Kensington native uses Waxery to uplift her neighborhood one candle at a time

Crystal Ortiz was born and raised in Kensington. She opened her DIY candle-making shop, Waxery, in July 2021 to give the neighborhood something she didn’t have when she was a kid. 

She grew up having to go elsewhere, usually to Center City or New Jersey, to find fun things to do with friends and family.

Things she noticed didn’t exist in her neighborhood, particularly on Kensington Avenue, because of the stigma around unhoused people and people using drugs. 

As an adult, she set out to open an activity space on the Avenue to offer locals something nearby.

“Somewhere that people could be like, ‘hey, that’s 15 minutes, or that’s right around the corner. Let’s walk there.’ And they don’t have to pay for Uber or drive far,” she said.

Waxery is located at 3314 Kensington Ave. Here, people can build candles from scratch using a variety of fragrances, such as lavender and vanilla, along with cotton or wooden wicks, and add-ons like sprinkles and seashells. 

Each class is BYOB, and includes an instructor, or “Hostess,” to guide attendees through the entire process. The tables in the main room feature burners to melt the candle wax into the provided containers, brown boards for individuals to work on, and other candle-making instruments. The scent room is where they can find fragrances to put in their candles.

Customers can book online for a casual class, work party or other special event. Waxery offers four different 90-minute experiences: a classic candle-making class that includes two 8-ounce white candles for the base with a fragrance scent for each one, an “Above & Beyond” class that adds wooden wicks and extra ingredients, a class that adds an hour of karaoke time, and a mindfulness-oriented class that includes journals and reflection cards for each participant.

Ortiz also offers “Waxery on Wheels” to host candle-making events outside the central location, such as at business parties and other venues.

Gloria “Smooches” Cartagena Hart took a Waxery class with friends. She made her candle with a chamomile fragrance, which is known for its stress-reducing properties. She said she found joy in making the candles, as it reminded her of home economics class when she was in school. 

“Great experience, we were like little kids,” she said.

Cartagena Hart believes that Waxery is a positive for the neighborhood, noting the therapeutic experience of making candles can help counter anxiety and other symptoms related to trauma.

“It brings self-healing when you smell a candle of your own that you created,” she said. 

It’s also a small source of pride.

“Having something you can say, ‘I did this.’ Those are the things you don’t see in Kensington.”

There have been numerous efforts to diversify what’s available to community members over the years, like the inclusion of public gardens, community spaces like the Community Center at Visitation and Vizion Gallery right next door to Waxery. But residents still say that there’s a significant lack of activity spaces.

Ortiz shared with Kensington Voice that some of her customers are afraid to come to the neighborhood because of the stigma of Kensington Avenue due to the drug epidemic and the large number of unhoused people on the corridor. 

“I feel like customers don’t realize that there are parts of Kensington that are really good,’ she said. “But it's hard to portray that when social media and the news leave a bad taste in people’s mouths.”

She believes that the inclusion of more activity spaces, as well as more greenery and trash cans along Kensington Avenue, will help improve the quality of life in the neighborhood.

“If business owners run away from the area, it's never going to get any better ... people will continue to run as well," she said. " We should continue to introduce new activities, as this can hopefully change the dynamic of the area."

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