Kaelyn Carter

Time is the most valuable gift one can give. The memories that are a result of that time become more valuable with the inability to completely replicate them due to ever-changing aspects of life. Perhaps that is why nostalgia is a concept we hold onto so dearly; we long for a time we cannot return to. However, nostalgia triggers can also evoke negative emotions and while we may not want to revisit those memories, the triggers are often unintentional and inevitable.

When establishing these memories, smell is often disregarded, but as time passes, familiar scents can pull these moments from the back of our mind to the forefront. This concept was the driving force in inspiring my candle brand, ReminiScent, which is based on the idea that universal scents can transport you to the past, but each scent can surface a unique experience for every individual. Whatever scent may remind one person of back to school shopping for their first year of middle school may remind another of their first heartbreak. Scents simply exist as they are, but the memories we are able to mold to them and the vastly different ways in which we interact with and think of them is truly remarkable.

Being an artist and designer with a background in psychology, I have always been interested in the various ways one object or idea can be interpreted, by just one person or by an audience. I have always strived to make artwork that involves making the viewer critically think and interpret the meaning of it, and design work that is packed with meaning and intention behind every design choice. ReminiScent is no different, as the brand focuses on utilizing candles as that nostalgia trigger that brings people back to the moments they love, or loathe, most. With custom candles catered to people’s real-life experiences, and pre-made scents to jog memory, ReminiScent guarantees a trip down memory lane in one way or another.