Dear April, how are you nearly over already?!
Life has been incredibly hectic here... I'm not one for posting personal stuff online but this past year has been an experience, and I feel like I owe my wonderful customers a bit of an explanation so here goes.
I've been navigating life as a single mum now for over a year. March 2025 I moved from Porlock to Minehead and that led to me having to say goodbye to the shop I ran with my ex-business partner as I just could not commit to it with everything else going on. I just crumbled under the pressure of it all.
It's like I was trying to spin too many plates and most of those plates came crashing down.
As a single parent, I was trying to work part-time, raise my children, balance family relationships, and also try to figure out who I was - something's got to give. I'm not proud of it, but that something was my business. I considered closing down more times than I'd like to admit. I only did one stall in the whole of 2025 when usually I'm in double digits!
I don't want to drone on about how difficult things have been, but it's also really important to not ignore the fact that it has been really bloody hard. I know that part's not over yet.
I don't want to drone on about how difficult things have been, but it's also really important to not ignore the fact that it has been really bloody hard. I know that part's not over yet.
In June I moved all of my stock from the shop into my spare bedroom and fulfilled orders that came in here and there (I'm eternally grateful to those who did order) but didn't make anything new for almost a whole year. I was definitely mourning the life I had before, but in that hibernation period came the tiny spark of inspiration to build something new, something even better than before.
Fast forward to now: the plan for 2026 is in motion, I'm back to making candles and I've already got a stall booked for June!
Hours upon hours of research has gone into the ingredients I use for my scented candles and wax melts, from the quality of fragrance oils I use to the brand of eco-friendly soy waxes. My much-loved scented candles are now hand-poured right here in Minehead, where West Somerset meets Exmoor.
This month I had the privilege of working with another local business - Heather Pring Fitness - to create some bespoke scented wax melt favours for a Hen Party.
There are some really exciting projects in the pipeline. I'm slowly building up and more will be revealed soon.
Take care guys, be kind always.
Aisha x
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