Meet Korissa Silverthorn | Wife, Mom & Candle Maker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Korissa Silverthorn and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Korissa, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
Hi! I’m Korissa Silverthorn and I am a native San Diegan. I was born in Escondido and currently live in Ramona with my husband of 15 years, and our 3 kids, 1 puppy, 2 cats, 2 fish and 2 snails. I’ve also lived in Valley Center, Vista, and Poway, so you can see I’ve never ventured too far away from North County. 🙂 I grew up with my mom and dad and siblings. I’m the second of 4 and have 2 brothers and a sister. I lived in Escondido until I was in 4th grade, when we moved to Valley Center. Back then it was quite a bit different than it is today! I remember when VC got it’s first street light! We had a lemon grove and I distinctly remember making lemonade with my bare hands and the burn from the citric acid afterwards! The friends I made during those years in rural Valley Center are still in my life today, and that small town family oriented vibe is what we now love about Ramona.

As a kid, we always had animals, and we were desert & river people. We had a camper, a boat, and dirt bikes and I basically grew up water skiing on the Colorado River, riding the 3 wheeler at Ocotillo Wells, and playing with all my cousins. When I look back on my childhood, I realize I had so many amazing experiences that shaped who I am. When I was about 9, I wanted to be an astronaut. I was in an after school club called the Young Astronauts and we’d attend meetings to learn about space. Our club even went to space camp at the NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida! How many kids get to do that!? I also got to go to Rawhide Ranch during the summers as a kid. I was a horse obsessed girl and horse camp is what my dreams were made of!

In every day life, I’d say my background was full of action and fun. My mom was a stay at home mom and was always taking us to the beach, the pool, or to hang with our cousins. I played lots of sports and always did activities like dance, art classes, and after school clubs. In high school I was an athlete and continued to stay busy and had full support of my parents and siblings for my sporting events and extracurricular activities. Once I was in college at Palomar then CSUSM, I started working and moved out, however my parents still always gave me the support and guidance I needed as a young adult. I worked a lot as a mortgage processing assistant during my college years, so it took me 7 years to graduate. But I stuck with it and never quit, and I’m so proud I earned my Business degree.

Today I am a wife and stay at home mom to 3 growing kids. I have a middle schooler, elementary schooler, and a kindergartener! Life is crazy and busy and hectic, but there’s just no slowing us down. My husband and I are now loving that our kids are growing up at the desert and river, camping in the trees, and doing activities that they love. To top it off, 2 years ago I started my small business, Yellow Harp Essentials, hand making high quality and beautiful coconut wax candles and home fragrance items. The time struggle is real, but I love the creativity it brings and enjoy that my kids have watched me nurture an idea into a real, growing business. I even named my business after my only daughter and first born, Harper.

All of my experiences as a child, teen, and young adult impacted who I am today because although everyone faces difficult times, learning curves, bad decisions, and growing pains, I consider myself blessed and lucky to have the amount of support and love in my life that I do. I have an amazing and supportive husband who is my number one cheerleader in life and for my business, 3 kids who love to tell their friends about their mom’s candles, and family and friends who were paramount in getting Yellow Harp off the ground. I strive in my business and every day life to stay busy, keep it full of fun, and always be grateful for what I have and where I’m going despite the learning curves and growing pains!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
What started as a hobby to see if I could make a candle one day, has become something I am super passionate about! My first candle was made from soy wax flakes that a neighbor gave me after she made her own wedding favors, and some essential oils I had laying around. I thought it was going to be such an easy process. Afterall, how hard is it to melt wax, add something that smells good, and stick in a wick?? Well, my first candle had no smell and the flame was crazy huge! I realized it wasn’t as easy as I thought and the rabbit hole I fell down was deeper than I imagined… and I’m still falling! There are more types of wax than I can ever imagine, each with it’s own characteristics- melt temps, fragrance loads, dye loads, adhesion, pour temps, etc, etc. Then there are the fragrances. So many different qualities-some much cleaner than others, some diluted, some strong, some with no scent throw, etc. Then you’ve got your jars, wicks, label design…see what I mean?

