{"id":5487,"date":"2026-05-02T22:23:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-02T20:23:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lont-co.be\/?p=5487"},"modified":"2026-05-03T12:09:25","modified_gmt":"2026-05-03T10:09:25","slug":"meet-the-maker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atelierfelien.eu\/en\/meet-the-maker\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the maker - Felien"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"\"<\/span>
\n

Meet the maker, Felien<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n

When you buy from a small business, you\u2019re not buying from a warehouse or a big brand. You\u2019re buying from a real person, usually in my case in a slightly chaotic atelier, surrounded by candle wax, clay, half-finished ideas, and a to-do list that somehow never gets shorter.
<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n

So hi, I\u2019m Felien. The maker behind Atelier Felien.

The one pouring the candles, shaping the ceramics, packing the orders, answering the emails, planning launches, taking product photos, trying to keep her social media channels alive\u2026 and overthinking most of it somewhere in between. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

My path here wasn\u2019t exactly straightforward<\/h1><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Before starting Atelier Felien (previously Lont & Co) in 2020, I worked in biotechnology as a senior research associate. A very different world from handmade candles and ceramics, at least at first glance.\nBut that period shaped me more than you might think. It taught me patience, precision, how to solve problems, and how to keep trying when things don't work out straight away.

But even then, I always felt the need to create.
To make things with my hands.
To experiment even more.
To learn.
Om misschien zelf iets van mezelf op te bouwen<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n

It all started with candles<\/h1><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n

In 2016, I started making candles simply because I was curious. No plan. No 'real' vision.
Just a genuine interest and curiosity in learning how they were made and wanting to experiment with natural waxes myself. That curiosity slowly turned into something bigger.

And in 2020, after life gave me some signals in a way, I decided; somewhat terrified, if I\u2019m honest; to turn that hobby into a business. That\u2019s how Lont & Co was born.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

But it was not a straight line to success. Starting a business, with a newborn and a toddler running around, add to that the pandemic,\u2026 the first few years were just survival mode and figuring out things along the way...<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n

Then ceramics entered my life<\/h1><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n

And changed everything a little. My vision became a bit more clear.

Working with clay challenged me in a completely different way.
It\u2019s slower. Less predictable. More humbling.
And as someone who naturally leans towards perfectionism\u2026 it forced me to learn to let go a bit.

Clay doesn\u2019t care about you.
It cracks, warps, surprises you, and teaches patience whether you want it to or not.

\"Perfectly imperfect\u201d became more than just a phrase. It became part of how I create; and honestly, part of how I try to live too.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Building this business has changed me as much as the business itself<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Running a one-woman business while also being a mother, partner, and basically just a human trying to keep all the plates spinning\u2026 has stretched me in every possible way.

There have been doubts, lots of doubts and there still are.
Messy phases.
Moments of wondering if I was doing enough, doing it \u201cright.\u201d, growing fast enough because everyone around me seemed to grow exponentially and I felt stuck more times than not.

But I kept showing up or I tried too.

Not perfectly. Not (always) confidently.
But I did try to show up consistently, especially behind the scenes, in my atelier.
And the fact that things grow more slowly for me, with all the ups and downs, is pretty much a reflection of real life.

It\u2019s messier than people think.
It\u2019s slower than you hope.
And it\u2019s more uncertain than expected.
But worth it, so worth it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Life outside the studio<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n

When I\u2019m not working, you\u2019ll usually find me:

\u2022 walking through a forest
\u2022 in the garden with my hands in the soil
\u2022 playing with Diva & Diego
\u2022 drinking hot chocolates from a handmade mug while dreaming up new ideas
\u2022 Seeing my kids growing & thriving (while fighting)
\u2022 listening to music while working
\u2022 or daydreaming of travel destinations.

I\u2019m also:
\u2022 someone who sneezes exactly three times when stepping into sunlight
\u2022 someone who loves asking questions
is always cold
\u2022 slightly obsessed with bees
\u2022 quietly holding onto the dream of one day renovating a farmhouse with enough land for a bigger atelier, a flower field, animals, and a lot of trees, a forest even.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n

Why I do this<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Atelier Felien was never just about making products.

It is about building a life around creativity.
Around curiosity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n

It\u2019s proof to myself that you do not need to have everything figured out before you begin.
You can start scared.
You can change direction.
You can and should evolve.
You can build something beautiful slowly, one step at a time.
You're allowed to go slow.
But there\u2019s one lesson I\u2019m still learning every day, and it\u2019s the only \u2018must\u2019; you really do have to show your work.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Thank you<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re here reading this; whether you\u2019ve supported Atelier Felien from the beginning or only just found me; thank you.

Supporting handmade means supporting a real person, a real dream, and all the messy, beautiful in-between that comes with building it.
And I\u2019m so grateful you\u2019re here for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warmest wishes,
Felien <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When you buy from a small business, you\u2019re not buying from a warehouse or a big brand. You\u2019re buying from a real person, usually in my case in a slightly chaotic atelier, surrounded by candle wax, clay, half-finished ideas, and a to-do list that somehow never gets shorter.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5398,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"disabled","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[63],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5487","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-atelier-felien"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t