The Candle Lab is one of the most fun dates we have gone on yet! This memorable spot is located in the heart of Lawrenceville. We arrived on a Friday afternoon and were greeted by the friendly staff and felt all of the good energy right away. The place is super cute, very well laid out, aesthetically pleasing and impressively welcoming. Although it is very open concept, it still feels very intimate, and the staff's early greeting keeps you from every feeling awkward and unsure of what you are supposed to be doing.
You quite literally dive right into the the process - starting with the first task at hand: the smelling. There is an ENTIRE WALL filled with candle scents - thus smelling has never been more enjoyable! They have everything from coffee bean and cake batter (which we loved!) to cannibis, rain, dirt (who knew that even had a smell?!). Just this part alone is truly entertaining, surprisingly fun, and worth the trip - as there are so many things that have smells that we would never even think of! It's also very interesting to find out what your spouse really likes, and really hates (Naz was VERY picky and not a fan of very many of the scents... I'm not sure if this is surprising or not?)
After smelling all the smells, we were tasked with narrowing down the hundreds of available scents to those we like the most. Thankfully, they have 'Scent Stylists' who later help direct you to which of your favorites will blend together most complementary to provide you with the best smelling candle possible! We went with Anjou Pear, Cake Batter, and Peppercorn! (We highly recommend the peppercorn - it smells SO much better than you would ever think it would)
You get to pick out the jar that will house your blend from a variety of colors and styles. Once that is selected, you get a seat at the candle bar, where you get to play arts and crafts as you design the label for your candle (but don't worry if you are not artistic- this goes on the bottom of the jar ;) They walk you through all of the steps to make it fun, simple, and literally impossible to mess up.
Once your candle is finished, you have 90 minutes of down time to explore the area and hang out before returning to pick up the final product. The staff is amazing and can recommend all the best spots in the area - but rest assured - there is SO MUCH to do within just a few blocks. We walked to FRIO to enjoy what we were told is THE best ice cream, and we were not disappointed. It is ice cream from Penn State Creamery and it really hit the spot. They even have vegan options!
After our sweet treat and a lovely walk, we returned to pick up our finished product that was waiting for us in a cute gift bag at the back of the shop. It's safe to say - we were thrilled with the end product! Now we have a candle in our home that we both love the smell of, that we made together, and that reminds us of this fun experience. We highly recommend you visit the Candle Lab! You can make a candle together, like we did. You can each make your own. OR you could even make one for each other :)
As we were leaving, Nazari somehow got to talking about his middle name with a few of the employees. He was well into the story and sharing about how he was choosing his middle name on the spot following his citizenship test at the age of 21, and one of the girls said, "What'd you pick? Megatron or something?" He then pulled out his license and replied, "That's exactly what I picked." Guys! She guessed it! That story has been told MANY times, and no one has ever guessed it We all got a good laugh :)
PROS:
Interactive
Relatively inexpensive - especially is you make your candle together
Creative
Just the experience of smelling all the different scents is worth it
Although there are SO many scents, it doesn't give you a headache!
The staff is AWESOME - they are very helpful and friendly (and honest about your smell combinations so you end up with a great product)
It's in a super fun part of Lawrencville close to so many great food and drink spots: Naturoll Creameary, Espresso A Mano, Crazy Mocha, Industry Public House, Smoke - just to name a few
It's BYOB!
CONS:
You can't make a reservation - however, even when crowded, it doesn't appear the wait is ever very long
The actual candle making experience is pretty brief
You have to wait at least 90 minutes to take your candle home (which is actually pretty fun because you get to explore some great spots in the city!)
GOOD TO KNOW:
Ranges from $17-$32 with most options under $25
You can make more than candles: They offer products from room sprays to body scrubs.
If you want to pick up your candle the same day, be sure to start your candle making date at least two hours before they close. (However, you can also pick up your candle(s) on a different day.)
Pittsburgh Hours: Mon - Sat: 11 AM - 8 PM and Sun: 12 - 5 PM
Check out more information on their website: The Candle Lab