About Us

I love candles, but I also love my dogs.

Let me back up a bit...  

I am a person that likes to entertain, and so does my husband.  With people always visiting our home, it is important to us that it is always clean and smells good.  I love hearing "wow something smells great" whenever anyone enters my home.  This means that I am always burning candles...a great way to make sure that our home doesn't smell like our two dogs whom share the same space.  I've burned candles for years...and up until recently, I had no idea that many candles contain harmful chemicals that when burned, are released into the air.  These chemicals could not only be harmful to us, but to our dogs as well.  With the amount of time candles are burning in our home, I had to make sure that what I was burning was safe for my entire family.  

My research has led me to many small online stores that were run out of homes and these people were advertising "non-toxic" or "phthalate free" candles.  I thought to myself: why doesn't every company just remove the harmful chemicals from their candles?  I've found that many times these chemicals enhanced the scent or were just plain cheaper than using alternative natural ingredients.  I've found that larger companies are more likely to use these unsafe ingredients (though, to their credit, there are some large companies that have switched ingredients to ensure their candles now burn cleaner than they used to).  Now I could have just purchased from one of these small online sellers, but I had a thought: If they can create clean burning candles that smell great, why can't I?

...and so Little Stump Candle Co. was born.

I started by doing a TON of research before buying any materials to make my first batch of "clean burning candles".  Once I decided on what was needed I bought a candle making kit from an online candle supply retailer.  I started by creating many different "test" candles, learning what smelled the best, the best temperature to pour the wax at, the best containers to use until I found a good balance of looks and scent all while keeping the cost competitive with other online retailers.

Once I knew how to create the candles I wanted to sell, I had to get to work designing a logo and labels for containers.  Needless to say, it was a lot of work.  I wouldn't have been able to complete it without the help of my husband Josh, whose endless patience allowed me to take over our entire dining room table for days at a time making candles.  He also is the magic behind the wonderful photographs that fill this website, enticing people to buy the candles I have created.  

It is my hope that the time and care I put into each candle I make is obvious each time one is lit. Thank you for stopping by my website and giving me the chance to earn your business!

Allen Sokol

Founder, Little Stump Candle Company