STANWOOD — The small convent of Orthodox Christian nuns in the Cedarhome neighborhood northeast of town is ready for Christmas.
The convent’s annual Christmas Festival at its Quiet Light Candles gift shop helps support the nuns, who spend much of each day in prayer.
To pay their living expenses, the nuns make and sell 100 percent pure beeswax candles.
From vats of 150-degree wax, the nuns fill molds and hold the wicks in place as the candles solidify.
More than 50,000 sweet-smelling tea lights and thousands of golden votives are produced each year and sold in the shop and from the Web site the convent manages.
When burned, the candles help clean the air and alleviate allergies, the nuns say.
The Quiet Light Candles shop also sells candle holders, a variety of handcrafted gifts made by local craftsmen and regional vendors as well as items from the Holy Land.
During the festival, families are invited to make their own candles and enjoy homemade cookies. The shop also is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. each Saturday throughout the year and by appointment.
“We’ve had visits from Bible study groups, the Red Hat ladies and others taking field trips,” said convent abbess Mother Thecla. “It’s nice to hear that some people do all their gift shopping here.”
The shop helps the sisters just get by, but it also attracts volunteers who come to help at the convent, she said.
“We look forward to seeing people who visit us year after year,” Mother Thecla said. “The candle shop has been a wonderful way to get to know the community.”
Gale Fiege: 425-339-3427; gfiege@heraldnet.com.
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