We are proud to stock House of Aeros' hand-poured sculpture candles in the Hellenic Museum Shop. The small business run by Stacey and Steven Paneras, partners in life and in art, was born out of lockdown and has since been featured in Vogue, Afterpay Australian Fashion Week and Fashion Journal.
Taking the concept of candle art to a whole new level, House of Aeros creates wax replicas of some of history’s most iconic marble masterpieces. Michelangelo’s famous Renaissance sculpture of David and the ancient Greek Venus de Milo find new life as scented candles. These candle-sculpture hybrids are handmade in Melbourne and offer a chance to add a luxury piece of art to your own living room. The couple have managed to successfully juggle their side hustle alongside full time jobs and we are just in awe of their design aesthetic. We spoke to co-founder Stacey about her Greek heritage, House of Aeros’ inception and her love of mythology.
Tell us a bit about House of Aeros, how did you begin the business?
The magic started on our honeymoon to Italy and Greece. Together, we fell in love with the beautiful architecture, museums and art history of each city. During the first lockdown, with all our spare time, our post honeymoon ‘woes’ kicked in which brought about the concept of House of Aeros.
What was your inspiration for House of Aeros?
Our culture and heritage is the root of our brand. We love that ancient history is never just a ‘phase’ and it inspires people around the world every day. Each piece we have created is a popular sculpture that has been visited by thousands of people every day in major cities across the world. People travel many miles and many hours to visit these beautiful masterpieces. With travel currently restricted, we wanted to find a way to bring these figures of history to the comfort of peoples home in Australia.
Tell me about your connection to your Greek heritage and what inspires you about your culture?
Both Steve and my grandparents were born in Greece and moved to Australia to provide a better life for their families. They made incredible sacrifices to create a prosperous future for themselves and their children. They also worked hard to keep our Hellenic traditions alight in order to pass on to the next generations. They are truly our inspiration and main driver. We endeavour to bring part of their heritage and culture into our homes to keep their history, learnings and upbringings alive.
What do you love most about Greek mythology?
Greek mythology has continued to immerse itself into today’s world and shaped a great deal of our social customs. It continues to be an imaginative and captivating source of inspiration for many authors, poets and artists of our time. It’s amazing to see what contemporary significance it has maintained over the years for creative designers and businesses.
Who is your favourite character from mythology?
Eros of course! The Greek god of love, passion and physical desire.
What do you want people to glean about Greek culture through House of Aeros?
We wish to spark an interest in Greek culture and history, bringing it to life in today’s modern world. It excites us to see people share our product, whether it be through gifts for friends or on social media and spreading the House of Aeros name.
What is your favourite candle and scent from your collection?
We love the Caryatid we created; she is our favourite statement piece from the collection. Baltic Amber is our favourite scent, however we do tend to burn White Christmas…all year around!
How did you choose the name of your business?
We wanted an Australian twist on the name of the Greek god Eros, the god of love. We wanted to create our own ‘house of love’.
Why is it important that people have a piece of Greek history in their homes?
To create a fusion between ancient history and the modern world so it stays relevant and sustains itself through changing styles and trends.
What is the future for House of Aeros?
A baby Aeros due in March (eeep)!! Between having a baby, we have a few new and exclusive sculptures in the works, watch this space! We are also excited to be entering more of the event scene with upcoming weddings and event styling.
The entire House of Aeros collection is available at our Museum Shop including The David, the Venus de Milo, the Caryatid and the Plato head, with more stock on the way! Using a soy wax blend and premium fragrances, each candle is made-to-order and intended to be a statement piece for any room.
We love profiling local artisans who embody our ethos of colliding old and new Hellenism. Thank you for your time Stacey; we look forward to the reveal of your new sculptures and best of luck with baby Aeros!