Today we’d like to introduce you to Melanie.
Hi Melanie , so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Growing up I was always taught the importance of reading. My mother was a librarian and some of my earliest memories were sitting on her bed while she practiced my letters and reading with me. I joined the library’s reading program every summer, joined the reading club in elementary school, and crushed those Pizza Hut “Book It” challenges every year. The library was close to a weekly trip for both my mother and me. Needless to say, the importance of reading was always implemented and for a while you would not find me without a book somewhere in the vicinity. I consistently challenged myself to keep reading more and more, because it felt so good to accomplish a goal and trying to be the “best” at something because I wasn’t the most social as a child. It became an escape for what felt like relentless bullying in my younger years.
By the time I reached my teenage years, reading took a back seat for a while. Focusing on being well-liked and accepted took center stage, and not always in the healthiest way. There were books here and there that caught my attention, but nothing to really pull me back completely until I was about 17 (and boy, did Twilight hit hard). Suddenly I fell back in love with reading.
In 2011 I relocated to Kansas City to finish my degree in psychology at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Once I finished school I immediately got a job within the social work field as a case manager for an outpatient program for adults with mental health issues as well as alcohol and drug dependency. Unfortunately, due to improper training and poor management, my body was put into large amounts of stress and it triggered my body into a very severe lupus flare that was undiagnosed for about a year.
During that time of rest and rehabilitation, I was not in a good place mentally. I suddenly found myself without a direction and my life was vastly different than I thought it would be. I did, however, have a lot of free time on my hands. I started reading…a lot. I was suddenly that little girl just trying to survive the best she could, and falling into a book was the easiest way to rid my mind of the fear that I was experiencing. I believe my therapist would call it extreme escapism.
But eventually I found myself back in the work force with odd jobs here and there and was eventually surrounded by tons of small businesses that were making their way. I have always been an arts and crafts girl, and I now that being in the work force for a 9 to 5 didn’t seem plausible, I needed to find something that I could do that would allow me to work my own hours and making candles seemed to fall into my lap. It wasn’t hard on the body and it was mentally soothing for me to create.
I will say, the candle market can be oversaturated at times and so I wanted to find a way to stand out from the crowd. I needed to find my niche. I was still reading constantly and began toying with the idea of creating a candle line designed for my first love of books. I loved the idea of fully immersing oneself in a good book and one way to do that is by incorporating all your senses. This candle line specifically feels very much like me, and I love that people can find joy in something that comes from my soul.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It hasn’t always been a smooth road, but I think a lot of that comes from my own mind and comparing where I am on my journey versus where they are on theirs. Comparison really is the thief of joy and I have had to work really hard to change that mindset, and give myself a lot of grace. When it comes to myself, I am always my own hardest critic. If something didn’t come out perfectly the first time I have felt like a failure. If someone is doing great, and I was struggling, I always push those negative thoughts on myself and ask what I should be doing better. Even now, knowing that what I’m doing is real and working, I still can get bouts of impostor syndrome. And realistically, I think those conditioned thoughts in my head might always poke through, but it is my job to take a step back from those feelings of insecurity and focus on my own business. Instead of comparing and feeling bad about myself, I am unabashedly rooting for people. Instead of negative competition, I see other people’s success as a success for their community because I know how hard they must have worked to get to that point, and eventually I will get to that point too, it just takes more time.
Health is another big struggle of mine and probably always will be. Knowing when to take a step back and not overwork myself and be able to say “no” has not always been a strength of mine. I work well under pressure and thrive when chaos surrounds me. But that also has a negative effect on my body. Stress is a huge trigger for individuals with autoimmune conditions and you can ask any small business out there and they will be the first to tell you how stressful it can be. There have been multiple times when my body has given out on me and I need to just lay in bed and recover. I am still always learning how to listen to my body, even when I don’t want to. Because at the end of the day, if you don’t listen, your body will make you listen.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Ace of Cups Candle Co.?
I started Ace of Cups in 2022 and was primarily making teacup candles and selling metaphysical products. At the beginning of 2025, I wanted to really focus on strictly the candle line to give my business a sense of direction. At that point, though I had been making candles for a while, I started with my classic line of candle scents, room sprays, and carpet deodorizers. But more recently I have been putting my heart and soul into my new book trope line of candles. This line feels so special to me, because reading has been such an important part of my life and I wanted to immerse myself into the bookish community, because that is where I feel most at home. I believe the candle market is highly oversaturated, to the point where I have done vendor shows where there were six candle vendors in the same room of 40 total vendors, not including businesses that have a small selection of candles for their brand. I wanted to find some way to stand out in the crowd, and as a big fan of buying bookish merch, I was not seeing a lot of book themed candles in our area. So I decided to jump into that line and it has been a wonderful experience.
I am so proud of seeing my candles in local bookstores and seeing the reactions on people’s faces when they fall in love with one of my scents. Even if I just sell one candle, it means that someone loved my work enough to bring it into their home or gift it to a friend. Other than my own candle line, I have loved being able to work with indie authors and other small businesses to add products to fit their own brand. There is nothing that I love more than bringing an author’s fictional world into real life or working with a business to create something just for them with their own logo.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
First and foremost, my husband deserves the most credit. He has been there every step of the way. He has listened to every idea I wanted to run past him, supported me when I felt like I wasn’t good enough, and is now a pro at helping me unpack my car after I am dead on my feet. He holds down the fort at home and has sacrificed me not being home for many, many weekends. He’s my number 1 every day of the week. He is the greatest source of silent support that gets me through each and every day.
My family, and my mother specifically, have always been my biggest cheerleaders. They have helped immensely in getting this started and up and running and if I needed to ask them for anything they would be there in a flash.
I would also like to thank the businesses and authors who gave this girl a chance and either collaborated with me with wholesale or have my products in their store. So thank you to The Gilded Page, Nocterra Bookery, Novel Adventure KC, authors Kalli O’Connor, Trisha Otis, Madison Chase, and Elizabeth Bird.
Last but not least are my friends. I am blessed with truly the greatest people in the world that I get to call my friends, especially those who have been on this journey with me from the beginning. I had been working in event coordinating for a while and those small businesses have seen me grow and shape my company into what I want it to be, and they have been a great sense of support because they have also been in my shoes and know how it feels to start from scratch. My friends bring so much joy into my life and refuse to let me think badly of myself or my work and for that I am eternally grateful. So thank you to them for the laughter, the venting sessions, and the unconditional love.
Pricing:
- Candles range from $17.99 to $34.99
- Room Sprays $19.99
- Carpet Deodorizers – $11.99
- Wholesale priced by individual basis
Contact Info:
- Website: https://aceofcupscandles.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aceofcups_333/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Aceofcupscandles
