L+L Candles: Holiday 2022 Launch Holiday Brownstone l The Story Behind the Candle

Our Holiday Brownstone soy-wax candle made in Brooklyn, carries the crisp, sweet and invigorating scent of pine blended with the warm spice of clove and sugar smell of baking. This candle is an inviting celebration of the holiday season.

For thousands of years, candles have adorned festivities. It was the ancient Egyptians, who by soaking reeds in animal fat to light, were the inventors of the first candles. In Germany, the tradition was to decorate Christmas trees with actual burning candles. Some still practice this today, though we strongly advise against it for fire safety reasons! The pine tree, according to Celtic traditions, is thought to be the tree of life and hold the powers of protection and immortality. And clove is believed to cleanse negative energy from spaces (a great end of year ritual).

Many are also familiar with the holiday tradition of putting a candle in the window of a home. The simple and elegant decorative idea actually has a rich history that spans centuries and cultures. The custom was brought to the U.S. by the Irish, who during times of oppression, placed lit candles in their windows to let others know their house was a welcoming place. During colonial times, candles were visible in windows during winter to let travelers know it was a safe place to rest, and to light the way for returning family members. Still to this day, many light their homes with candles because of the way it makes a room feel more inviting and fills it with a festive warmth. Our Holiday Brownstone candle does just that.

Inspired by the familiar streetscape, this candle pays homage to the brownstones of Brooklyn. This quintessential house façade is made of a soft sandstone, which is adaptable and can be cut in any direction. Because of this, a row of brownstones and their grandeur have similar but different design elements that work together in rhythm while retaining individual uniqueness. And it’s the hematite iron ore in the stone that causes it to weather to a rich brown over time. At first, brownstones were built for practical (more fire-resistant) and cost-effective reasons, but they gained aesthetic popularity during the age of Romanticism, when artistic and intellectual modes of thought idealized nature and more natural looks.

Some of our favorite holiday traditions as a family also inspired this candle. We love hand-rolling candles with the girls and lighting them on the winter’s solstice. We love to walk slowly through the lined Christmas trees for sale on the sidewalk of 8th Avenue in Park Slope, inhaling deeply. On Christmas Eve, we build brownstone replicas out of graham crackers and a very generous assortment of candies. And we always attend the annual tree lighting at the Old Stone House/ JJ Bryne Playground, located at 336 3rd Street, Brooklyn, NY 11215. Open to the public year-round, the Old Stone House features permanent exhibits that explore the Lenape tribe, Dutch Colonization, and the Battle of Brooklyn. It is one of our favorite family places, and we highly recommend it after eating nearby at Two Boots Pizza: 284 5th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11215.

All of our candles are small-batch and hand-poured with love in our Brooklyn kitchen with our two daughters by our side. The Holiday Brownstone candle is made from a soy blend wax with a cotton, lead-free wick, and phthalate-free fragrance oils. This candle is eco-friendly, non-toxic, vegan, and cruelty-free. It comes in two sizes of 8oz matte black travel tin and an amber 8oz jar. Happy Holidays from our family to yours!