Tackling Throwaway Culture One Candle at a Time

Mass-produced candles tend to be made using paraffin and most candle vessels are only used once And these vessels are much more likely to head to landfill that be recycled or reused.

But Siblings takes a different stance. Instead of selling pre-made candles, Siblings makes candles that can be poured at home using natural coconut blend wax and reusable vessels. And in-keeping with its goal to have the smallest carbon footprint possible, its packaging is plant-based and 60% compostable.

To learn more about how Siblings started and its mission, we spoke with co-founder Eva Eckerblad.

Q&A with Eva Eckerblad, Co-Founder of Siblings

On starting Siblings...

I had just moved back to the states after living in Sweden for a couple of years. Over there I noticed people have a much more sustainable mindset than we do here — they spend money on fewer, better things. This fresh perspective made me start looking at products differently. I had become a candle addict since living in Sweden (long dark winters, you know) and it struck me that they were quite a wasteful product. My brother David and I were both looking for a creative outlet at the time so we started chatting about how we might do candles differently, more sustainably.

I had just moved back to the states after living in Sweden for a couple of years. Over there I noticed people have a much more sustainable mindset than we do here — they spend money on fewer, better things.

On tackling throwaway culture...

Well, our big idea is that you can refill and reuse vessels you already have. So we’re taking a lot of vessels that might have only been used once and then tossed, out of the landfill. Also, our packaging is basically only the weight of the wax, so we’ve reduced unnecessary emissions being spent shipping around heavy glass.

On finding fragrance pairings...

Our fragrances so far have been inspired by our own personal experiences and preferences — scents found in nature, childhood memories, places we’ve travelled. Since we’re primarily focused on selling online, we try to keep them relatively simple and easy for customers to imagine what they might smell like. My (Eva) personal favorite is No 05. David’s is No 04.

Our fragrances so far have been inspired by our own personal experiences and preferences — scents found in nature, childhood memories, places we’ve travelled.

On making candles...

Each kit comes with 10oz of scented wax, a wick and a wick holder. It takes about 5 minutes to actually make the candle, and then you have to wait a couple hours for it to solidify. We think the hardest (but most fun) part is finding a unique vessel to turn into a candle.

On Siblings mission...

Siblings is on a mission to tackle throwaway culture through more sustainable essentials. (candles are our first step).