Skip to main content

Contest brings more than aroma to local candle company

Lead Summary
, , ,
By
Mavis Fodness

When Shawna Marshall debuted a public contest this summer for a new candle scent, she got more than she expected from the winning entry.
Kaylena Riendeau of Brandon suggested her grandmother’s blueberry dessert for the Vasshaus Candle Company contest.
“Her suggestion changed the idea of what this contest would be,” Marshall said. “To take something special to one family — create and share that memory — was unexpected.”
The candle scent called “Grandma’s Blueberry Dessert” made its retail debut Saturday.
The display included a picture of Riendeau with her grandmother, Rose Marie Stob, and a copy of the dessert recipe in her grandma’s handwriting.
The number of Grandma’s Blueberry Dessert glass candle jars quickly dwindled as Riendeau, her mother, Laurie Oppold, and her aunt, Diane Even, stopped into the downtown Luverne store.
The candle’s smell of canned blueberries, honey, and cinnamon with a touch of citrus thrilled the family.
“It’s like bringing her back,” Riendeau said of her grandma, who was head cook at Milaca High School and died in 2014 at age 81.
Her dessert was a much-sought-after family favorite, especially among the cousins.
“If you made it to the fridge to attempt to sneak (a taste) of the dessert, and the pan was gone, you knew it was game time,” Riendeau said.
A game of catch-me-if-you-can ensued as one cousin, with dessert pan in hand, would be chased around the backyard. Grandma Rose would often break up the chase by bringing a second pan filled with the baked dessert.
“If you say ‘blueberry dessert’ to any one of my kids, they would all have a story to tell about her dessert,” Even said.
Marshall and her partner, Jesse Booker, attempted to create a candle scent with blueberry before the contest, but with limited success.
With the handwritten recipe, they added an underlying fragrance of baked blueberries.
“We loved the scent but we love the story,” Marshall said.
For her suggestion, Riendeau won $50 and her entry made into candles.
Another “Suggest a Scent” contest is planned for this fall, and more recipes from Grandma Rose may be submitted.
“To create a candle from a special dish is absolutely remarkable,” Riendeau said.
“It’s a way to honor Grandma Rose in a beautiful and unique way.”

You must log in to continue reading. Log in or subscribe today.