my candle making supplies at Michael’s and I was all ready to get started. The basic materials you will need are:  Pouring pot Candle making thermometer Soy wax flakes Wooden candle wicks Double boiler (or another large pot would work also) First you need to melt the soy wax flakes on the stovetop in a double boiler. If you don’t have one (I didn’t), just put the wax flakes in the pouring pot and put that in another pot of water.  When the wax reaches 175º it should be melted completely. When it is completely melted you can take it off the heat and let the temperature come back down to around 125º. Then you are ready to pour.  Since I was making wood wick candles, you don’t need to put the wick in before you pour the wax. Pour the melted soy wax all the way to the top of your glass, it will shrink a little as it cools. Then once the wax has started to firm up (you’ll be able to tell because it will start to turn opaque white) just push the wood wick all the way down in the center of the candle. Then wait until the candle has hardened completely before trimming the wick down to the proper size. Then you can burn your new wood wick candle.  I decided not to add fragrance to these candles since it was my first time making them. If you want to add fragrance to your candle you can add it after the wax has completely melted and cools down to around 150º. 

Sometimes I find vintage glasses that aren’t in perfect condition. So when my friend sent me a link to make DIY teacup candles, it sparked an idea. If you can make candles in teacups, why not in vintage glasses. 

2013-04-16 00.43.03

I looked at a number of different poured candle DIYs and I knew I wanted to make soy candles and I was really interested in making wooden wick candles because I’ve always thought that the flame was so pretty. I picked up all my candle making supplies at Michael’s and I was all ready to get started. The basic materials you will need are: 

  • Pouring pot
  • Candle making thermometer
  • Soy wax flakes
  • Wooden candle wicks
  • Double boiler (or another large pot would work also)

First you need to melt the soy wax flakes on the stovetop in a double boiler. If you don’t have one (I didn’t), just put the wax flakes in the pouring pot and put that in another pot of water. 

melting

When the wax reaches 175º it should be melted completely. When it is completely melted you can take it off the heat and let the temperature come back down to around 125º. Then you are ready to pour. 

pouring

Since I was making wood wick candles, you don’t need to put the wick in before you pour the wax. Pour the melted soy wax all the way to the top of your glass, it will shrink a little as it cools. Then once the wax has started to firm up (you’ll be able to tell because it will start to turn opaque white) just push the wood wick all the way down in the center of the candle. Then wait until the candle has hardened completely before trimming the wick down to the proper size. Then you can burn your new wood wick candle. 

2013-04-17 01.48.26 (1)

I decided not to add fragrance to these candles since it was my first time making them. If you want to add fragrance to your candle you can add it after the wax has completely melted and cools down to around 150º.