Meet Catherine Giles | Owner

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

Hi Catherine, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Forgotten Glass Candle Company started out as a fun little hobby, which quickly became a passion that I was lucky enough to turn into a business.

In 2017, I was frustrated by a change to my local recycling programs; they would no longer be taking glass of any kind. So, my apartment began to clutter with empty jars.

Then a friend introduced me to the one, the only: Yankee Candle. I loved the smells, the ambiance they brought my space, and I even enjoyed the trips to and from the outlet stores…but I hated the price! I knew I could do something similar if I put my mind to it.

So I looked up how to make my own candles, and ordered some supplies from Amazon, Michael’s, and other craft stores. After a bunch of testing, research, and a fair amount of wax cleanups later, I started to get a rhythm down for making candles. I began making a little money from family and friends, nothing big.

Then, in 2020, like many other folks, I was furloughed from my job. I remember feeling completely lost when I got the email. How was I going to make money? How was I going to meet my bills? I was really afraid, confused, and honestly, depressed.

That was the night I decided to start my own business. I knew I never wanted to be without a job again.

I also knew I could make this work with the tools at hand. I cleaned my jars, asked my friends for their forgotten glassware, and kind of before I knew it, I was in business.

Eventually, filed for my Sole Proprietorship in 2021.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
What makes Forgotten Glass Candle Company so unique is the use of recycled glassware and its emphasis on sustainability. Additionally, we use premium fragrance oils to make each smell strong, consistent, and unforgettable.

My commitment to sustainability really drove me to get where I am today. Sustainability ain’t easy, so to speak. It would for sure be a lot easier to just buy glass in bulk and make candles, but I then I wouldn’t be building the relationships that I am with customers and friends. They know me as the glass lady, and when they see me, 9 times out of 10, the conversation goes, “Hi, Cat! I have glass for you…” That means the world to me.

Recently, I ran into a teacher I had as a substitute in high school at the farmer’s market while selling candles. She immediately recognized my name and told me she remembered me from class. She bought a candle, and a few weeks go by. When she stops by again, she had glass for me. My childhood librarian follows my business on social media and has brought glass to me twice. I don’t know if I have the right words to describe how meaningful that is to me.

It’s easy to just go buy your supplies. It’s harder to source them sustainably. It’s harder to wash, dry, inventory, wick test, spec out, and sanitize each piece before I put a candle in it. If being more environmentally conscientious means I have to work a little harder, I’m willing to put in that work.

But the easy way and the right way are often not the same, and I feel like the right way for me and my business was to center sustainabilty and the environment to our mission.

It was particularly challenging to find time! I’ve never realized how little time there is in a day when I’ve got orders to fill, next week’s event to plan for, social media to post on, and glass to wash. The work never ends, and the biggest lesson I’ve learned with starting my own business is to never stop prioritizing my time. My time is the most precious thing I have.

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.
Little Washington isn’t as walkable as I would like it to be, but I would take a friend to the brewery downtown, the farmer’s market (when it’s in season!) and the library. We could also go to a concert out at Starlake (or is it Keybank now?) in Fayetteville.

In Pittsburgh…that’s a different story. There are constantly new and fun events going on in the ‘burgh. Primanti’s is a Pittsburgh staple for sandwiches, so we’d for sure have to go there. I know an amazing vietnamese place in East Liberty (Two Sisters). And the best pad thai is right off of North Euclid (Smiling Banana Leaf).

For entertainment, we’d have to hit up the Carnegie Science Center on the north shore, Carnegie Museums in oakland, and maybe catch a movie at the Waterfront.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
There are a few Candlemaking groups on Facebook that were really helpful, encouraging, and filled with great advice. Additionally, Jeff Standley on Youtube had some great beginner videos, and I even had the opportunity to attend one of his business sessions early on. Moreover, CandleScience is a great resource for all things candle business related. Cassie did Lives on Instagram and Facebook, which I faithfully attended, just to get some ideas.

Chatham University also has a phenomenal Center for Women’s Entrepreneurship (CWE) and I attended a class focused on what you need to build a class, from initial entrepreneurial visions to EINs. They specifically had a wonderful emphasis on building your “village” as a business, and that really resonated with me professionally and personally. Since then, I’ve focused on building my village through engaging with my customers, community, and everyone in between.

Finally, thanks to my Grandma, for giving me the double boiler that started it all!

Website: https://www.forgottenglass.com/

Instagram: @forgotten_glass_candle_co

Facebook: Forgotten Glass Candle Company