nerdwax.candle

Filipinx Folklore series (2 of 5): Manananggal [MAH-nuh-NUNG-gahl] by artist/designer Tony Pavés]

The Manananggal is a fearsome creature---a winged vampire that takes on the appearance of a woman. Similar to the aswang, their fables may vary depending on the elders with whom you speak or the region. Like the aswang, they say she favors the taste of pregnant women. Others say that she prefers to feed off those newly in love or recently married. Regardless of the variations in lore, one fact about the manananggal remains constant---the way in which she takes flight. The Manananggal's method for capturing her prey is distinct---she is able to fly, but must separate from her body to do so. Her torso is torn upwards, leaving her lower half behind. Because of her aerial agility, they say that a manananggal is very hard to hunt. The only way to defeat one is to search for her lower half. Once you've found it and she's nowhere near, you must sprinkle a combination of ash, salt, and holy water on the lower torso. When she returns, she will discover that she cannot rejoin her body. If she remains separated, she will perish by sunrise.

The Manananggal is one of the five creatures featured in my Filipinx Folklore candle series! Release date: 9/15

Meet the Artist: Tony Paves Tony Pavés]
Follow this Filipino artist and talented Bay Area designer!
Maraming Salamat, Kuya Tony! You da coolest!

⁣Re-introducing Kapre [KAH-preh]🌳⚠️Available 9/15 ⚠️— Smelling of sweet to***co and mangrove. This one is my personal favorite of this series and is PERFECT if you want your space giving sultry, smoky woods this season. If you’re new to this series, this candle is inspired by a tree-dwelling giant from Filipinx folklore (check my post from yesterday!).

🇵🇭

Filipinx Folklore series (1 of 5): KAPRE [KAH-preh] by Filipinx artist
⁣
Kapres are tree dwelling giants. Mostly harmless and lacking in maliciousness compared to their other frightful counterparts—-what they lack in malice they make up for with mischief. Large, odorous, and especially observant, Kapres love to smoke ci**rs. If you find yourself lost in seemingly familiar forests, a Kapre might be playing tricks on you. But worry not, they aren’t dangerous…unless you destroy their home or chop down the tree they inhabit. ⁣Alternate versions of Kapre fixate on a person and follow them throughout their lives, bestowing luck and protection.
⁣
Artist: Maria Krasinski. Follow this Filipina artist as she is also the artist behind and the upcoming and to top it all off she’s family! So I’m lucky! Thanks Ate M! ⁣
⁣
⁣
🇵🇭

Shout out to my supervisor Saku. She’s always keeping me honest, always hovering making sure I don’t put out any sloppy work. Although she’s hella judgy, I know it comes from a place of love. Thanks to and for capturing her majesty 😆👸🏾

Another wedding in the books! And this time it was for someone I’ve loved and laughed with since high school! Eternally grateful for and for the chance to create a customized duo for them. I like to think these two scents are a tribute to both them— One of them giving warmth and sophistication (oud + bergamot) and the second giving sweetness and spark (rhubarb + rose). Honestly—either of these candles would apply to each of them equally ❤️ Incredibly honored to not only make these, but to also be a bridesmaid and ugly cry my way through their wedding day ✌🏾😭.

⚠️ I’m going to pause wedding commissions for 2023 so I can focus on new releases, but if you’re curious about 2024—let me know! I have yet to do a nerdy themed celebration:)

❗️Look, ma! I’m in a magazine ❗️In NW Nerd’s very first issue! Look for a copy in one of your local nerdy haunts or follow for more “geekonomy” details! Grateful to share a bit of my origin story with this mag’s editor/creator as well as share space with awesome creators and nerds alike!

Making nerdy candles demands nerdy instruments— so this is where comes in. We talk punk rock Squirtle Squad with a vaporwave aesthetic and she DELIVERS— what can’t she do? If you’ve seen me around town and wondered about me giving Pokémon master trainer vibes then here’s your answer:) Thanks Kelly! #ｖａｐｏｒｗａｖｅ

HOT DAMN 🥵☀️. Seattle is in the midst of a heatwave. If you are by any chance a mage that can summon windchills, please DM me—I would love to gift you with a Dovahkiin candle to lend you inspiration:) Dovahkiin is finally back in stock after a short hiatus! Link in bio 🔗

Stay cool. Stay hydrated. Stay nerdy....always!

Congrats to Janina and Cheri! And major thanks for giving me my first wedding commission! They each chose a favorite scent: white tea + ginger and eucalyptus + tea leaves. ⁣
⁣
I am doing two weddings this year and trying to figure out a system should I choose to do this regularly. Stay tuned for more info on my new website about commissions, wholesale partnerships, collabs, and custom d&d candles. I wanna do it ALL but will def need to set parameters as I’m a one-woman show. Thanks all! ⁣
⁣

All orders from last week’s website launch have been sent out—-thanks for your patience! I’ve been hiding under a rock this past week due to some family stuff, so it’s been a bit of a struggle. A huge thank you to all you nerds who have helped me continue forward with this hustle—-every order keeps me going and I have so many fandoms to share, and I’m gonna spend the rest of this summer making sure it gets from my brain to your noses. In the meantime, it’s getting hot out there, so make sure to keep an eye on your tracking number. Shipping still occurs M-W for those out of state and via Priority to prevent melting in a warehouse over the weekend. Thanks all.

