Hello, welcome! What a journey this has been.. 

It’s taken a lifetime of passions, dropped pursuits, and a little fortuity to get Parkhart Studio where it is today.

While growing up, I had a natural affinity for art and creativity. Doodles often adorned homework, diaries, and scraps of paper strewn throughout the house, though I never imagined to be an artist or maker. During my early twenties I studied for a bachelors degree in the Fine Arts of Interior Design, but as it often does, life had other plans, and I fell short of completion. The intrinsic passion for design and arts, thankfully, had a strong hold, and while I never attained my dream of becoming an interior designer, I found other ways to nurture my creative side. I just was not ready as a person to seriously pursue any dreams. 

For many years, much of my childhood and throughout my twenties, I struggled with crippling anxiety and depression. Coping with life was a full time job itself, and I was failing terribly, my title being “Master of Misery”. One thing that brought me any semblance of happiness during these dark years was painting, and today it still holds a special place in my heart. I am happy to report that I no longer see the sad and broken girl looking back at me in the mirror, but I remember her. It has taken years of intentional healing, an immense amount of pain, and learning to love fully to shed that former self. It is possible to turn our lives around, to seek beauty in the mundane, and to find the overflowing good in life.

My life began to change, inevitably, when my son was born. While he was an infant the doctors suspected that something may be wrong, and after months of plummeting weight and missed milestones, it was discovered that Brighton had a rare neurological condition, Bilateral Perisylvian Polymicrogyria. After that, life became awash with therapies, doctors appointments, and he was, of course, the center of all my attention. 

In 2018, a good friend and I got our babies together for a playdate while us moms crafted, our minds set on a cement bottomed pillar candle inspired by an article found on the internet. This is when Parkhart Studio became an idea, and after a few more years of experimenting and growing as a mother and person, it became a product that I could be proud of. 

Being able to provide for my son alone with a business I have created is something I have dreamed of. To see those dreams shift into reality is something I will forever be grateful to. 

Parkhart Studio’s namesake is in reference to my son and I, Brighton Parker and Nicole Hartley.

Thank you for supporting my small business, it means the world to me, and I hope that my candles and art bring some light into your world.