CLINTON - Like so many, Elisha Goulet was looking for something to keep herself and her family busy during the pandemic. And, like some, Goulet is now turning that into a business.

Goulet is a lifelong Clintonian who recently created Northern Woods Candles and Soaps.

"Like everyone else who found themselves looking for ways to entertain themselves during the COVID pandemic, I was also looking for fun activities to do at home. In the very beginning, my daughter Liz  and I were like so many others just trying to stay busy," Goulet said.

"I decided I would purchase a couple sewing machines and we both had our own sewing machine on our kitchen table. We spent hours sewing and having fun learning.  It was well worth the money spent just to spend time together doing fun projects and going shopping for pretty materials," she said.

By the end of 2021, she was looking for ways to make Christmas presents instead of buying them for friends and families.

"I decided I would like to learn a new craft and that was candle making," she said. "I started researching candle making in late October 2021 and got the supplies in November that I would need to start. There was a lot to learn, but I had so much fun making candles for Christmas and I even designed pretty glass jars covered with snow flakes and twine and berries for decoration.

"I also made snowmen candles," she added. "They came out really pretty and smelled so good, too."

Candle making became a big distraction.

"I could spend hours in the kitchen doing this craft and I even would forget to eat at times I was having so much fun making them," she said. "I became very interested in delicious food scents, probably because I am Italian and had a lot of fun shopping for these scents."

The first candle was scented almond biscotti.

"It smelled exactly like an almond biscotti," Goulet said. "I also made sugar cookie and then I made Fruit Loops scented candles and  bayberries, too."

After Christmas, she continued to enjoy making candles and giving them away. But the candles started piling up in her kitchen. 

She began to think about creating a business, but ran into an interesting problem.

"I started to daydream about having a name for my small business and started playing around with cute names.  I picked so many cute names, but each time I would google the name, I would find out that it was already taken by another candle maker," she said.  "This happened over and over. There are so many small candle businesses you can't even imagine how many there are and it was hard to find a name that wasn't already taken."

It took some work to find a unique name.

"Finally I decided to try to imagine what I pictured when I thought of candle," she said. "I pictured myself in a cabin somewhere in the woods up north, snuggling by a fire with a warm blanket wrapped around me and a candle burning next to me while holding a nice cup of herbal tea. That's when Northern Woods came to mind for me.  And this one stuck."

A friend was doing a pop up at an art event in Worcester and she said Goulet should bring some candles and sell them. 

"I decided to check it out and see how people would react to my candles and if any would sell," she said. She made "just enough money that night to cover my table fee and I felt so exhilarated after actually selling a couple of my candles  that I decided to do another event."

Goulet also started learning how to pour soap and now makes soaps as well. She has been participating in pop up events ever since, recently becoming a regular at the Sterling Street Market on Saturdays.   

"I have also been designing labels on Canva and I have  made many  improvements and changes to my  candle labels over time.  I know the changes will continue because I am still  just learning," she said, adding, "I am not sure if I have more fun pouring candles now or designing the labels."

A website a close to launching at www.northernwoodscandles.com and people will be able to buy Goulet's creations online.

"If anybody wants to buy them, they can look for me at the Sterling Market on Saturdays or other markets and  local craft fairs. She posts her upcoming events on Instagram @Northernwoodscandlesandsoaps. 

Goulet said, so far, her favorite scents are Almond Biscotti, Blueberry Cobbler and Lemon Cookie.

"I have been working on the fall scents and I have Marshmallow Pumpkin right now for a fall preview and I really like this scent as well," Goulet added.