NYC Candle Making Workshop: $60 Tins at Back Porch

Back Porch Studios' Upper West Side candle making workshop costs $60 per person and produces one personalized 8 oz coconut-wax candle in a tin. The class takes place inside Little Shop of Crafts at 711 Amsterdam Ave, New York, NY 10025, on the corner of West 94th Street. Its November listing offers one-hour sessions on November 2, 3, and 4, 2026. Participants must be 21 or older, and the workshop includes complimentary wine alongside fragrance and color choices.

The format is deliberately specific: one guest makes one candle. That makes it easier to understand what the ticket buys than a general craft-store admission or a broad promise of unlimited materials. You select natural fragrances, personalize the candle with color, and use coconut wax in a tin container. The workshop page presents the result as something to keep or give as a gift. Begin with that decision, because a candle intended for someone else calls for their preferences rather than yours.

A tin also changes the practical character of the finished object. It is a compact container rather than a fragile sculptural centerpiece, which suits an afternoon reached by subway. The advertised 8 oz size provides a concrete reference for the project without requiring you to purchase your own vessel. All of the candle decisions happen within the class format. Skip bringing a container from home unless you have booked a different arrangement; this listing is for the supplied tin candle, not a general vessel-refilling service.

The official description invites participants to join candle maker Marla Bosworth. Its accompanying biography identifies her as the CEO of Back Porch Soap Company and describes her work across candle, soap, skincare, and perfume classes and corporate experiences. That broader background explains the focus on fragrance as well as wax. You are attending a candle session led within a specialist workshop business, even though the physical venue is a shared craft space. The company name does not mean this ticket is a soap-making class.

Back Porch Studios also operates in Jackson Hole, so use the New York candle listing when selecting the venue. The page locates this experience on the Upper West Side and gives the complete Amsterdam Avenue address. This matters more than the regional area code on its published contact. A booking with a business that works in several cities should be anchored to the specific class page, location, and dates rather than to a general homepage description.

The workshop includes a selection of the company's bestselling fragrances and colors. A useful starting question is whether the candle is for your own routine or for a particular person. For a gift, think about a room, a season, or a fragrance preference the recipient has actually expressed. This gives the choice a clear purpose without requiring a complicated story. At the table, the maker's job is to help turn those preferences into a candle within the materials and techniques offered.

My recommendation is to avoid adding visual detail simply to make the project look more elaborate. A plain tin and a restrained color can leave the fragrance as the main feature, while a stronger color can make the candle feel more celebratory. Those are personal design choices, not claims about a required studio method. The listing promises personalization, fragrances, and colors; it does not promise elaborate botanical toppings or decorative inclusions. Choose this class for a useful scented candle rather than an ornate wax arrangement.

The official material description is coconut wax. That is the correct way to describe this project, rather than assuming every New York candle workshop uses soy. Use the session to notice how the wax, fragrance, and container become one finished object. Ask focused questions about the candle you are making while the materials are in front of you. A practical question about the supplied tin will be more relevant than treating a one-hour beginner experience as a complete commercial candle-manufacturing course.

The November schedule lists Monday, November 2 and Tuesday, November 3 with sessions at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 pm. Wednesday, November 4 has sessions at 4, 5, 6, and 7 pm. These are the advertised class times, not general opening hours for the host craft shop. Select the date and start time that fits your group, and leave a little space before it so your arrival does not depend on a meal ending at the exact minute expected.

The checkout instructions ask guests to write the chosen day and time in the memo area. All classes must be prepaid in full. The listed class size is two to 20, which gives an indication of the format without promising a private room for a pair. For a celebration, distinguish between joining the public candle session and commissioning a private event. The company offers private and corporate arrangements too, but those are separate from the $60 one-candle-per-guest listing described here.

Missed classes are not refunded or rescheduled, according to the booking page. It allows someone else to attend in your place when the studio is notified before class. That policy makes the date decision consequential, particularly when buying tickets as a gift. Agree on attendance before paying rather than relying on a later reschedule. The page's complimentary wine and 21-plus requirement also make this an adult outing. It is not the appropriate listing for a parent planning a candle activity with a younger child.

The class is held in the private event space inside Little Shop of Crafts, at the northeast corner of Amsterdam Avenue and West 94th Street. The official directions identify the 96th Street and Broadway station serving the 1, 2, and 3 trains as a nearby subway approach. Use the corner and host venue together when finding the room: Back Porch is the workshop provider, while Little Shop of Crafts is the place you enter. That distinction prevents an unnecessary search for a separate Back Porch storefront.

For a neighborhood walk, spend time on the Upper West Side before class, then return to Amsterdam Avenue for your booked start. Central Park lies east of the avenue, while Riverside Park offers a different, river-facing route to the west. Choose one direction for an unhurried outing rather than trying to fit both parks around a single hour of crafting. The nearby residential blocks and neighborhood shops are enough to extend the visit without turning a relaxed activity into a long cross-town itinerary.

Use the November candle product page for the $60 price, one-hour duration, 8 oz tin, 21-plus rule, and exact session choices. Put the day and time in the checkout memo and keep the booking details with your travel plan. The published phone is the one given above, and the venue is the Amsterdam Avenue craft shop. Karpo APP can help pair the class with an Upper West Side meal. The appeal is a concise adult workshop with a clearly defined object, rather than an open-ended craft session.