Cactus Juice turns 1 year old this week—-A tribute to Sokka from the ATLA fandom! You got honeydew and cactus flower combined to create a scent that is fruity and slightly floral— some previous testers of this candle say it reminds them of summer or of honeydew boba, which ain’t a bad comparison:) it’ll quench ya 🌵🥤⁣
⁣

Yayyyyy! It’s up and running! I’m still working on details, but in terms of eCommerce, it’s live! Link in bio to check it out 🖤 Thanks, nerds! And hella thanks to for helping me get this together ⭐️

Another pop-up coming up this weekend! Thanks in advance for hosting me 💚. Dodge the shipping costs and get yourself some glow and greenery this Saturday:)

🌱

In the words of wise Lizzo: “It’s about damn time.” Website launch on Thurs 6/16 at noon! I’ll be keeping my 3tsy site but will be increasing costs there to account for their fee hikes. All the current candles on my personal site will maintain the original price for now (lest the inflation gods continue to curse us). The 3tsy site will have less candle inventory and the new website will have ALL of them:) and I AM SO EXCITED. A team at helped bring my mage-meets-comicon aesthetic to life and I’m ever so goddamn grateful. What’s even more exciting is that I will add a section to explain wholesale and collaboration terms aaaannnnnnnd info for anyone interested in D&D inspired candle commissions! Yay!!!!!! Major major thank you to and others (who I’m not connected to on Instagram) for making this nerd very very happy 😊

Nerdy nail artist brought my Buffy fandom to life! Her talent and geekery know no bounds! Can y’all identify all the Scooby-inspired objects/episodes? Thank you Kelly ❤️

Prepping Persephone (pomegranate +rose) for tomorrow’s at Magnuson Hangar! This is a ticketed 21+ event with vendors, food, and wrasslin’ matches 🍸 and will be open from 2-10pm. Maybe see ya there and you can sniff this Queen-of-the-Underworld to see if it’s your kind of regal? Hades will, of course, be close by because…duh.⁣
⁣

Another donation submitted to 🧡 Hella thanks to all the Central Perk enthusiasts who bought a Phoebe-inspired “Smelly Cat” candle (apricot+fig+freesia) between Jan and May! A portion of the sales goes to the A-T Children’s project in honor of Jen Powell and Team Jen, helping advance towards a cure for (A-T). Supporting a good cause while making your place smell good is never a bad idea 💯😺. Thanks nerds. ⁣And last but not least thanks and for the collab!
⁣
⁣
⁣
⁣

Different snake, same nerd! New logo and a new website to follow soon! Ever since the 3tsy price hikes I’ve been wanting a website of my own. I’ve been working with a team at to make this happen! The website is coming, and my 3tsy is still active for now. And the logo has been tweaked a bit! ⁣
⁣
🐍 A frequently asked question I get: why snakes? I’m not sorted into Slytherin house lol. I’m not pulling a Batman where I’m choosing a creature I most fear either. In pre-colonial times in the Philippines, snakes were revered as guardians or links to our ancestors. In Bisayan pre-colonial times, there was a belief that some were born with a snake twin that served as a guardian from infancy till old age. explains all this beautifully in her posts. My heritage and ancestry are integral to my identity, so a snake seemed perfect for my nerdy pyromancy:) thanks for reading, nerds. I hope y’all will love the website as much as I do and I’ll let you know when it’s up and running! ⁣
⁣

A formal introduction: I’m Michel. I make your nerdy candles! Nerdwax Candle Co is me!— I design, hand pour, and ship all the goodies. I started this venture in 2020 and officially opened up shop for business in early 2021. My whole gimmick is to create scents inspired by pop culture, nostalgia, and all things nerdy. If it has a fandom, it fits in:) ⁣
⁣
A bit about myself:⁣
Day job: social worker ⁣
Favorite x-man: Psylocke/Kwannon ⁣
Hogwarts House + astrology bs: Gryffindor Sun, Hufflepuff Rising, Slytherin moon ⁣
Favorite Fiction: His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman⁣
Currently Reading: The Sandman by Neil Gaiman (thanks 💙)⁣
Current audiobook: The Body Keeps the Score by Dr. Bessel van der Kolk⁣
Upcoming Concert: NIN in September! ⁣
⁣
Thanks y’all for following along my geeky adventure and supporting small! ⁣My next market is tomorrow with at 11am!
⁣

