Patience found me this year not in the big moments, but in the pauses.

Have you ever been in the middle of making something — hands busy, mind racing — and suddenly felt that pressure creep in?

The need for it to be perfect.

The quiet frustration when it doesn’t look the way you imagined.

The urge to rush, fix, control… or start over completely.

I see that moment all the time.

It usually happens halfway through a workshop — right around the point when the excitement fades and self-judgment sneaks in. When the creation isn’t what you imagined it would be (even though it was before you even sat down to craft with us) or the candle isn’t setting fast enough. When the scent feels “off.” When someone glances around the room, comparing their work to the person beside them.

And then, one night — mid candle-making session, hosting over twenty crafters, wax cooling and fragrance lingering in the air — someone looked up at me and said, almost surprised:

“You have so much patience.”

I smiled.

Because what they didn’t see was that patience wasn’t something I was born with. It’s something I learned — slowly, imperfectly — through people, through work, through holding space for kids and adults alike who just needed a little grace.

And that’s when I was again reminded: people don’t come here for perfection.

They come here for permission.

Permission to slow down.

To make mistakes.

To be guided instead of rushed.

To create without the weight of expectation.

And from there, the rest of the story unfolds — not about candles or crafts, but about you.

At The Wellness Studio by Cicco Aroma, the finished product isn’t what you create.

It’s the you who gives yourself permission to pause.

The you who softens enough to accept imperfections.

The you who stays present instead of rushing ahead to the next thing on the to-do list.

That’s the real outcome.

The candle is just evidence.

What I see — every single time — is someone slowly exhale. Shoulders drop. Brows unclench. A laugh slips out when something doesn’t go as planned. And in that moment, something shifts. Not dramatically. Not loudly. But meaningfully.

Because choosing to make time for yourself in a world that constantly asks for more from you?

That deserves applause.

• For showing up.

• For choosing presence over productivity.

• For allowing yourself to be a beginner, again.

We don’t celebrate that enough.

We celebrate output. Results. Hustle. Efficiency. But we rarely pause to honour the courage it takes to stop.

And that’s why this space exists.

Not to get it “right.” But to be real.

To remind you that you don’t need to earn rest. You don’t need to justify joy. And you certainly don’t need to be perfect to be worthy of care.

As we look ahead, we’re planning a year rooted in intention — not pressure.

A year of experiences that invite you to slow down, create with curiosity, reconnect with yourself, and simply be.

And we need you. Your stories. Your presence. Your imperfect, beautiful energy in the room. Because this studio has never been about wax, oils, or aromas alone. It’s been about community. About holding space. About walking alongside you as you rediscover parts of yourself that get lost in the rush of everyday life.

So if you’ve been craving more ease, more intention, more moments that feel like yours — this is your invitation.

Come as you are.

Take your time.

We’ll handle the rest. Find your moment of pause here.