If you love the ambience and fragrance that candles add to your home, why not make your own, with your own fragrance, that is concocted by you, for you.

I’ve just spent a lovely morning with Kerrylynn Bell, of Can to Candle, in Gorebridge, near Edinburgh.

Kerry has been making candles for more than four years and has been running workshops passing on her candle expertise to customers for more than two years.

From 10am to 12.30pm I am in an olfactory heaven with a little chemistry thrown in, and it is just wonderful. Sitting in Kerry’s kitchen, at her huge table, surrounded by tinted bottles full of wonderful smells, tubs of wax, beakers and wicks. All the ingredients are here to create our own candles.

Kerry has the Irish charm, chatty, welcoming, and with a lovely apple crumble in the oven for when we take a break.

I’m joined at the workshop today by Maureen and Rachel, a mother and daughter who have come along to learn about making candles and to have a creative day out.

Kerry starts with some background, she was previously an interior designer, which didn’t fit in with having young children, so she was looking for something that suited her busy lifestyle. A chance glimpse of a candle in a Heinz beans tin on Pinterest caught her imagination and she thought she would try to replicate it.

“My first attempts were appalling, desperate in fact. I had no idea what I was doing. It took quite a long time, but I eventually found out what I needed to know and learned a few tricks of the trade, and I started up my own business.”

Kerry continues: “I am inspired by a love of interior design, upcycling and an obsession with candles. Here at Can To Candle we have worked tirelessly to develop a range of high quality soy wax candles which look beautiful and smell exquisite, but do not cost a fortune,” and that is exactly what Kerry and her husband, who also helps with the business, have done.

She now sells her own range of candles in a few retailers, (details below), as well as at various fairs and shows, but is now concentrating on her online sales which are proving successful.

Back to the workshop, and there is bit of scientific information to take in, nothing too heavy, you just follow what Kerry tells you to do. She is very free with her information, there are no secrets here. Depending on the amount of wax you are using you can work out how much fragrance to put in. She always uses the maximum amount suggested. And her candles smell delicious.

We melt the wax, and then it is time to select our fragrance for our first candle. There is lots of choice, this time around it’s just one fragrance to pick, and we add it to the melted wax and let it set.

Then it’s coffee and cake time, a bit of a blether, and then back to selecting a range of fragrances to create a blend to take home.

This is trickier, finding the right combination that doesn’t overpower. I choose two, the other ladies choose three. And I really love the combination I picked, it a light, floral smell and it just lifts my spirits.

Kerry talks us through which type of wax she uses and why (soy). The difference between using candle fragrance oils and essential oils and why she prefers not to use essential oils.

While we are combining our oils, our first candle is setting in a cool room.

Kerry now has an award-winning candle in her range, which is the plum and rhubarb candle, and she is so pleased to receive some recognition.

The workshop is a lovely way to create something personal. It is also a fantastic idea for a gift. Huge hint for the hubbys - you can buy vouchers for a future workshop, it is only £45, and your beloved will come home with a beautifully presented candle and a bottle of their own candle fragrance which can be added to the next candle they make, or use in a burner. You also have a sheet with all the instruction needed to make more candles at home, and you can pick up a candle making kit from Kerry while you are there.

Kerry talks about her own range of candles, and adds that she is aware that she needs to make good candles that burn for a long time, with a fragrance that holds up. She has repeat customers to please, and she knows that she has to be making something that people love and want to come back and buy more of.

Before we go, she talks us through how to burn a candle. What, light it, then ignore it?

Apparently, most people are doing it wrong. First, make sure you trim the wick, if it is too long, it curls over. And wait until the wax has melted out to the edge of the container before you blow it out. Otherwise you end up with that annoying hollow in the middle of the candle and it is ruined. And if your candle is very sooty, you may have to trim the wick again.

And, don’t burn a candle for more than 3.5 hours, as you can burn the fragrance off. And final tip, check if you are buying a candle that seems quite cheap, as it will probably have a very fine wick, which is useless, and the fragrance won’t last. Top tips!

For more details of Kerry’s range go to www.cantocandle.com. Can to Candle offer beautifully presented candles in both metal tins with a lid, or in an amber jar also with a lid, which comes in a black presentation bag.

Workshops are £45, and there is also a specialist workshop available for those that are thinking about setting up their own candle business, which is a one to one session with Kerry.

www.cantocandle.com