Quite Quiet
Brand development, product design, & retail launch of an independent candle line
Minneapolis, MN
2022 (ongoing)
Born from a desire to build something sensory, intimate, and slow, Quite Quiet was a self-initiated candle brand created after graduate school, equal parts creative outlet and entrepreneurial experiment. The name came from a line in The Wall by Marlen Haushofer—“quite quiet”—a phrase that felt both beautiful and haunting within the context of the novel’s plot. It captured what the brand would come to represent: a mood, a pause, a sensory moment held in time.
Design Direction
The brand centered on quiet luxury and emotional resonance—nostalgic, nature-based scents paired with evocative names drawn from personal experiences, song lyrics, and poetic phrasing. The product ethos was grounded in wellness through intentional ritual, candles not just as objects, but as tools for deliberate self-care.
Design details were carefully considered:
Labels and dust covers were minimal and elegant
Each candle came with a branded line sheet for retail presentation
The vessels were hand-thrown in robin’s egg blue ceramic by a local artisan—designed to be reusable as tea or wine cups, dishwasher safe, and gently tactile
Scope of Work
The work spanned full brand and product development, from creative direction to hands-on production and packaging. Key responsibilities included:
Designed and developed a six-scent candle line rooted in nostalgic, nature-based fragrances
Created a lyrical naming system inspired by personal places, phrases, and song lyrics
Designed labels, dust covers, and a branded line sheet for retail presentation
Sourced and partnered with a local ceramicist to develop hand-thrown, reusable vessels
Oversaw scent formulation, pouring, and finishing for all product units
Managed packaging, pricing, and merchandising for retail placement
Brought the line to market through a local retailer and achieved modest profit
Key Takeaways
Building Quite Quiet taught me as much about creative direction as it did about focus, discipline, and tradeoffs.
Start lean: Extensive experimentation can blur focus and stretch margins. A simple business structure early on would have helped balance creativity with commercial viability.
Let the market speak: Feedback beats perfection. Launching sooner would have provided more clarity than endless internal iteration.
Work with values-aligned partners: The vessel collaboration taught me the importance of shared care and respect in creative production.
Design meets business reality: A handcrafted vessel is beautiful—but if it significantly eats into margins, its value must be weighed honestly.
