Michelle Hawkins, the owner of Indian Springs Custom Gifts, has a variety of homemade soy candles in her house. Hawkins uses essential oils and designer perfume oils. Her candles have top, middle and base notes, so as the candle burns further, the smell will change.
During the quarantine, Michelle Hawkins found that he had very little free time as the editor and publisher of Alabama Wedding Magazine for the past 20 years.
After Hawkins sold her company in December 2020, she soon figured out what to do next.
She started making hand-poured soy candles. In order to add a special and unique touch, she customized each piece of jewelry, which is set with precious stones and dried flowers, and there is a small jewelry bracelet on the lid that can be removed and worn.
As a resident of Indian Springs and the wife of an airline pilot, Hawkins came up with the name Indian Springs Custom Gifts to localize her products in the region.
Instead of putting the candle in the name, she decided to give it as a gift because she plans to add the product to her collection in the future.
“I want to do something that I personally like and like,” Hawkins said. “After doing some research, I started [making candles] from scratch. It’s easy, but the most important thing is to keep up with the pace of measurement and not to pay too much attention to the smell.”
Hawkins uses essential oils and designer perfume oils. Her candles have top, middle and base notes, so as the candle burns further, the smell will change.
Her summer fragrances include lemongrass mojito, volcanic honey, maya sand, jasmine musk, bohemian spa, southern caramel, Caribbean teak, lavender and chamomile, prosecco jubilee, ocean bliss and mokupua heaven. Other products include mulberry sorbet and goodbye bugs. In addition to gems, she also uses dried flowers, usually from her own backyard, to give each candle a unique appearance.
“I often go to Michael’s, Hobby Lobby and JOANN stores to buy jewelry and accessories, glass beads, gems and shells,” she said. “I string them by hand to personalize each one. I enjoy it. I put my love in it. I hope people like them.”
Hawkins plans to add body products such as soap, shower gel and lip balm to her collection, and even a cookbook.
“I have been thinking about this cookbook,” she said. “In the wedding industry, I found that many newcomers start a family together. Cooking is their most concerned thing, but eating out is expensive and not the healthiest. Eating together at home and eating at home is a special combination time. . I want to pass on the tradition of cooking.”
The recipe will include southern comfort foods such as casseroles and slow cooker rice. Hawkins said that people who don’t like going to the grocery store may be overwhelmed by the ingredients in the recipe.
Many of her recipes come from her travels, including gumbo recipes from New Orleans and beef salad from Germany.
As the extra mother of four boys, Hawkins knew how much they liked her home-cooked food, and she wanted to share it with others.
Items from Indian Springs Custom Gifts can be purchased at Greystone at US 280 and Bloom and Petal at Misc. Lu Gifts and Apparel on Valleydale Road.