How Simple, Spirited Living Inspired a Colorado Candle Company
This Colorado-based candle company, founded on the principle of simplicity, is giving us all the Fall feels.
Jon Kornbluh founded Bluecorn Candles back in 1991 while he was living in an off-grid cabin in Telluride, Colorado. Three decades later, he’s raised his family in the San Juan mountains and grown Bluecorn from a two-man seasonal operation into a vibrant candle business, cafe, mercantile and concert venue in Montrose.
“In the winter of 1991, my home was a tiny, one-room cabin in Telluride, Colorado. It was there that my friend “Baker” Steve taught me how to dip a beeswax candle. With no electricity, we worked by candlelight, often dipping well into morning. When finished, we could barely move through the cabin while hundreds of still-warm tapers hung from rope strung wall-to-wall,” says Jon Kornbluh, founder of Bluecorn Candles.
“In those early days, I was most concerned with how much snow had fallen during the night and if there were still hot coals in the wood stove come morning. More than three decades later, this legacy of simple, spirited living is at the heart of what we do at Bluecorn.
“We make candles from clean, natural ingredients — honoring the bees that gather the pollen and create the wax, as well the craftspeople that build our candles with presence and care. In today’s all-too-busy world, the act of lighting a flame inspires us to pause, connect and be more mindful — to feel more at peace. It’s an opportunity to return to simple.”
The resulting products use pure, simple ingredients that pair the best of what nature has to offer with skilled craftsmanship. Lighting a Bluecorn candle is a ritual that reminds you to stay grounded and connected to the essence of life and the slower processes of nature—for example, the ways bees seek flowers and produce pollen.
Bluecorn candles source the finest beeswax, then lightly filter it to remove particulates while preserving the sweet scent and vibrant color. The candles are handmade in Montrose, Colorado, and evoke a legacy of mountain living and clean light.
They are lovely company to have as the days get shorter and the nights colder. The fragrances are not fanciful; rather, they are down-to-earth aromatherapy, such as Mountain Lilac, or Botanica-scented, or just plain beeswax. Our favorite, however, to summon the atmosphere of Kornbluh’s original mountain cabin, is The Woodsy—an intoxicating mix of Blue Spruce, Pine and Musk.
What a great gift to welcome the new season, and a thoughtful contribution to an Autumn table.
Shop the range of Bluecorn Candles, accessories and gifts here.
Browse vacation cabins in Colorado here.
