Sustainability at St. Brown & Co.
The green thumb movement and efforts to raise awareness on sustainability have immensely grown over the years, as people have made more efforts to take action and more consideration in the products they use on a daily basis. A product is considered sustainable if it’s characterized as eco-friendly, biodegradable, recyclable, and ethically made. With the growing need for environmentally friendly based products, the same can be said for what goes into the usage of candles. It is important to look into the ingredients used in a candle, such as the type of wax, wick, packaging, and fragrance, as the ingredients used can have impacts on not only the environment but your health as well.
WAX
A majority of candles produced today utilize paraffin wax, which is a byproduct of crude oil. Paraffin wax also creates highly toxic benzene and toluene, which are considered carcinogens, which can be detrimental to someone’s heath in the long run, as well as create air pollution inside your very own space. Examples of some alternatives for candle waxes that are safer for your health as well as environmentally conscious include: soy wax, beeswax, palm wax, or coconut wax. Beeswax and coconut wax are considered very sustainable wax sources, and provide a lot of benefits, as both burn cleanly and slowly. Specifically, at St. Brown & Co., we utilize a unique vegan coconut apricot creme wax. The coconut apricot creme wax is clean-burning, biodegradable, natural, renewable, and non-toxic. It also has an even, slow burn with good adhesion!
WICKS
Wax plays a huge factor in candle sustainability, but the type of wick used also plays a major factor as well. Many candles have lead inside the wicks, which is also toxic to breathe in. Some great alternatives to look for in non-toxic candles include 100% cotton wicks or wooden wicks. Wooden wicks are a great option for an environmentally sustainable wick, considering that thousands of wicks can be attained from a single tree. They also burn clean and evenly, as well as produce minimal soot. Wooden wicks are not only sustainable, but are visually appealing and produce an atmospheric sound similar to that of a fireplace crackling.
FRAGRANCES
The kind of ingredients used for the scent in candles plays an important role in how sustainable the candle is as well. It is best to find candles that are made with essential oils, as well as being phthalate, mutagen, toxin, and carcinogen-free. Phthalates are found in a lot of popular scented candles, however extended exposure to phthalates can make a negative impact on human health. The same can be said for that of mutagens. A mutagen is a chemical that has the ability to change and harm the human genome. Breathing in these chemicals can have detrimental effects in the long run. It is imperative to look for candles that emphasize the ingredients used in their scents. At St. Brown & Co., the scents we utilize are clean and phthalate-free!
ADDITIONAL WAYS TO BE SUSTAINABLE
After finding the right candle that utilizes sustainable resources for the wick, wax, and scents, another great way to be sustainable is to reuse or recycle your candle vessel! There are numerous ways to repurpose a candle vessel, whether it is as house decorations, or as a jewelry box, the ideas are endless. Another way to be sustainable is if you find a candle company you like, feel free to purchase more candles at once in order to reduce shipping costs and handling.
In order to care for the world we live in now, it is important we take into consideration ways to reduce our carbon footprint and continue to spread information on the importance of sustainability.