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Handcrafted Living

Light My Fire

Candlelight can change the atmosphere of a room, casting a glow on cherished objects, making evenings cozier, and softly illuminating the dinner table.

These four handcrafted candleholders—two in clay, one in metal, and one in glass—make the act of lighting candles an even more beautiful experience.

By Shivaun Watchorn
April 11, 2024

Photo by Nick Myers

Capillary Wave candlesticks by Alejandra Rojas

Christopher Kerr-Ayer’s Dripcastle Candelabra, 23 x 20 x 9 in., is as much a thrill to see as it was to make. “The work is constructed incrementally from the base up in a series of balanced glue-ups,” says the Rollinsford, New Hampshire–based Kerr-Ayer of this glass and cubic zirconia sculptural work, which combines Slavic, Scandinavian, and Italian glassmaking techniques, and is being sold through Blue Spiral 1 in Asheville, North Carolina. / $8,000

christopherkerrayer.com
@christopherkerrayer
bluespiral1.com

Photo by Loam Marketing

Brooklyn-based architect and ceramist Alejandra Rojas of By Alejandra Design takes inspiration from capillary waves for her candlesticks, which she digitally conceptualizes and 3D prints before slip casting and kiln-firing them. Made from stained white clay and shimmering glaze in lime moondust, the smallest of these candlesticks measures 8 x 4.5 x 4.5 in. / $130 and up
byalejandradesign.com
@byalejandradesign

Photo by Nick Myers

Whitney Sharpe of Latch Key hand-builds ornamental candleholders, vessels, and adornments out of stoneware in her Oakland, California, studio. She made this chartreuse lace candelabra, 8.5 x 8 x 5.5 in., with ritual in mind. “Every piece is a meditation, delicately sculpted with intention,” says Sharpe. More colors are available. / $320
thelatchkey.com
@latch_key

Photo by Whitney Sharpe

Headed by artistic director Gabriel Hendifar, New York City–based Apparatus Studio makes these brutalist candle blocks, 5.5 x 3.5 x 2 in. each, in aged brass and blackened brass. The studio cites precision tools, M.C. Escher, and temple architecture as influences on the interlocking modular candleholders. / $800 each
apparatusstudio.com
@apparatusstudio

Photo courtesy of Apparatus Studio

Whitney Sharpe, one of the makers in this article, was featured in The Queue.

Read the interview

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American Craft Editors