My name is hannah, and i'm glad to meet you!
I grew up in a small town called Canal Fulton, and despite leaving it for a handful of years—I've always loved it. After spending much of my young adult life in Chicago, I've grown to appreciate the slow pace and natural landscape of my sweet stomping grounds all the more. That makes it a unique privilege and a special honor to now have a brick and mortar in downtown Canal Fulton, helping contribute to the sense of community here.
While I was living in Chicago, I had started making candles during the pandemic—which evolved into an Etsy shop, which evolved into leaving my job to become a small business owner full-time. I eventually started my own website, and the candles I poured somehow ended up in about 20 different shops across the country. I moved back home to Ohio to be closer to family, and the virtual candle shop continued to blossom. I cannot begin to describe what a blessing it was to form relationships with people through the candles. It was unexpected that a business could forge true friendships with people across the country, and that has been one of the greatest joys of my life. Eventually (and sadly), my body simply couldn't keep up with the demands, so I decided to close shop and return to my first ever career—teaching theology.
Even though the business came to a close, I couldn't imagine leaving behind the relationships and sense of community that had been built. In addition to making candles, I also shared playlists and wrote essays that spoke of meaningful ways to seek both solitude and kinship—I was determined to carve out a pocket of the internet that felt different than the norm. Once I closed the candle shop, I couldn't part with that sense of mission. So out of the ashes of East York Street candles rose The Monastic Home, and I began writing seasonal letters to folks in my orbit. It felt like a charming way to stay in touch, and it was in keeping with my grandmother's tradition of writing me letters (which I always cherished).
When the providential opportunity came to open a brick and mortar attached to The Monastic Home name, I was immediately compelled to think about how the ethos I had been cultivating virtually could live and breathe as a physical space for community. My mom always dreamed of opening a bake shop, and I'm a sucker for curating odds and ends that I hope contribute to a warm atmosphere—so the vision was clear. I would open a space that offers home goods, but it would also be a gathering space for people with good food as the centerpiece. What better way to create community than with food, and what better food to eat than that which is prepared by the hands of those we love?
so here we are!
and i couldn't be more grateful.
