We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Alexandra Torres. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Alexandra below.

Alexandra, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you come up with the idea for your business?

My story begins in August of 2020. Four months after I had my daughter. The world was pretty much shut down and we had to stay in our homes due to Covid-19. At this time, my husband and I decided that I would stay home with the kids instead of going back to work as childcare can be very expensive.

I have always loved candles and light them all the time. During this “stay at home” time I grew curious as to how candle making is made and what goes into it other than just wax. I wanted to know the specifics of it all. So, I began by looking up and watching some videos on “How to make candles at home”. I was surprised at how much math was included into making candles. An acquaintance once told me how candles and other home fragrances would cause them to have headaches due to the added chemicals in them and that enhanced my curiosity.

I found many candle making websites with all the products to make a candle, even offering candle making kits. So, I purchased one. It included everything I needed to make a candle. Wax, wicks, fragrance oil and some small containers. What I loved about these websites is their love for clean scented candles. Clean is an industry term meaning no added chemicals in the fragrance oils, and the wicks are Lead and Zinc free. You want to feel safe burning a candle at home not harming yourself or your loved ones. My candle making kit had finally arrived. It came with instructions, and I got started. The period time for a wax to cure is 2 weeks. I patiently waited. I Instantly loved it! From there on, I decided I wanted to sell candles.

I went to my friend’s house, Julie to make some candles with her for fun. We discussed how I could take this skill to the next level. Since Julie has her own business, she helped immensely. Her and I discussed and researched how to sell candles using an online marketplace similar to Etsy and how to create my own website. First thing was to come up with a name for my candles. I couldn’t think of anything. I’m not very creative when it comes to naming things. It took me sometime until one day I started writing and combining letters and numbers. Then, it hit me. I finally came up with the name Sixteen Twenty Candles, the years my kids were born. My son was born in 2016 and my daughter in 2020. At this point candle making became very special to me. My goal is to produce a product with a unique name that people can enjoy in their home and trust that the candle they are burning is clean scented and made with pure love!

I know sell my candles on Etsy and I participate in vendor markets throughout San Diego.

Alexandra, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Prior to starting Sixteen Twenty Candles I was a massage Therapist for many years. I got married in 2004 at 20 years old in Rochester, New York. We moved to San Diego, CA where my husband got stationed. I worked some retail jobs. After some time, I decided to go to massage therapy school.

Years later I had come to the conclusion that I wanted to make homemade candles and wax melts. The difference with my candles is that I provide clean scented candles. I use fragrance oils that are Phthalate Free also the wicks I use are Lead and Zinc Free. For my wax I use Coconut Soy. I want my customers to feel and trust that they are burning a clean candle that doesn’t cause headaches or any negative effects while burning your candle.

I would have to say what I’m most proud of is seeing the look on customers faces when they pick up my candle and smell it, It shows me that the hard work and love that went into making that candle really paid off. That I actually made a product that someone is going to burn in their home to relax and enjoy or possibly gift it to a friend. It fills me with the most joy and I’m truly thankful and Blessed.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

One thing that comes to mind is having to separate my time for my business and family. I decided to officially start my candle making business when my son started kindergarten in 2022 and my daughter was still at home with me. She still required all of my attention, but I also knew that I could take 30 to 40 minutes to make a batch of candles and get back to her. At times I would feel extremely guilty because I wasn’t by her side.

At the time she wanted more attention and affection from everyone, however my husband was out of the house for about 10 hours every day for work and my son was at school. I found ways to get different activities to keep her busy while I worked on my candles.

There were times where I wouldn’t be able to work on the business and just focus on her. I had to remind myself that she comes first and everything else can wait. My daughter won’t be a toddler forever all good things take time to be great things. She will begin school in the Fall of 2024. This will allow her to grow academically and socially while providing me the opportunity to devote more time building and expanding the business.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

One lesson I had to unlearn is that owning a business is not just having all the free time and do it whenever you want as it is portrayed by many. I’ve only been in this business journey for a year and a half now. There is still room to grow. In the year and a half I had to be able trust myself and push through which is something I have struggled with in the past.

When I was a massage therapist even for over 10 years, I also lacked confidence in my abilities, at that time even though I aided in the patient’s physical and mental improvement. I did feel better when a patient was able to provide feedback, but still struggled with needing validation in that career. It taught me to go with the flow.

As a current business owner, I have the opportunity to be as creative as I want and trust in myself more than I ever have before. I wouldn’t have come this far with the help and support of family and friends.

Making candles is a craft. It’s an art. It gives me the opportunity to see a side of myself that I don’t usually share with everyone. Creativity is necessary because I combine materials to make a final product that a customer is going to hopefully enjoy. Also having patience.

Waiting two weeks for a candle to cure can make you a little impatient. After making a candle, I have to test it to make sure the wax, wick, the fragrance oil amount and container or vessel work together before igniting it. I document the pros and cons about my observations and the results. How well the wax performed, is the wick big enough for the container, how fast did it melt and also the temperature of the container are factors I take into consideration for every candle I produce.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://sixteentwentycandles.etsy.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sixteentwentycandles?igsh=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA==

Image Credits
Market Picture only by Bianca Romero