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  • Shari Fouch Prevost, of Suttons Bay, is developing a line of homemade soy and palm wax candles. Special to the Record-Eagle

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October 16, 2011

Northern People: Woman gets crafty

Shari Fouch Prevost: 'I don't want to let myself down'

By vanessa Mccray vmccray@record-eagle.com

TRAVERSE CITY — Shari Fouch Prevost likes to sew, paint and cook -- and tackle a multitude of crafty projects.

Now, she's adding candle-maker to the list and hopes to turn it from hobby to profession. In August, the Suttons Bay woman began planning Rootz, a candle company whose products she makes at home.

"I've always been the person that will go to an art fair ... and never buy anything because I'm going to go home and make it," she said.

That resulted in plenty of handmade crafty gifts for friends and family. After she began making candles, some of the recipients encouraged her to start a business.

A few life changes, including turning a milestone age, gave her the push to get started.

"It all kind of came together: I turned 40; I have the time to do it; I don't want to let myself down," she said.

Fouch Prevost hails from an entrepreneurial and adventurous family, and the name of her business, Rootz, refers to those deep ties. She credited one relative who made whatever was needed instead of purchasing it, be it a knife or a fishing pole.

She's experimenting with her candle making, perfecting scents and hoping to debut her line in time for Christmas shopping. Plans for a catalog and home parties are also in the works.

She uses materials purchased from Michigan vendors. Her favorite scents so far are lavender mint, mandarin plum, lemongrass and clean linen.

"I love to cook, so experimenting with the different scents is exciting to me," she said.

Scents trigger memories, and Fouch Prevost hopes her candles will be picked up as gifts or reminders of time spent in northern Michigan. One scent she'd love to replicate: the homey aroma of her great grandmother's cinnamon rolls. But, the marketing and naming might take some tweaking.

"I don't think anybody would want a candle called 'great grandma's buns,'" she joked.

She plans to have candles for sale at the annual art and craft show Merry Marketplace in Leland's Old Art Building Dec. 3 and will update her Facebook page at "Rootz -- a candle company" with more developments.

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