When a Bloomington family travels to California, not only do they bring back their suitcases they bring back an idea that locals would soon enjoy. 

Marcy and Carl Cook, owners of Ellie Mae’s Boutique, have launched a new business here in town called the Kirkwood Candle Bar which sits in the same building as their boutique.  

The Cook’s 12-Year-old daughter Eleanor produced a groundbreaking idea after seeing a create-your-own candle bar ad, while waiting to board their flight and from that day the Cooks wanted to make their daughters’ idea come to life. 

“We knew that we had to come up with a different business plan and with the large space it left after taking out Pandora and Vera Bradley we were trying to kick around some ideas of what we can bring to Bloomington” said Marcy Cook, as she explains just how the candle bar came about after removing big named brand items that the store carried.  

Mrs. Cook is inspired by her store and every element within it, her slogan is “Affordable Luxury.” 

Ellie Mae’s Boutique features different small business brands in the store such as Amber Blends, Tyler Candle Company, and The Naked Bee. Although the candle bar is in the same building as the boutique, Marcy encourages customers to browse around and check out the boutique while the candles cure.

The candle bar features over 60 plus scents that you can choose from and uses only soy wax to create a healthier and environmentally safe candle.  

If you do not know how to make a candle from scratch, that is not a problem for Marcy and Eleanor as the two spend a lot of their time at the store helping and guiding customers into have the best experience they can. 

After you are done making your candle, you get a round sticker with instructions on it and a place to print the name of what you want your candle to be. You then will let it sit and cure for 1-2 hours. There is an option to pick it up the same day or next day pick up is always available. 

 

The Kirkwood Candle Bar will be open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays. The store will take both reservations and walk-in customers.