When I started researching candle making after that first candle fail, I realized I wanted to work with coconut wax. It is a clean, natural, sustainable, luxurious wax with great scent throw, smooth and creamy appearance, and burns with little sooting. I also knew right away that I wanted to work with wooden wicks. I feel they are luxurious and give a cozy, special vibe with the crackling sounds and natural look. Once I started working with these supplies, my brand basics were born. I knew I wanted to create candles made with the highest quality ingredients, with clean burns, safety, and beautiful scents being the main focus. I spent a couple years really learning my wax, wicks, and fragrances. What produces a stronger scent? What makes a nice, level, calm flame? What vessels work with my combination of supplies to create a clean and classic aesthetic perfect for gift giving?

After I learned how to make a great burning and smelling candle, I fell for the best part of candle making-the fragrances! I have always loved fragrance and being a candle maker means that I get to experience and experiment with some of the most beautiful scents ever! I have so much fun working with and creating beautiful and unique scents, and get such joy out of my customers smelling a Yellow Harp candle for the first time.

It isn’t always an easy journey to add a new scent or create a new limited edition candle. Some fragrances smell amazing but they just don’t work with my wax or wicks so I have to move on. If the scent isn’t beautiful and strong, or if the flames are wild, or the wick soots too much, it’s not going to make the cut. I have to test and test and test every single scent I offer because I want every customers or gift recipient to feel the quality and care that goes into making each and every Yellow Harp candle.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Well being that it is San Diego after all, I’d say we’d have to spend some major time at the beach. Since having kids my main go-to beach is the bay, because the parking is easy (I have to lug a ton of toys, snacks, and shade!), there are bathrooms and showers (a must with small kids) and lifeguards on duty. But if we wanted to boogie board we’d probably hit La Jolla.

For food, I’m equally a lover of a great taco shop (maybe just a bit more) as I am a good steakhouse, so we’d have to do both! Fleming’s in the Gaslamp would be a great splurge, with an extra side of creamed spinach and an espresso martini of course! And a stop at Barrio Dogs for a La Fesca Michelada would be perfect! As far as the taco shops, I love too many to name.

If there was a sporting event like Supercross at Petco the other weekend, we’d for sure go! And my husband’s company helped build the new Rady Shell so a stop at the symphony would be amazing! Balboa Park, the Fleet Science Center, and the Zoo are definite must stops. We have a membership to the Zoo/Wild Animal Park (I’ll always call it that!) and we love our visits there whether we just go for a quick play on the playgrounds or we spend the whole day animal watching.

Of course, up here in our cute little neighborhood of Ramona, it would be perfect to BBQ at Ramona Oaks park, and a ride on the train at Old Poway Park would make everyone happy.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are so many people who have encouraged, supported, and uplifted me in this journey of my small business! Of course first and foremost, my family and friends has been incredible. My husband continually roots for me and has even built me tools and spaces to work. My kids always love to smell new ideas I’m working on and help with candle names, and my parents and in laws have gifted countless candles to their friends and coworkers. My girlfriends and siblings always ask how my business is doing, like and share my social media, and have purchased and given many candles to their friends which tremendously helped get Yellow Harp’s name out.

I’d say the most pivotal moment of turning my hobby into a business was when I gifted my son’s then second grade teacher a candle for Christmas. I was super nervous because although I had been making candles for quite a while and had gifted them to close family members, I had never talked about my new hobby with friends or given candles to anyone outside my family circle. When she told me a few weeks later how much she loved it, and how every time she had friends over they asked where they could get one, she encouraged me to start selling them. That’s what lead to opening my Etsy shop and the rest snowballed from there! So Whitney, thank you for being the first person outside my family that enjoyed my creation and gave me the confidence to start a business!!

Website: www.yellowharpessentials.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/yellowharpessentials

Facebook: www.facebook.com/yellowharpessentials

Image Credits
Megan Andrews