Handcrafted light,
since 1991.
A candle company built around one idea — simplicity. Pure US beeswax, cotton wick, and the quiet mountains of western Colorado.
Founded by Jon Kornbluh in 1991 and handmade in Montrose, Colorado. Three wax lines: Pure Beeswax (100% US-sourced beeswax cappings, cotton wick), Aromática (vegan coconut wax + phthalate-free fragrance), and Beeswax Botanica (beeswax + essential oils). Tapers, pillars, tea lights, votives, refillable glassware. Sold direct-to-consumer and through the Montrose retail workshop.
One founder, thirty-four years, one material.
Bluecorn began in 1991 when Jon Kornbluh started hand-dipping beeswax tapers in a small workshop in Colorado. Thirty-four years later, the operation is still based in Montrose, Colorado, on South Townsend Avenue — and the candles are still made by hand, by a team Jon still runs. The brand's parent company is Hand Crafted Light Inc. The retail Cafe, Mercantile, and Workshop are all at the same Montrose address.
The founding idea is simple and has not changed: use pure, simple ingredients. The pure line is 100% US-sourced beeswax cappings — the honey-harvest byproduct that leaves the comb intact for the bees to reuse. Jon has been buying beeswax from US apiaries for over thirty years. The wicks are always cotton or a paper-cotton blend, lead-free by US federal standard since 2003, and hundreds of wick geometries are test-burned per batch to match each candle's diameter.
Two expansion lines round out the catalog without leaving the brand's material ethic: Aromática uses a vegan coconut-based wax with phthalate-free fragrance — a scented option for people who prefer a cooler, longer-throw scent than beeswax naturally carries. Beeswax Botanica is 100% beeswax scented only with essential oils. Neither line uses paraffin, soy, or palm. The whole catalog comes from three wax decisions, not fifteen.
— Drawn from Bluecorn's own About page + live brand communications. Bluecorn Candles / Hand Crafted Light Inc., 1842 S Townsend Ave, Montrose CO 81401.Three waxes, on file.
Pure Beeswax
FLAGSHIP LINE · 100% US-SOURCEDHarvested as cappings — the wax seal bees build over filled honeycomb cells. Cappings are cut off during honey harvest, leaving the comb itself intact for the bees to reuse. Jon Kornbluh has been sourcing from US apiaries for 30+ years. The ivory color option is gently bleached; raw beeswax retains its natural honey-amber tone. Burn characteristic: warm, slow, honey-adjacent scent from the wax itself.
Coconut Wax
AROMÁTICA LINE · VEGAN · SCENTEDA vegan coconut-oil-based wax used only in the Aromática scented-candle line. Paired with phthalate-free fragrance (Prop 65 compliant, dye carriers are vegetable-oil, not on OSHA 29 CFR 1910 hazardous list). Chosen over paraffin + soy for cleaner throw and the ability to carry scent more brightly than beeswax naturally does. Not paraffin, not soy, not palm.
Essential Oils
BOTANICA LINE · ESSENTIAL-OIL SCENTED BEESWAXFor the Beeswax Botanica line: 100% beeswax scented with essential oils only, no synthetic fragrance. Subtler throw than Aromática but keeps the pure-ingredient ethic across the whole line. Wicks here are the same cotton / paper-cotton blend as every other Bluecorn SKU.
Four commitments we can actually prove.
Specific claims, not vibes. Each pledge is concrete and measurable — nothing relies on marketing language.
Carbon Emissions — 100% Offset
Bluecorn offsets 100% of operational carbon emissions through verified offset programs. Brand-stated; offsets are standard third-party verified carbon credits.
Tree Planting
The brand plants one tree for every 200 branded shipping boxes used — a multi-year program that ties the pacing of physical packaging to reforestation.
Refillable Glassware
Blown-glass candle holders are designed to be refilled — Bluecorn sells beeswax refills that reuse the same vessel. The glassware itself is Mexican-blown with recycled content in many formats.
