Interview with a Candle Maker | The Face Behind Ebony & Ivory Candle Co.
In this blog, we interview Brianne Edwardson, founder of Ebony & Ivory Candle Co. Brianne is passionate about candles and makes the best candles in Canada. While the warehouse is located in Lethbridge, AB, you can find our candles all over. If you love Ebony & Ivory candles, you can learn more about the mastermind behind it all below.
What is your favourite part of the candle-making process?
Probably when we start experimenting with the different scents. It’s quite a process. It really, really excites me to start a new scent. It’s hard to explain because I usually know exactly how I want it to smell and then I have to bring that image or that scent that’s already in my head that I’m wanting into a physical product and smell. My nose is so hyper-sensitive that I can pick up on the tiniest notes. If we start something, I might go, “It’s just a little too buttery,” or, you know, “We got to tone this down and make this spicier,” or “It’s a little too heavy on this end, so we need to fix the layers a little bit.” It’s really about fine-tuning, but it’s so much fun to bring a new scent to life.
Which of your candles that are currently available is your favourite, and why?
Cozy Cottage has always been my favourite. It’s the candle scent that can honestly warm your heart and your soul. This candle makes you feel. It creates such an environment of coziness in your home or your atmosphere. It almost makes me want to cry. It can change your day, it can change your week, it can change your month—it can change your entire environment to feel so good and so positive and so right. This candle has changed my life and helped me through so many difficult or uncomfortable situations. Now my body and my soul crave this candle. When I want to make other people feel good, too, I gift them this candle. It’s probably my most emotional candle.
Why the name Ebony & Ivory?
My two daughters are named Noelle and Zaria. The “ebony” part of the name comes from Zaria. She has brown hair and brown eyes—she’s my Mini Me. Her whole personality is quite different than her sister’s. Her sister, Noelle, has blond hair and blue eyes, and a different personality. They’re both amazing in their own way but they’re complete opposites. When they were born, my brother saw Zaria and said “Oh! It’s like ebony and ivory.” And that phrase always stuck in my head. I didn’t start a candle company until many years later, but once the candle company started taking off, I didn’t even have a name for it. I thought “This is kind of turning into something, it’s time to name this entity.” I knew somehow it had to relate to my kids, and I was reminded of “ebony and ivory.” I built the company around that statement, and so that’s why we typically only use black and white jars.
What were you doing before Ebony & Ivory?
I owned an award-winning home decor and furniture store called “Decor Out the Door.” I had actually gone to school for interior design and I knew after I finished that, I wanted to be an entrepreneur. I had kind of known that my whole life. So after school, I wanted to open my own store and do design work and decor. I love retail, so I opened Decor Out the Door. I had friends who worked with me, and one day, one of them (Shelly) came in and told me her husband had just been diagnosed with ALS. All of our hearts were so broken for this family. I decided I wanted to do a fundraiser for this family, but I didn’t want to do a typical fundraiser. Shelly and I always bonded over scent—we were both obsessed with perfumes and candles. So I thought, “What if I made them a candle and used that to raise funds for this family?” It took 8 or 9 months to bring it to market for the fundraiser, and it sold out the first day. So I made some more, and it sold out again. This happened a few times. We were able to do a great thing for this family, but I didn’t think I was done with candles quite yet. That’s how Ebony & Ivory started!
Besides making candles, what do you do for fun?
Oh my god, everything! There’s not much I won’t do. I absolutely love camping and being out in the wilderness. We were just gone for a month, spending time with family and friends. I put a lot into keeping those relationships going. I also love reading, animals, business, the outdoors—I don’t know! I just love everything.
Brianne’s candles are unlike anything you will find anywhere else. If you want to learn more about our commitment to sustainability, find that information here, or shop our limited edition candles now. Find the best candles in Canada at Ebony & Ivory Candle Co.
