Millvale Woman Making Popular Hand Painted Chocolates
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Wild Card in Lawrenceville is a go-to place for eclectic Valentine's gifts. It's one of three area stores selling locally made, hand painted chocolates.
In case you think they're manufactured by a large company, guess again. They actually are made in a tiny, one-woman shop in Millvale.
Amanda Wright says she and her husband opened their shop in June.
"We don't actually paint the chocolate once it has its shape. We're actually painting the mold," she said.
It's really colored cocoa butter. After the hand painting, the mold is sprayed with another shade. The company name, A519, is a combination of Amanda's first initial and birthday. The California native has a degree in neuroscience.
"I was working in the research field for a couple of years, and really wanted to pursue the baking and pastry side of things. And I took a big leap of faith, and went to pastry school," Wright said.
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Her shop is another leap of faith.
Mary Lou Bradley and her husband stopped by Friday to pick up 200 custom made truffles for their Paint Monkey studio.
"We're going to have them as favors for customers who come in for Valentine's classes this weekend," she says.
Amanda Wright sells mostly to corporate clients and online customers. Though her Valentine candy is sold out, she still has a few boxes of other chocolates left.
She says she works sixty hours a week, and loves every minute.
"I decided to do that early in life while I could capitalize on it, rather than looking back and wishing I had done that," Wright said.