I’ve made y’all this dumb photo to announce that SUMMER SHIPPING is in the effect! May/June is when I typically modify my candle formulas to withstand higher temperatures, AND as an extra protection against melting I only priority-ship out of state candle orders between Monday and Wednesday! This is to ensure your candle doesn’t wait in a hot, unconditioned warehouse before it gets to you. A melted candle probably smells good, but is hella annoying to open up and like…Ew 😐. ⁣
⁣
Etsy orders are still welcome and my own personal website is still in the works! I also have an upcoming pop up via on 5/15 so there’s another option:) thanks everyone! ⁣
⁣

Our dreamy CEO of the Underworld is back! Hades (dry gin + cypress) is restocked for on 5/15 as well as via my online shop (link in bio). Next up: a Persephone restock! ⁣
⁣
I’m a one-woman-operation (sometimes with the gracious help of my lovely sister ) so I run a LOT slower than say…Bath and Body Works:) Thanks for being patient, nerds! ⁣
⁣
⁣

He’s baaaaaaaaack. Everyone’s favorite uncle returning to gift us with his wisdom and stash of teas that would please even the most grumpy (I’m looking at you, Zuko). I just made a large batch of these in preparation for on 5/15 as well as an Etsy restock for those outside of Seattle. Come get it, benders!

HAS ETSY RESPONDED? no official statement released today. No response as of yet.

WHAT HAPPENS NOW?: continue supporting small businesses! If there’s an alternative site or pop-up, please support your favorite makers that way. However, for a lot of us, Etsy is the main deal for right now and any support is welcome for artists/makers.

HOW ELSE CAN WE SUPPORT ETSY SELLERS?: Comment/Like/Engage with us on social media to help us take advantage of the algorithm and inch us towards more exposure! Think of Etsy sellers like the Mighty Ducks and Amazon is like…that really resourced yet evil hockey team from Iceland.

ALSO: Since a lot of us are coming off of “vacation” on Etsy, our listings and shops are bumped down in relevancy and SEO. Favorite our shops, visit or purchase if it’s in your budget, or write us a kind review if you loved something you previously purchased!

Thanks nerds. Capitalism is exhausting, but the maker/artist and nerd community give me infinite mana 💙

Black female lead? ✔️ Paranormal shenanigans? ✔️ Beautiful and creepy art? ✔️ and macabre storytelling/writing? ✔️ GIMME DAT. Again I’m always late to the comic book game. This got released late last year and i just finally got around to falling in love. I need more! Thanks to and for the recommendation! ⁣
⁣
My partner and I got to get away for a quiet night to ourselves. We ate, we read, we passed out early. It was restful and simple. I read this, got a little creeped out and then researched which issues I needed to back order haha. Have any of y’all read? Should I check out it’s predecessor, Killadelphia? ⁣
⁣

I MOVED! Not that it makes much difference to most, since I don’t have a storefront…BUT I was mainly making candles lovingly out of our kitchen and dining area and it slowly expanded over the last year. Packages and boxes in the living room! Candles and wax supplies in the kitchen! Papers and shipping supplies on the dining table! It was an awesome mess. My fam moved to a different space in Seattle and I now have a cool little room that I can proudly dedicate to candlemaking and telehealthin’! I’ve gotten a few of your orders over the last week and they will be processed tomorrow since we spent all week packing and moving allllll the things. I am ecstatic. Can’t wait to prop up a work table and get back to it. I’m so glad to still be doing this. Thanks, nerds.

I’d like to interrupt your nerdy candle-lovin newsfeeds to share a niche passion of mine which is to create memes out of classic paintings depicting exorcisms. You know—-BASIC MOM S**T

Hear ye, hear ye, fellow dragonborn and Skyrim-enthusiasts! Dovahkiin is back in stock! It sold out during the night market on 3/19, and was originally meant to be a winter seasonal release along with its Sweet Roll counterpart (back in stock as well). Howevvvver, you nerds are apparently very passionate about frost dragons and eucalyptus, so who am to deny you??? I'm so glad though---because I love this scent and am happy y'all appreciate it too!

Right now the online shop is slowly being restocked...so stay tuned for Haku, Spiked Butter Brew, Hades, Persephone, and Centaur Musk! They're coming back soon!

SOLD OUT (KINDA)! As of a couple hours ago, my online shop is sold out of the champagne + lotus blossom limited edition SAAFF candle. Buuuut, I just checked in with SAAFF] and they have 4 left in stock here: https://saaffshop.square.site . I’ll post another link in my stories too!

A huge thank you to all the film nerds who came through for this candle! It was so lovely and a huge honor to get to collaborate with SAAFF] and share in Asian American artistry and stories! I loved watching the Filipinx shorts, and the one that hit me hardest was Kalinga (“care”) centering on Filipina caregivers working overseas as nannies and the pain and complexity of trying to reunite with their own families. For folks who attended: What was your favorite film? For folks who didn't get to see it: Hope you get to check it out next time!