Jackie Aina Knows We're All Obsessed With Candles
Though it's been in the works for two years, Jackie Aina's debut of Forvr Mood—a candle, fragrance, and self-care brand—was timed perfectly. Even Aina was surprised by the serendipity of it all. In our new stay-at-home world, candles are having a moment. A great candle is transformative, mood-boosting, and a small moment of luxury. That's probably why the beauty YouTuber's first drop—four scented candles housed in chic, candy-colored jars—sold-out within minutes. The brand officially launches today with two new additions: silk pillowcases and headbands.
In a sea of new makeup brands from her peers in the influencer and Youtube community, Aina's decision to go the self-care route sets her apart, once again, as a trailblazer in the beauty industry. "I consider Forvr Mood more like a lifestyle slash self-care brand because it's all of the things that I like that aren't necessarily makeup related—but maybe sort of kind of related—but just honestly make my life easier. It's not a makeup brand. It's not necessarily a skin care brand either," Aina tells BAZAAR.com. To Aina, Forvr Mood is her own unique version of merch.
Forvr Mood is all about fragrance blended with self-care, whether that's in the form of a candle or something else. Aina launched with four playful candle scents: Caked Up (vanilla almond cream, pineapple, pistachio); Matcha Business (lavender, hazelnut coffee, matcha); Cuffing Season (salty lemon, violet, jasmine, white cedar); and Left on Read (coconut caramel, tropical fruit). Each is housed in a pastel jar that is begging to be Instagrammed. "I wanted something that encompassed all my favorite colors, which are pastels. millennial pink, pistachio, and mint. I didn't want it to look too juvenile, but I also didn't want it to look super, super, super deluxe," says Aina. "I wanted something in the middle. I wanted approachable luxury." At $35 each for the 100% coconut soy wax candles with a burn time of 65 hours, approachable luxury is exactly what Aina achieved.
Aina is arguable the most influential voice in beauty today, and she's collaborated in the past with brands like Too Faced and Anastasia Beverly Hills. When she announced her own brand Forvr Mood, she was quick to point out the the launch is not makeup—yet. "Anyone who's been watching my content long enough knows that I'm always obsessing over the way things smell," she says. "I've definitely been no stranger to candles and fragrance on my channel." On YouTube, Aina has amassed a following of 3.52 million subscribers who hang on her every word.
Jackie Aina makeup is definitely coming. "It just so happens that this is what was faster to produce. Makeup takes a long time, especially when you have a particular standard like I do. You can say that the makeup industry is is slightly oversaturated. Do I think that will affect me? Not necessarily. But I feel like you can never go wrong when you're attaching your name to something that you genuinely love," she adds. But before she launches makeup, Aina is venturing into "light skin care slash self-care" next under the Forvr Mood umbrella.
It's clear that Aina is passionate about fragrance. She spent months going back and forth with the manufacturer to nail down the four scents. In fact, the first fragrance that Aina created for her new brand was not even included in the launch. "It's not what some people would expect for me. It's not as it's not as cupcake-y and sticky sweet, like what I usually like. It's definitely warm, a little bit of an elevated scent. It's a little bit more grown and sexy and it's perfect for the holidays."
It only makes sense then that Aina wouldn't just be a casual candle burner, and in fact has an entire candle routine. "At the beginning of the day I may start my candle ritual at around 10:00 a.m. and then stop by 4:00 p.m. because we're not supposed to burn them all day," she says. "I may like cap them just to give them a rest and then I'll light something else. When you walk into our house, you're not smelling just one fragrance, you're smelling like the combination of everything. And that's what I like, because it makes me it makes me feel like my home has its own custom scent."
The beauty influencer's skin was glowing—but mostly bare—when we spoke to her over Zoom while working from home in Los Angeles. Aina sticks to minimal makeup when she's not filming, so we wondered what her take is on the future of beauty in a post-pandemic, makeup-averse world. "I mean, honestly, it's hard to say because I've never lived through a pandemic. People may be even crazier about makeup when we get out of this. People may not care about makeup when we get out of this. I have no clue. But personally, I'm ready to take on anything and everything. I feel like there's room for all of us in this industry," she says. "I kind of feel like even pre-pandemic, we were already moving towards skincare/makeup hybrid products. I'm here for it. And I feel like that's the beauty of YouTube—it's a constantly evolving industry."
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