Lost & Found

Candles. There's plenty about but these ones are different. They're all made from upcycled drinking glasses sourced from charity shops or lurking at the backs of cupboards, breathing life back into them.

Handcrafted using eco-friendly soy wax, they’re a therapeutic labour of love to bring you the perfect candles for your dining table and around the home or for that special occasion like a wedding, christening or party.

There’s a refill service on offer so you can enjoy your candles again and again, read on for more info, with fragrances and colours to suit where possible.

All gift packaging that comes with your candles is 100% recyclable so pop it in your weekly collection. Lost & Found candles are effortlessly stylish so simple packaging is all that’s needed to protect these little gems.

For any special requests, please do get in touch and read on to find out more about Lost & Found.

Buy Now

Lost & Found candles are available to buy through these amazing independent retailers. Please do pop in if you’re lucky enough to love nearby or visiting the area.

Seed1 - 10 Liston Court, Marlow SL7 1ER
Here Comes The Sun - 3 Duke Street, Henley on Thames RG9 1UR
Blooming Roots- Unit 2 Holme Grange Craft Village, Heathlands Rd, Wokingham RG40 3AW

The Story

It all started with trying to find candles the right height for my dining table. Not one of life’s biggest problems I grant you but too small and open and you risk setting your napkin on fire (I’ve seen this happen twice, easily done when you’ve had a glass of wine!). Too tall and it’s at that annoying level where you can’t talk properly to the person sitting opposite. Then one of my closest friends Lady Wood (nickname not an actual peer of the Realm yet) decided to create candles using old sherry glasses and bingo, problem solved (and super cute candles too).

I had a go at making my own sherry glass candles and found the whole experience rather therapeutic, further spurred on by the comments I’d get from friends when they were round for dinner. That’s when I thought I’d start making them for others to enjoy, taking the hassle (and mess!) out of finding vintage glasses then melting and pouring wax into them.

Finding them has its own rewards. The majority of them come from charity shops, which has an added bonus of giving money to deserving causes. Some have been donated by kind folk who had them lying around at the back of a cupboard gathering dust. It’s been really rather fun finding glasses of all shapes and sizes (thought the smallest ones are the best and they burn for a surprisingly long time) and turning them into candles. A new lease of life for the glasses, and whether they’re on their own or in a group, they create a rather cosy glow when lit.

It’s not the end when the wick burns out either. The upcycling turns into recycling. Bring them back and they can be refilled time and time again, and with different coloured wax and fragrances too. Love it!

Making Them

So first: glasses

A lot of thought has gone into these little creations. First the charity shops are scoured. Why anyone would want to give these glasses anyway is anyone’s guess, but perhaps they were just gathering dust at the back of a cupboard. Vintage glasses are what’s needed; sherry, port, champagne or small wine glasses, crystal cut, etched or plain, what’s important is that they’ll look amazing when filled with wax. This isn’t just part of a Corporate Social Responsibility strategy (such a horrible phrase) this is working with charities so everyone benefits.

The best wax

Soy versus paraffin wax, the choice was simple. Soy. Compared to paraffin wax it’s more eco-friendly as it’s derived from vegetables not refined gasoline. Soy is 100% bio-degradable and so easy to wash off the glasses when the wick has burnt out, paraffin wax is not. And what really made the decision easy is that soy wax burns for longer and releases the fragrance better than paraffin wax. What’s not to love?

Loving that scent

Nothing that smells like a bad air-freshener, that synthetic smell clawing at the back of your throat, enough already! Fragrance oils derived from concentrates are used for a fresh, delicate scent. Fragrance is added to the wax as soon as it’s melted, not just in the top layer like some manufacturers. The gentle scent will be released every time you light them, not just the first time. Here are the safety data sheets on the fragrances used because it’s the responsible thing to do and appreciate those with allergies might need to know.

Fragrance fact sheets

A splash of colour

No neon or bold colours here. Less is most definitely more. A graceful rose pink, a soft pale grey or classic white. Subtle pastels are what works so wonderfully with these vintage glasses. All made with 100% natural dyes.

Packaging - less is more

When you’ve got a product made from glass, you really do have to think about packaging otherwise these little candles just won’t make it home in one piece. Lost & Found deliberately uses eco-friendly gift boxes and all of it can go into your weekly recycling collection. What’s the point in fancy-pants gift boxes when most of them end up in the bin and aren’t able to be recycled because of the gloss and foil finishes used? Simple yet stylish gift boxes ensure you’ll get your candles home in the same state as you bought them (hopefully, just treat them well, don't drop the box on the floor for goodness sake!).

Refills

Even the smallest of candles will burn for at least 8 hours, but most of them will burn for a lot longer than that. However nothing lasts forever, especially candle wicks, so once they’ve burnt out, get in touch and they’ll be brought back to life with more wax being poured into them. Where poss, you’ll get a choice of colour and fragrance too. Get in touch to arrange a refill.

You don’t have to get your glasses refilled, give them a good wash in warm water (not too hot or they’ll crack) and wash all traces of the wax and wick away and you can use them as drinking glasses. Sloe gin, sherry, port, liqueur anyone?

Your own glasses?

If you have you own glasses you want filling, get in touch for a quote. It’s all about breathing life into old glasses, regardless of who finds them.

Weddings & Events

These little beauties are a great addition to any big day. You can have as many or as few as you’d like on your tables, and glasses can be sourced to suit your style. You can choose the colour and the scents to tailor to your theme and there’s no price hikes either just because you say the word “wedding”! They can be given as favours for your guests to take home as a keepsake. Just get in touch to discuss your requirements.

These candles work really well for any party as they great a warm glow in any room. For christenings or naming ceremonies they make a really lovely addition as you can choose the colour to suit your theme and that doesn’t just mean pink or blue!

Just remember glasses are sourced not ordered so a couple of months many be needed for larger orders where a style of glass is requested.

Glass Donations

If you find glasses lurking at the back of the cupboard that you no longer have use for, donations are always welcome and you’ll feel good knowing they’re being put to good use and having life breathed back into them. For every glass that can be used, a 50p per glass donation will be made to a charity of your choice too, so everyone’s a winner! Please fill in the contact form detailing number of glasses and where you live, so a plan can be hatched.

Contact

The eclectic nature of Lost & Found and how glasses are sourced means we can accommodate special requests and larger orders, however sometimes a couple of months for really large orders may be necessary, but bring on the challenge!