LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — When the pandemic forced business to close, Yasmine Fleming had just found an opening.
"I've always loved scent," Fleming said.
According to Fleming, scent can take you somewhere new or remind you of somewhere old. A pandemic hobby became Fleming's opportunity.
"I got so much more in-depth with actually making candles, that now I feel like a better teacher," she said.
A better teacher — maybe better than the teacher she once knew.
"I don't feel like I'm finished with public education, I just like to say I'm inactive," Fleming said.
She was an educator for about a decade. She might be inactive in the classroom, but she's active at Luxe and Ash Candle Co. at Julietta Market.
"Yes, you do get to take a physical product — the candle with you, but more importantly, remembering this candle smells like grandma's house," she said.
The meaning of scent is powerful to Fleming. The idea of the business is for you to pick your own scent and mix your own candle.
"I'm trying to do things that bring me joy," she said.
Joy, though, can sometimes spark fear.
"It has been extremely scary, but I know our children are watching. I know my former students — I know my daughter is watching," Fleming said.
Some are watching from near — others afar.
"My grandmother's scarf — I still have, and she's been gone for over 12 years," Fleming said. "I don't wear it that often because it still smells like her."
Smell can bring us back, or make us reminisce. It's the scent that can be sentimental.
"She called me her joy," Fleming said of her grandmother. "That's what she always said — my joy, my joy. So, I think there's a joy candle coming very soon."
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