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

Lynn, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to start by getting your thoughts on what you are seeing as some the biggest trends emerging in your industry

I think the biggest trend I’m seeing is candle making classes. I’ve been asked many times to teach these classes but it’s something I’m struggling with.

Most of the candle making classes are for vessel based classes with soy wax which are fun classes filled with lots of education.

Candle making is a science and it’s easy to learn one form of candle making and attempt to carry it to another wax.

I work with beeswax and sometimes a vegan, eco-friendly pillar candle wax. Those waxes heat at a much higher temp than soy, and therefore require more of a curing time. Also, the candles are poured into a mold, and to run a class, I have been working for ways to allow the mold to be cured enough to remove from the mold.

A personal concern I have as I look to enter this trend, is proper education of waxes while making candles. Soy wax can be heated only to a certain temperature before the wax can negatively be affected, and that is the recommended pouring temperature for beeswax. Beeswax is affected by fragrances differently than soy and other waxes, as most beeswax candles do not have an added fragrance.

As I struggle through ideas of how to provide a unique service in the candle making class trend, I know I will be adding something unique to the various class options. And THAT is exciting.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I got into candle making during Covid. I started with soy wax and became an amusement for many while I struggled with crumbling and breaking candles when removing from molds. It was just something to pass time in quarantine. However, I can become very persistent, and was determined to figure out why that continued to happen. I started asking fellow candle makers, and learned the differences of candle waxes. I was referred to a wholesaler who also provides workshops and training to beginners. I dove in. I started buying molds and making candles, and eventually one day, a friend asked to buy 4 of them. And that is how Tranquil Iris started. I will always give my friend Cara credit for empowering me to go for it.

From making pillar candles, I have experimented with many different types of wax. I found what works the best, and I’ve learned from many fails what works and doesn’t work. The more I have grown, I decided to invest in the directions I found important. I moved to all new waxes, dyes, and fragrances, to ensure everything is eco-friendly, vegan, cruelty-free, and non toxic. I want to produce a product that when burnt, provide not only less soot, but not pollute the air with chemicals that aren’t good for you, and products that are made without harming animals, or unfair working conditions to produce.

I’m proud of the fact that I have always found ways to give back. I usually donate candles for causes that I believe in. This year, I was happy to provide a percentage of my sales at local Pride events to a lovely dog named Taavi, so he could get wheels to properly walk after experiencing a horrific injury where he lost sensation in his back legs. Other donations have been to LGBTQ friendly churches, and funds to provide food for innocent civilians in war impacted areas of the world.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

The way I had hoped to build new clients. Word of mouth. I love fostering relationships with people. When someone gets a candle and they comment about how great they smell, how sturdy they are, how they match their home decor, or they are a finishing touch to something they love, it’s so satisfying to see. It usually becomes a talking piece for them, which usually catches the attention of their friends and family. And then they refer them to me.

I make customized candles and I really want to become someone who you know can make the candle match your home, party theme, wedding colors, shower theme, or anything. Sometimes, that candle can be the finishing touch you are looking for. Again, becomes word of mouth and sources new clients.

Those are the best clients to me as they have a personal connection that we can grow from.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

There is a great small business class that was free for me to take through the Lucas County Public Library, Mercy Hospital, PNC Bank, and other companies and organizations. This class provided us access to a system called Growth Wheel. They walked us through the start up of a business all the way to funding and working with the Small Business Association, and things such as my city’s local economic development department. This class taught me some simple things I need that I never even considered, and am working on creating, like a processes chart. But it taught me how my thinking does impact my business and encouraged me to embrace my own morals that I want reflected in Tranquil Iris. I was empowered to stand in those beliefs and it’s ok to not have everyone be my customer.

I have learned to take a step back and look at so many levels of running a business that I was unaware of. I realized I was doing really good making candles and learning about candles, but lacking on core development, and structure. I’ve learned I have a lot of back end work to do. It might not be something I look forward to, but I know building it now while I’m still small will make the transition so much easier as I grow.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.tranquil-iris.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tranquil_iris/
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/tranquiliris
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/company/tranquil-iris-llc
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxZnVaVQwdCjYEprm-K_ACw
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/tranquil-iris-toledo-2

Image Credits
Headshot : Tiernan Rice Booth shots : Richard Rill All other shots : Myself Lynn Van Hoose