INTRODUCING RAYCHELLE – A crafty young mom who loves making candles (and all things beautiful!)

I am Raychelle I am a mom to a 3-yr. toddler, a fur mama to a 2-year-old siamese-Persian cat named JJ, and a partner to Nigel. I like to call myself a chandler (a person who makes or sells candles and sometimes other items like soap.), I’ve been creating and selling candles online since 2019. I'm an advocate of self-care and positivity through handcrafted ritual items (candles, natural beauty rituals, you name it!) I’m a go-with-the-flow kind of person, I’d also say I’m a spontaneous person especially when it comes to trips! I crave nature and adventures ♡ I appreciate the beauty our country has to offer! Join me as I visit cafes, beach trips, and nature adventures in the Philippines (hopefully, international trips too)

AN ISLAND GYAL LIVING IN THE METRO

Ok, I wouldn’t usually call myself an island girl since I lived in the city part of Cebu but I couldn’t help myself! Anyways, I’d like to share how I moved from Cebu to Metro Manila.

I studied Advertising Arts at the University of San Carlos for 3 years in Cebu. Unfortunately, I stopped. I feel like it wasn’t for me. I took a short break and found myself in New York. That was kind of spontaneous, I borrowed money from my mom for a plane ticket, how I paid her back is a different story to tell. Moving on, when I came back to the Philippines, I then decided to take a short course in Styling at the SoFA Design Institute in Makati, Philippines. After studying for 6 months in Styling, I was then an intern to one of my teachers from SoFA and I actually enjoyed it. There was a time when commercial shoots are from 10 am to 3 am the next day and that was fun and exciting for me (youth!!!) I then decided to stay in Manila for a while since I can see myself enjoying this new journey of mine, I did not expect to stay further in Manila until job offers and opportunities came in, and I decided to just go with the flow~ After a year in Manila, I pivoted my career path from an assistant stylist to an assistant/secretary to a fashion designer.

RELLA ESSENTIALS
I started Rella Essentials a few months after I gave birth to my son. The idea started when I realized candles are really expensive, so I started making them on my own! By drawing inspiration from my experiences in the Fashion & Styling industry, I created thoughtfully designed self-care essentials. The product aesthetic and ingredients are simple, natural, and sustainable which could double as home decor. You can check out Rella Essentials at www.rellaessentials.com

WHY AND HOW I STARTED HIVE

I've always wondered what it feels like to be a blogger or a writer. At some point in my life, probably around high school, I wanted to work at a magazine but don't know what position or what career path to take. 😬 I've never done blogging before but I'm very active on social media, especially on Instagram, my closest experience to blogging/writing would be putting up captions on my post! 😂 I like to challenge myself by doing something new like writing a blog. I want to find that inner Carrie Bradshaw in me LOL

Recently, I'm very inspired by my friend Shanna aka Chillwithshanna. who is also on Hive. I actually reached out to her since I was interested in blogging. She was very kind to share with me her knowledge about the Hive community and guided me through the process!
I'm very excited to share my experiences and adventures with you all! I can't wait to meet new people here and read your stories!