This Charming Candy: Vegan, Nut-free, and More!

Great news! Our lollipop colors are now officially vegan, and we haven't had to compromise their beauty one bit. This adds to the checklist of attributes for This Charming Candy; our products are naturally:

• gluten free
• dairy free
• fat free
• and now, vegan!
• and nut free:

We've verified that the flavorings we use for Pistachio and Hazelnut are actually nut-free, which is great news too. Although in my experience, the nut-allergic tend to be nut-averse in terms of taste, so being able to have a Hazelnut-Coffee or Pistachio Marshmallow flavored lollipop might not rate all that highly anyway :-)

Last year we sourced a soy-free non-stick spray for coating our candy molds, so we are almost soy-free as well. The two exceptions are the Birthday Cake flavor, whose adorable candy confetti inclusions contain soy, and the forthcoming Quince + Honeysuckle flavor, which contains soybean oil as a carrier for one of the flavorings.

We're happy to be able to remove unnecessary allergens from our products and increase the number of people who can enjoy them. One ingredient we aren't going to budge on is sugar, however!

Four New Summertime Flavors

A little over a month ago, I mentioned we were working on some new flavors this year... I'm excited to announce that we're about to put four incredible flavors into production next week! They are:

Rosemary Lemonade ~ this lollipop combines classic, refreshing Lemon with a dash of pine-y Rosemary to elevate the taste to a fancy, sophisticated level. My favorite rosemary lemonade makers at Seattle's Cafe Flora know that the key to enhancing this drink is to use the proper proportions. I think we've succeeded.

Seattle's Sweet Anthem Handmade Perfumes developed three more flavors with us. Owner Meredith and I have long admired each other's businesses, and we decided to join forces to explore combinations that play up the associations of scent and taste. This collaboration, which we call Flower + Sugar, resulted in three enchanting homages to summertime:

Champagne + Rose ~ fans of rosewater might go bonkers for this one. It combines the softness of rose with a glimmer of champagne in a light, sweet celebration.

Blackberry + Hibiscus ~ a little tartness from hibiscus flower combines perfectly with juicy, ripe, Pacific Northwest blackberries. It's an addicting combination.

Quince + Honeysuckle ~ the lush, heady nectar of honeysuckle and the sweetly mild, almost banana-like essence of quince.

Soon, Meredith and I will introduce her side of this collaboration, and how we'll combine our products into cute gift sets.

In the meantime, I'm scheduled to make these flavors early next week, and they can be pre-ordered singly as part of the "Mixed Bag" listings:

• Seattle area customers, ordering from our Zaarly store includes home delivery for less than the cost of shipping through Etsy would be!
• Outside Seattle, of course we ship world wide from our Etsy shop!

On a personal note, I'm really proud of all four of these flavors, and I truly can't wait to hear what you think about them. 

May Zaarly Bazaar

If it seems like This Charming Candy a nearly endless string of events going on, it feels like that to me too! I really do love getting out in the community to meet people and get the word out about all the deliciousness we have to offer. I believe June will be more quiet than May or July, though :-)

This Thursday is the May edition of the Zaarly Bazaar at the Museum of Flight. Admission is free, and gives you a $20 credit towards the purchases you make there. This is such a fantastic and low-risk way to try cool stuff from local businesses. I can personally recommend:

• Pampeana Empanadas - I like the veggie sampler. My favorite flavor is roasted corn... yum
• Deluxe Foods - I've been stirring Gingered Rhubarb jam into my morning oatmeal, and it's amazing

You can sign up here: https://zaarlybazaarsea.eventbrite.com/ and I hope you'll come if you can!

Flavor Tasting at Chihuly Garden & Glass

This weekend is the 1-year anniversary of the Chihuly Garden & Glass center opening. Congratulations to them! Many exciting events are planned throughout the weekend, one of which is a lollipop tasting in the gift shop on Sunday from 11-2 (or until the samples run out, so get there early!)

Pistachio Marshmallow hard candy samples

I've prepared several hundred hexagonal gem-shape sample pieces in Pistachio Marshmallow and Root Beer Float flavors.

Sample piece of Pistachio Marshmallow flavor

If your Sunday plans take you anywhere near Seattle Center, please stop in for a taste!

updated to clarify:
Admission to the exhibition is not required to attend the tasting, but we really encourage you to check it out. Sunday's celebratory events include "Family Day" and "Painting with Dale"!

Portland Loves Root Beer Float

Thank you, Portland, for another fun and successful Crafty Wonderland this past weekend! We hope you're enjoying your lollipops, like this delightful customer who exclaimed, "Black Pepper Melon is amazing!" Yes, yes it is.

Happy customer with a Black Pepper Melon lollipop

Even more popular than Black Pepper Melon, though, was Root Beer Float. Astonishingly, it even out-sold Salted Caramel and I'm not sure that's ever happened before! With their rich, well-rounded flavor and adorable dash of powdered sugar decoration, Root Beer Float lollipops are definitely awesome and we're excited to see that you folks agree. Nom!

Root Beer Float lollipops by This Charming Candy

We hope to be back again in December, with new flavors in tow. Until then, stay awesome, Portland. We love you.

Crafty Wonderland is Tomorrow!

We're hitting the road this morning for the Super Colossal Spring Sale, in beautiful Portland, OR! Just in time for Moms, Dads and Grads comes this art and craft extravaganza. We'll be in booth 32, slinging lollipops and joy to everyone.

Come & get your lollipops, by This Charming Candy!

Here's everything you need to know:

Saturday, May 11th, 201311am-6pm  

at The Oregon Convention Center - Exhibit Hall D777 NE MLK jr. Blvd.in Portland 

Crafty Wonderland is May 11th!