Home-Compostable Refill Pouches
Aromática refill pouches are home-compostable (not just commercial-compostable) — meaning they break down in a standard residential compost bin, not only in industrial facilities.
Twelve candles from the catalog.
Hand-Dipped Beeswax Taper Candles - 1 Pair
Heavy Glass Votive Candle Holders - 50% Recycled Glass
Hand-Dipped Beeswax Taper Candles - Bulk 4-Pair Bundle
Aromática Scented Candles
Pure Beeswax Tea Light Candles
Ivory Pure Beeswax Pillar Candles
Pure Beeswax Pillar Candles
Pure Beeswax Votive Candles
Candle Wick Trimmer
Candle Wick Adjuster
Metal Trinket Tray - Steel
Candle Snuffer
How to burn a Bluecorn.
Every candle category has one to three rules that double its useful life. These are ours.
Trim the wick
Before every light — trim the cotton wick to ~1/4 inch (6 mm). An untrimmed wick mushrooms, smokes, and throws soot. Bluecorn's wick trimmer is the tool designed for this. This one habit roughly doubles clean-burn time.
First burn = full pool
On the first light, let the entire top layer of wax melt wall-to-wall before blowing out — typically 2-3 hours for a pillar, 1 hour for a votive. Short first burns cause tunneling and permanently reduce total burn time.
Burn 1 hour per diameter-inch
A 3-inch pillar should burn for roughly 3 hours per session. Beeswax needs time to establish and maintain the melt pool. Long sessions burn clean; very short sessions don't.
Snuff, don't blow
Blowing extinguishes the flame but often leaves a smoldering wick that smokes. A snuffer (Bluecorn sells one) cuts oxygen cleanly with no smoke, no scent shift. The wick adjuster is for re-centering after cooldown.
The handbook.
Short answers to the questions that actually change a purchase decision.
Is Bluecorn's beeswax really 100% US-sourced?
Yes — Jon Kornbluh has been buying beeswax from US apiaries for over 30 years, sourced as cappings (the honey-harvest byproduct). The ivory beeswax may be gently bleached; raw keeps its natural honey-amber tone. The brand does not claim single-apiary or organic-certified beeswax — it's multi-source and conventional-grade.
Is the glassware Made in USA?
The candles are handmade in Montrose, Colorado. The blown-glass holders are made by Mexican artisans — Bluecorn is explicit about this, not hidden. Many glass SKUs also use 50% recycled glass content (listed per product).
What's the difference between the Pure Beeswax line and Aromática?
Pure Beeswax is 100% US beeswax with no fragrance — its natural honey-like scent comes from the wax itself. Aromática is a vegan coconut-wax line with phthalate-free fragrance — a stronger, cleaner scent throw for people who want scented candles without beeswax's characteristic warmth.
Are the wicks safe? Any lead?
Always cotton or a paper-cotton blend, never metal-core. Lead wicks have been federally banned in US candles since 2003 (CPSC regulation) — no US-made candle uses them. Bluecorn goes further: the brand test-burns hundreds of wick geometries per batch to match diameter for clean-burn performance.
Is Bluecorn B Corp or organic-certified?
We could not find Bluecorn on B Corp, organic, or other third-party sustainability certification registries as of this writing. The sustainability commitments (carbon offset, tree planting, compostable refill pouches, refillable glass) are brand-stated and look substantive, but they are not third-party-audited certifications. If a specific cert matters for you, ask the brand directly.
What's a good first Bluecorn purchase?
The flagship — Hand-Dipped Beeswax Taper Candles (1 pair), the highest-inventory SKU in the catalog with over 16,000 units on file. Tapers give you the brand's founding product, a clean single-session burn, and low commitment ($10.50/pair). If you want scent, try an Aromática candle tin (8oz) — good introduction to the coconut-wax line.
Trim the wick.
Light the taper.
Forty-two SKUs, 59,000+ units on file, 34 years on the same Colorado workshop floor. Shop the full Bluecorn catalog.
Shop the Catalog → — Curated Sense · Handbook 016 · 2026
