Makers Series: Brummel & Bivvy
Location: Austin, TX | Specialty: Candles
Welcome to the first of our Makers Series, where we sit down with one of our talented manufacturers and get the deep-dive on their story: from why they started their business, to their passions outside of it, to their future goals. It’s a great resource for people who want to know a little more about the products they consume, or for those who might be interested in starting their own business.
For this inaugural episode, we sat down with Brummel & Bivvy, a hand-poured candle company in Austin, TX. Their scents are expertly crafted, and they have quite a few that are perfect for the fall and winter months. We loved hearing about how they created their brand out of a love for the outdoors and a desire to capture the scent and memory of camping. It’s a sweet story of a passion turned into a hobby, turned into a business. Please check out their Water’s Edge candle or their Smoking Den candle in our shop! For more info and products visit them at Brummel & Bivvy.
Stacey and SML, owners of Brummel & Bivvy
Abby (Willinglee)
We love the name of your company! How did you come up with it?
SML (Brummel & Bivvy)
We wanted a name that linked back to the inspiration of camping and nature. Brummel is a type of splice knot and Bivvy is short for bivouac shelter. But more than that we wanted two words that had some counter-balance, a heavier chunkier sounding word, Brummel, and a lighter springier word, Bivvy. In our relationship, SML is the Brummel and Stacey is the Bivvy. With our dogs, Bruce is the Brummel and Gidget is the Bivvy.
Abby
What got you interested in creating candles over any other product?
SML
Stacey has always been a maker, mostly making things for herself, candles among them. Early in our dating relationship, we had plans for a different date, but then a storm came through. So, we pivoted and Stacey suggested that we stay in and she would teach SML how to make candles. In the weeks and months that followed everyone who came by SML’s apartment commented on the candles and wanted to know where to get one. So, Brummel & Bivvy began!
“We think back at all of the places we love to visit, trying to capture those moments. We can’t always be in those places, so we recreate that smellscape at home.”
Wax Melts, © Brummel & Bivvy
Abby
What did the research and development phase look like for your candle-making?
SML
We think back at all of the places we love to visit, trying to capture those moments. We can’t always be in those places, so we recreate that smellscape at home. From there it’s lots of testing! Combining and capturing all of the facets of a place isn’t as simple as making a list of things there and tossing them together. Sometimes you get surprised, but most times the wary attempts smell awful. Cherry Flannel was a happy surprise at an early attempt of capturing the essence of an old fashioned cocktail as a candle.
Abby
What's one thing that surprises people about how you manufacture your candles?
SML
I think what surprises people the most is that we actually do it and do it ourselves. People see the candles in our home and they’ll pick it up not knowing it’s ours, ask us where we got it and we reply that we made it.
Abby
We agree that many candles out in the world are too sweet and overpowering--it's one of the reasons we really connected with y'all's brand. What would you say is the right balance for your scents--ones that are able to subtly transport your customers to the great outdoors?
SML
That’s the big reason that we started making our own candles. We knew we didn’t want to make sweet flowery single smell candles. There are lots out there. We wanted to focus on natural smells that make sense together in the real world. That’s where all that testing comes in though. Because finding the right pine smell is tough because people associate that with Pine-Sol, and we don’t want the candles to transport you to the idea of mopping your floors.
Melted Wax, © Brummel & Bivvy
“We knew we didn’t want to make sweet flowery single smell candles. We wanted to focus on natural smells that make sense together in the real world.”
Abby
We know you're both super inspired by your travels and the outdoors. What has been your favorite getaway thus far? Any upcoming trips you're excited about? (Any trips on the horizon that might inspire new candle scents?)
SML
The White Mountains in New Hampshire is always a favorite for us. SML’s family grew up in New England and try and take the time to get away to the mountains every summer. We weren’t able to make it up this year unfortunately but it’s been a favorite spot of ours. No cellphone service, just trees, dirt and mountains everywhere. Many of our first candles came from that place for us.
Abby
Tell us about the process of starting your own business! How long have you been in business?
SML
We’ve been making the candles now for 5 years. At first we made them for ourselves. Then friends and family got them as gifts because they kept begging for them. Then they refused to not pay us for them. So, the business began.
Abby
What's one weird or unexpected thing you encountered during your time in business?
SML
Candles are a funny thing sometimes. We get a lot of customers who buy them, but don’t burn them. They always intend to burn them, but they’ve got a fear of using it up and then it’ll be gone! That always surprises us, trust us, we’ll make more.
Abby
What has been the most rewarding thing about being a small business owner?
SML
Reactions to our various smells from customers is definitely the most rewarding. That’s the beauty of a fragrance, it can be a memory. We’ve had people smell some candles and start crying because it reminded them of camping with their family back home. It’s those moments that are really cool.
“That’s the beauty of a fragrance, it can be a memory. We’ve had people smell some candles and start crying because it reminded them of camping with their family back home.”
Candles curing, © Brummel & Bivvy
Abby
What advice would you have for someone who might be interested in starting their own creative venture?
SML
Don’t wait. Enjoy the process and don’t forget why you want to do it in the first place. Whatever you make, it’s likely because you enjoy making it, want to make a better version etc. So, use your own product, have fun and don’t push yourself so hard that it becomes “work”. Ask for help! Friends and family around us always offered to help and we never took them up on it when we started out, but we’ve learned that the help is, well, helpful.
Abby
What are three of your favorite small businesses, and why are they your favorite?
SML
Brooklyn Breakfast Co is a food truck in Austin run by Chef Ryan Rosen that we absolutely love and always go back to! (@brooklynbreakfastshop)
Madhu Chocolate’s chai tea blend is insanely tasty. We discovered the local Austin couple and business late last year when we were both vendors at the holiday Renegade Craft event and we’ve been snacking on their bars of chocolate and making our own chai latte’s at home with their blend ever since! (@madhuchocolate)
Abbstract Jewelry makes some of the most beautiful and artistic crafted earrings we’ve seen. (@its_abbstract)
Abby
Yes! We love Madhu! We’ll have to look up the others—I love the creator community! When you're not creating candles, how do you both enjoy spending your time?
SML
If we’re not making candles and we can’t be out in nature we do the next closest thing. We spend a lot of time with our two dogs Gidget and Bruce in our backyard. Since we moved here we’ve slowly been planting trees and trying to make the space more lush and natural so we can have that piece of nature right in our backyard. So we’re often back there in our rocking chairs with two glasses of whiskey and relaxing.
Abby
Thanks so much for giving us a peek into your world! We’ll be sure to burn our candles and come back soon for another purchase ;)
Find more Makers Series on our blog, or shop Brummel & Bivvy products below.
