The air is crisp and the holiday season is nearly upon us. Instead of heading to the local mall and buying mass-produced gifts loaded with synthetic materials for family members and friends, consider making the short trip to Bedford Hills to support the local economy with some handmade products at Custom Candle Co, located across from the train station at 25 Depot Plaza. The brand is also carried in nine retail locations throughout New York, with a kiosk in the outside mall of the Cross Country Shopping Center, in Yonkers, throughout this month and next.

Owner Marcie Manfredonia has created warm scents for Thanksgiving and the holidays, perfect for warming up the home, hostess gifts and presents this year. “I love Thanksgiving,” says Manfredonia. “It’s warm, cozy, peaceful and such a special day. It’s an honor to share my table with others and I love seeing a lovely table with Custom Candle Co’s candles.” Holiday scents include Pumpkin Pie, Cinnamon, Crème Brulee, Autumn Leaves and more.  

Holiday scents include Pumpkin Pie, Cinnamon, Crème Brulée, Autumn Leaves and more.

The store also offers customized baskets. Manfredonia explains, “Customers can handpick their own items to create a beautiful custom-wrapped gift basket or choose from one of our premade baskets. You can select one of our handmade candles, as well as candles from Nest, Lafco, Archipelago and Marianne Guedin, to name a few, along with Himalayan Salt products, bath bombs, soaps, lotions, diffusers, candle accessories and a full line of candles and grooming products for men. We are also a proud sponsor of the American Cancer Society and carry a full line of candles in which a portion of the proceeds are donated to the organization.”

The idea for Custom Candle Co started when Manfredonia and her son, Anthony Desideri, decided they wanted to repurpose liquor and other glass bottles to make candles, pen and pencil holders, makeup brush holders and ashtrays. While searching for nontoxic candles with lasting aromas and a long burn time that wouldn’t affect her family’s allergies and asthma, Manfredonia came up short and she decided to create her own. After many hours of research and trial and error, she reached her goal and Custom Candle Co was born.

“When we perfected the candles, the company moved on to creating matching scents for diffusers, lotions and soaps,” explains Manfredonia. “I found that many of my customers experienced the same problems with lotions and soaps that I did due to the ingredients in the store-brand products not being natural and I first made them for myself and gave testers to my customers. They loved them so I started offering them in the store.” Custom Candle Co will soon expand to offer candle making classes for private groups or individuals.

A member of the town board, Manfredonia is passionate about her local community. She sponsored the Run for the Hills event this year and hosted the first Halloween Bash for Bedford Hills in October. “All of the proceeds went to the American Cancer Society, a cause I believe in deeply,” she says. “It prompted me to start my own fundraising Gala last year, which was a huge success and resulted in an invitation to sit on the Westchester American Cancer Society fundraising board. It’s been an exciting year for me”

For more information, call the store at 914.218.8357, or visit CustomCandleCo.com.