EFSTATHIA TANJI: Shine Your Light!

EFSTATHIA TANJI: Shine Your Light!

EFSTATHIA TANJI: Shine Your Light! 1920 1080 Kanika


What’s one non-tech item in your home that instantly calms you down and has the power to transport you to another place? For me, it’s my Bodewell Living candle. The scents are an experience all their own, and lighting the candle and watching the wax melt into a pool is a meditative exercise in itself.

Bodewell Living came from humble beginnings and has grown over 250 doors across the US and Canada including Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, HeyMama-owned Paynes Grey (an interior design site), Ojai Valley Inn and more. It was a fast and furious trajectory from zero to explosive. Founder Efstathia Tanji, lovingly known as Effie, started this tiny business in 2018. She sold candles out of the back of her SUV at her daughter’s soccer practices. Friends told friends who told their friends and BAM! bodewell was born. But it wasn’t easy. Retail giants took notice and Effie found herself drowning under the demands of packing and shipping out of her kitchen day and night. While her dreams materialized before her eyes, she lost sight of what was truly important. Her family. Her community. Her own self.

Over time, she has found her place in this world. Effie says, “The world is full of wonder, magic, and endless possibilities. There is space for each and every dreamer, maker, poet, designer, doctor, mother, fighter, believer. This is a time for collaboration over competition. It is a time for transparency and kindness. It is a time for personal as well as global awareness and growth. It is a time to give what you can and ask for what you need.”

Effie is the Founder, Designer, Storyteller, and Dreamer of bodewell living. She created it because she wanted to show her children that one could build something from nothing. That you could nurture what seems impossible. That you could scream out in failure and giggle in surprise. That you could build day and night. You could water and wait. You could hold your breath in anticipation. You could watch that something grow.

Effie resides in Playa Vista California with her husband Shawn, a firefighter captain and business partner (firefighter and candle maker) Ella, Nico, and Lexei.

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