I once described myself as laid back and my best friend laughed so much she nearly needed oxygen. Apparently I’m quite picky. However, I’ve found that this is a good thing in the candle business because I won’t make something to sell if it isn’t good enough for me to use. So there are a number of annoyance factors that I took into consideration when I designed the Harper’s range.
1. Animal Testing, Green Policies and Charitable Donations.
Our candles use no animal products, they are not tested on animals and neither is the wax or the fragrance – and we carry The Vegan Society logo to prove it This is non-negotiable and whether something is tested on animals is the first thing I look for when I’m out shopping because I think it’s a disgraceful carry on. On a green note, the tins can be recycled and we use recycled paper wherever possible. We use high grade soya wax made from 100 percent sustainable resources and as many as possible of our local deliveries are done on foot or my bike, which has laid dormant in my garage for two years so I really should use it more – particularly now I’ve pinched the panniers off my dad’s bike. We give a percentage from each and every order to the Jerry Green Dog Rescue and the 50p Avenues delivery from our local area charge goes to the Victoria Avenue Fountain Appeal. Whilst this is a business and it needs to make money, it is important to me that Harper’s Bizarre is supportive to my local area and to the charity at the heart of the Harper homestead.
2. I get really irritated when a fragranced candle doesn’t smell. Of anything. Ever. Except when you sniff it in the shop.
Our candles smell. In fact whilst some are more subtle (we’ll happily tell you which because as my other half tells me “Not everyone wants a candle that hits you over the head when you walk in a room”) they all do their job and they all definitely smell. Most of them boom fragrance and if you don’t believe me, light a Washing Line or a Lemon Drizzle. Even with the subtle ones, the scent creeps everywhere, unless your home is the size of a small castle, and gathers in small pockets so that it can jump out and surprise you when you go to make a cup of tea. This is because we use US grade and UK cosmetic grade fragrance oils, high quality soya wax and we’ve tried and tested every candle that we sell. Soya wax itself is a beautiful fragrance carrier so it works harder at carrying the oils than cheaper waxes will.
3. When I finally found a candle that did it’s job, I couldn’t find a smell I liked in that range, so I would either settle or not bother.
Candles are like marriages – you shouldn’t settle. Harper’s candles come in around thirty standard fragrances, with seasonal candles and limited editions on top. If there’s one we’re not doing, tell us – I’m always up for something new to try.
4. I’d find a fragrance I liked but the candle was lurid pink. Or loo cleaner blue. Or both – probably with an orange spotty label. None of which will go in my living room where my other half and I spent weeks with match-pots pondering the exact shade of magnolia that we finally chose (I kid you not).
Our candles are in neutrals and we don’t dye the wax funny colours – or any colours come to that. It’s just not for us.
5. Then there’s all the black soot that you need a Victorian urchin to shift.
Soya wax gives a very clean burn and its not associated with all the pollutants and nasties that are reported to come with some paraffin waxes. Our candles are not 100 percent soot free (the wicks will always create a bit of the black stuff) but soya wax, whilst not being the cheapest product, is certainly the cleanest and most health conscious way to go. Most of the cheap high street candles are made of paraffin wax, which is only why they can make them for a squid a piece and we can’t. Our fragrance oil is either US grade or UK cosmetic grade, so it’s well regulated and as friendly as we can find it. We don’t claim that our candles are allergy free, but we do claim hand on heart that a couple of our regular customers have issues with asthma, so they avoided candles until they tried ours and since then they have never looked back.
6. Harper’s candles are only available from Harper’s Bizarre.
This business has always been about me doing something that I enjoy, keeping it totally hands on and having the freedom to take it in whatever direction seems like the most fun. I get to talk to customers myself, chat about which candle will give them the fragrance that they’re after and which won’t. I care about what I do and what I make and I like to see where it’s going. For me, Harper’s Bizarre is about being lucky enough to earn money doing something I enjoy – and I really enjoy all of it. This is why I have repeatedly, although gratefully, turned down offers to stock them in lots of shops with the exception of Noire Bizarre on Princess Avenue in Hull. If you go in there and meet Holly and Bon you’ll see why. But on the whole if I didn’t go to markets with my lovely other half (who calls himself the stall eye candy) I would have missed the fabulous little girl at the Humber Fruit Market who spent a happy ten minutes building a fort out of the sample tins on the front of our stall. That still makes me laugh and I wish I’d taken a picture.
