There's a candle shop in McAllen that's offering a one-of-kind experience, creating your own special scent.

This week, they're celebrating their two years in business.

"I have over 100 individual scents, and they are constantly changing. I'm trying to add a few more each season," Viva Kandle Bar Owner Valerie Bramble said. "I already have eight foundation candles that are the most popular scent blends."

Viva Kandle Bar is a passion project that started about three years ago.

"I actually got the idea when I was living in Seattle. There was something very similar, there was a little cocktail bar of making your own candles. When my parents would go visit, those were the only candles that my dad was not allergic to," Bramble said.

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Wanting to bring that unique experience to the Rio Grande Valley, Bramble did some research and taught herself the art of making candles.

"It started off in my house. My brother would come and make their candles for their house, my friends would come and make some for their apartments, and then I decided that it would be fun to have the Valley experience something like this because we're always looking for something fun to do that doesn't involve eating or drinking," Bramble said.

Viva Kandle Bar opened its doors in 2022.

When you walk inside, the first step is picking what scents you like from the fragrance wall. Then, you'll choose your vessel before heading over to the bar to start creating.

"I start by pouring a small amount [of scents] and then you stir and sniff, and then you can gauge what scent you like more of," Bramble said. "They are going to smell a lot stronger as you're mixing them, but once we mix it with the wax, it's going to dilute the scent, and it's going to be amazing."

The candles do take about two hours before they're ready to take home. Customers can either stick around or get a text when it's ready for pick-up.

"All of our products are non-toxic. All of the oils are tailored to the exact type of wax that we use so that they don't have those carcinogens and parabens that other manufactures carry," Bramble said.

If you get overwhelmed, don't worry, you can choose a candle recipe from the cocktail menu bar and there's even pre-made candles to choose from.

"A lot of times people even rent out the venue and host any type of special occasion here whether it's a birthday party, a bridal shower, or just a girl's night out," Bramble said.

Bramble says she hopes to one day expand this candle bar across the Valley.

"There's always that sense of fear that this might not work out, or it might not be a hit, but I think that's what goes into anything, especially when you're trying to launch your own business," Bramble said. "I think that one thing that really helps is my family, they're always very supportive and then the customers that I do have that are returning frequently are always, always excited to see what's new in store and that keeps me excited."

For more information about this business, click here.

Viva Kandle Bar, made in the 956.