Meet Amanda

I'm Amanda, and I run Isle & Wild from my studio in Alexandria, Virginia, with my soulmate cat Rajah supervising every pour.

By day, I work in nonprofit conservation. This is my nights-and-weekends passion project—a space to create things I love and support animals who need it.

Animals have always been my thing. Growing up in Maine, I was the kid who wanted every pet and worried about every creature. But it wasn't until I was an adult—learning how to really care for animals, fostering, navigating vet bills, seeing how the system fails people and pets—that I knew I wanted to do something about it.

My career took me through climate advocacy, faith-based organizing, and conservation. All meaningful, all mission-driven. But animals were always tugging at me in the background. Isle & Wild is how I finally made it happen.

I'm also someone who loves to gather people. A good dinner party, a cozy girls' night, a reason to light a candle and sit with people I care about—that's my happy place. I believe the right scent can turn an ordinary evening into something you remember. That's part of what I'm building here too.

When I'm not making candles, you'll find me birding, reading a good book, dreaming of my next party, or pulling tarot cards. I'm a Sagittarius, I'm from Maine, and I'm so glad you're here.

Meet Rajah

Rajah is Isle & Wild's official quality manager and my constant studio companion for the past eight years. A survivor of a hoarding situation in upstate New York, he spent over three months at a shelter before finding his forever home with me. These days, he takes his quality control duties very seriously - inspecting every candle pour, testing the coziest spots in the studio, and ensuring that no candle goes unsniffed. His rescue story is exactly why Isle & Wild's mission matters so much: every animal deserves a safe, loving home and a second chance at happiness.

Plus - candles come with LOTS of boxes!

About Us

About Isle & Wild

Isle & Wild is a small business with a big heart for animals.

I relaunched this business in 2025 because I wanted it to mean something. I've spent years working in nonprofits, building programs that do good in the world—and I wanted Isle & Wild to be an extension of that. A place where your purchase actually helps.

At least 10% of every sale goes to animal welfare. Shelters. Pet pantries. Programs that help families keep their pets when times get hard. The places doing real work without enough funding.

Why Animals

Honestly? Because they can't ask for help themselves. Because I've fostered enough animals to know how much they deserve. And because when my cat Rajah had a scary accident in 2023, I learned firsthand how one vet bill can turn your world upside down.

That's when I started paying attention—to shelters, to pet surrenders, to families who just need a little support to keep their animals home. And I knew I wanted to do something about it.

How We Give Back

Every season, Isle & Wild supports a different animal welfare cause. I share where the money's going, what we're buying, and the animals it's helping—because I want you to see exactly what your purchase does.

Follow along on the blog or on social media for rescue stories, shelter spotlights, and updates from this little corner of the internet.

What We Do

Right now, Isle & Wild is mostly candles and other similar scented products. We do 100% soy wax, hand-poured and made with love. But we're growing.

New products are in the works, as are local events and downloadable kits that help you have sustainable, fun, low-cost and low-waste events to remember.