When I started this blog what feels like a million years ago, my goal was to share lots of Louisville stuff. And then, I got old and boring. Admittedly, I don’t do nearly as much exploring of the city as I did back in 2011 when I started the blog. But every once in a while, I surprise myself and check out a new spot. Even more rare, I remember to take photos and share the experience. So let’s soak up this moment while it lasts.

Earlier this month, some girls and I had a fun night out in Nulu celebrating our friend Allie’s birthday (make sure to go read this post about her awesome mobile blow dry business). We started with candle making at Maddox & Rose, walked over to dinner at Garage Bar and then finished up with drinks at Nouvelle. This came on the heels of a date night where Drew and I went to Gravely, then rode Lime scooters down to the LouCity game. Who am I?

Anyways, this post is not about how I’m getting my groove back, instead it’s a little look inside Maddox & Rose Marketplace. Also, I hate that I have to say this but this is entirely not sponsored. After doing some stories that night, a couple people asked if I would share more details. They asked, so I’m sharing.

First off, this place is cute.

Second, I should probably tell you a little more about it. Maddox & Rose Marketplace is a “custom candle pouring experience designed to fit everyone’s style.” Basically, it’s a really beautiful space where you can create your own custom candle. We went for a party but you can drop in anytime and craft something up.

It’s located in at 900 E. Main Street in Nulu (it’s around back of the same new building where Biscuit Belly is located), just around the corner from Grind, the new Pappy store and right down the block from Quills. The studio space is gorgeous. The owners also have their own interior design and styling business and its reflected throughout. Simple, chic and inviting – I wanted to move in. If I could have picked up the lounge area and moved it to my house, I would have.

But on to the experience. When we went, they still didn’t have their license for serving wine so we jumped right in. I can say that I think it would have been even more fun with some snacks and wine. That’s their plan moving forward, so hopefully that’s up and running when any of you have the chance to pop in.

Each of us got a clipboard and sheet to jot down our favorite scents. After getting the lay of the land, we all stepped up to the scent wall to determine the notes of our custom candles. When I say wall, I mean a full, floor to ceiling, wall of fragrances. There’s a little bit of everything. There were florals (magnolia, lavender, rose to name a few) to food and spirits (strawberry jam, key lime pie, bread – yes, bread – and bourbon) to random smells of life (Dad’s Den, clean laundry, old books). There was a lot to work with.

I think I exhausted my nose smelling every single one. We each jotted down between 5 – 10 scents and headed back to the bar to mix and match for our custom candle. The team there looks at your list and then helps you determine the scents that work best together. They bring over bottles of the oils and you smell them all together to get an idea of the finished product. Once you figure out your perfect combination, you mix the oils (you can do more of one or two or opt for equal parts of all) and then they use that combination in your candle. You also get to choose the container from their selection of pretty, modern vases.

My winning combination ended up being a mix of magnolia and olive blossom with a touch of Dad’s den (yes, I realize phrasing it like that sounds weird). It takes about an hour for them to make the candle and they graciously delivered ours straight to Garage Bar. The candles range in price from $20 – $35 and they can save your combination so that you can order more if you end up totally falling in love with your creation.

Some of us ended up loving our candles (I really like mine) while others weren’t quite as in love with the finished product (some of the scents don’t combine as well as you’d hope). But no matter the result, we all had a lot of fun with the process. If you’re considering going, just an FYI they do require reservations for groups of six or more. If you have a smaller group, you can just pop in. You can get all the details and booking information over here. 

All in all it was a really fun time and I’d recommend it if you’re looking for a fun start to a girl’s night. It would also be fun for a bridal event or other celebration since the space is so pretty. We ended up all learning more about each other from stories and anecdotes attached to certain smells. One of the scents was ‘fresh cut grass’ which immediately reminded me of the old Gap perfume (any child of the 90’s has to remember those Gap perfumes). We also talked a lot about trips and travels that certain scents reminded us of. Oddly enough, the scents were such a good conversation starter.  It’s certainly something different than just drinks.

Maddox & Rose Marketplace is located at 900 E. Main Street and is open Monday (11a – 7p), Thursday – Saturday (11a – 7p) and Sunday (12 – 4p). To make a reservation call 502.290.6606