The Lakes = Relationship Goals
I am pretty sure Lainey Lake and I were both late to work the day we met at the Roasterie in Brookside. With lattes in hand, we talked about all things Kansas City - our full-time jobs, supporting local businesses, who we knew from each other's high schools. (I realized when I went away to college that outside of KC, people don't usually ask about high schools but It seems like it gets brought up every time I meet someone from here!) It really was amazing that our paths had never crossed before! I honestly could have stayed there all day chatting about mutual friends, Kansas City, and the adorable husband-and-wife-owned Lake Candles. Lainey talks about how the idea for the company came to be in their living room in Fairway.
"James and I were sitting in our living room talking about things we would love to do outside of work. I have always been into making things and I was making candles at the time. The idea came about in February, however it took us a long time to get everything situated before we could launch it. I had a sip and sniff get together to get opinions on scents. Candles are hard because everyone has different preferences. Candles that I really liked in the beginning were not what everyone else liked and vice versa. We launched on October 11, 2015. At that time, we were still scrambling to figure everything out."
James and Lainey are truly partners in the company (not to mention #RelationshipGoals!). James pours the majority of the candles while Lainey packages them and puts on the finishing touches. When I first saw Lake Candles, it was at a three-day craft fair that James offered to go to by himself because Lainey was out of town! Like I said… Relationship Goals.
Aside from the amazing scents (my favorite is Amber Sunset), the packaging is what truly sets the company apart. The boxes are very aesthetically pleasing but you will be shocked to learn the amount of detail that went into the design. The top of the box is a pale shade of pink which is meant to represent the sunset over the bottom part of the box which is actually the topography of a lake! And as a final, clever touch, the delta in place of the 'A' is the alchemy symbol for fire. Lainey gave me an Amber Sunset candle and I still haven't been able to part with the box! It is a work of art!
For Lainey and James "Kansas City is [their] forever home." When I asked Lainey what made Kansas City an attractive location to start the company, she said, "Kansas City is such a great market because everyone here loves to buy local. The people want to support local startups and appreciate the effort and work that goes into a locally owned business. I know it has completely opened my eyes and changed my perspective on where I shop for things."
You can find Lake Candles on their website, LakeCandles.com, any Made in KC location, RSVP, O'Home, Fiddly Fig, Frankie and Jules, and many more. They have scents called Royal Romance, Midwest Magnolia, Canoe Club (named for a Lake favorite at Lake Lotawana), and Brookside Bouquet, to name a few.
I had such a hard time choosing a favorite (they really all smell amazing - you can't go wrong!), so I asked Lainey if she and James had a favorite scent. Lainey says,
"His favorite is Canoe Club. I switch my favorite on a daily basis. I would say our absolute favorite is the Fairway Fir, which is our holiday scent but out of our regular scents, it is really hard to say. It really depends on the season. Lake House and Canoe Club are popular in the summer. Amber Sunset is a really warm smell so that is good in fall and winter. Our Midwest Magnolia has been selling like crazy this spring. "
If you have a lake weekend coming up (or want to persuade your friends with a lake house to invite you…) pick up a few Lake Candles for hostess gifts. It just might guarantee your spot on the next few lake trips this summer!
