There's always time to get into candles, and if you aren't already, chances are this year might be your turn to transform your house into a softly glowing, scented haven.
Whether you're a long-term fan of the best home fragrance buys, or a recently converted devotee, it's impossible to deny the refreshing mixture of scent and aesthetics that the best candles on the market bring into your home. Adding to the ritualism of domestic life, these compact and ever-diverse décor accessories have the power to turn a bad day into a good one, and all simply by doing what they know best — burning.
Undeniably stylish, the best scented candles don't just stop at that: thanks to their whimsical, elegant, or sculptural designs, they even add a new layer to the dense tapestry of objects, furniture, and ephemera that is your house, keeping you company amid daily chores, setting the mood for your most anticipated social gatherings, and making your time alone as peaceful and regenerating as possible.
To guide you in unearthing the top scenting solutions that couple space-enhancing fragrance with bold looks, we have searched the internet, our favorite brick-and-mortar shops, and word-of-mouth knowledge — as well as our first-person impressions of tried-and-tested items — to present you with our edited selection of the best candles to purchase this year. Scroll to discover them all.
Shop the Best Candles
Size: 7.05oz
Life: 45hrs
Price: $56.00 (was $80.00)
Small rooms, be it a storage space or a rarely used guest bedroom, may not be the star of the house, but there's nothing that the right candle can't elevate, and this Jo Malone London English Pear & Freesia Scented Home Candle proves that. Forget the musty smell of the less-traveled corners of your house: thanks to its gentle, yet long-lasting, blend of English pear, white freesias, amber, patchouli, and smoky wood, this buy will breathe new life into your home's most secluded corners, leaving it scented in fresh flowers and herbal essences with just a hint of wintery woodland.
Size: 5.3oz
Life: 20hrs
Price: $34.00
This Found Notes candle, with its fresh mix of citrus fruits, crisp greens, and soulful amber, cypress, and sandalwood notes, and cedar, oak, and musk body, guides your guests past your entryway, striking a great first impression. Its fragrance cements your home entrance into a bridge between the indoors and the outside, prompting everyone who walks through it to give in to home-based relaxation and social life. Its balanced, albeit tangible, scent immediately conjures images of a house clean, tidy, and looked after, while its beautifully designed glass vessel serves as the first hint at an aesthetic dwell.
Size: 9.52oz
Life: 47hrs
Price: $14.99 (was $28.00)
Why buy a mushroom-shaped, expensive lamp when you can have a mushroom scented candle for less than a fifth of its price? Starting at just $14.99 (was $28.00), this Urban Outfitters whimsical find didn't only catch my attention because of its playful, and expensive-looking, feel, but also because of its atmospheric essential oil fusion, including patchouli, tonka, sweet jasmine, and tropical nectar. The ultimate housewarming ice-breaker, it exudes a warm, Murano glass-like soft glow when burning and will entertain your sight and smell simultaneously.
Size: 2.46oz
Life: 30hrs
Price: $42.00
Everyone dreaming of having a fireplace in their bedrooms will find a real gamechanger in this Diptyque Feu de Bois candle, and I am part of the crew. Slowly, and steadily, releasing its rare woods essence, it recreates the familiar, cozy atmosphere of "a crackling fire" without the danger involved in it. Having tried it in my own bedroom over several weeks, I can guarantee you you won't grow tired of its smoky forest fragrance, and that you'll become even more dependent on it on windy, rainy nights. Keep it on your bedside table for a pervasive experience, or on top of a distant shelf to let its scent embrace the room from above.
Size: 5.99oz
Life: 30hrs
Price: $120.00
In my recent article on scentscaping at dinner parties, Jo Malone London's Head of Fragrance and Lifestyle Celine Roux recommended choosing "scents that could already be in the room" to add fragrance to your kitchens. Besides the brand's own Green Tomato Vine candle, this LOEWE Home Scents' Tomato Leaves one is our favorite food-inspired fragrance. Not only is it organically delicious, but this earthy aroma is known to uplift you, imbuing you with the energy necessary to step up your culinary game and invent new creations. Made in Spain, it comes in a handcrafted, glazed terracotta earthenware jar, adding to its timeless allure.
Size: 9.52oz
Life: 55-65hrs
Price: $125.00
Much like smaller rooms in the house, bathrooms too can be overlooked when considering where to position our most cherished scenting finds. After trying it personally, I realized there is no better place for this lavish Cire Trudon candle than that: inspired by the Mediterranean lushness and beauty of Côte d'Azur, this Cyrnos fragrance combines green pine, juicy fig, and provençal lavender into one revitalizing buy. Using it in my windowless bathroom proved revolutionary, and helped me keep it, at once, welcoming and elegant for both me and my partner and our guests. To enhance it further, consider placing it opposite a fresh bunch of lavender or any other pleasantly fragrant flowers.
Size: 12.34oz
Life: 10hrs
Price: $150.00
LOEWE honeysuckle scented candle, handcrafted in Spain, is the totally unexpected kind of candle every quirky design lover will want to light up in their home. Described by reviewers as evocative enough to bring "memories of a summer morning" back to mind, its crisp, floral aroma is bound to add a touch of sweetness into your rooms, and plenty of style, too. It'd also be magic styled on a festive dining table!
Size: 28.21oz
Life: 60hrs
Price: $465.00
Sometimes candles are more of a decorative touch than a scenting home addition. In that case, I find this L'OBJECTS + Klaus Jürgen Schmidt sculptural piece to be one of the craftiest, most beautiful candles currently available on the market — and I hope you'll think the same. Charged with echoes of Greek mythology and classical art, this artful candle will fill your rooms with a fresh, citrussy vetivert fragrance and become a standout piece of your home collection.
Size: 8.1oz
Life: 35hrs
Price: $8.16 (was $27.21)
This Soak Sunday fragrance's combination of vanilla and honey makes it a soothing go-to for a cozy vibe before bed. The vanilla fragrance sits on the back burner without overshadowing the other notes, while the spring flower honey shines to create a subtly expensive-smelling fragrance. Packaged in fully recyclable materials, the jar is beautifully decorated and features two, smoothly and evenly burning wicks.
What Are the Best Candle Fragrances, and What Are Those Best Suited to?
Floral: Floral fragrances are best for lighting in spring and summer. Usually, they contain scents of rose and other flowers, and can sometimes be rather pervasive, which makes them best for larger rooms. This is a scent you can light anywhere in your home, from your living room to your bathroom.
Fruity: Not great for lighting in smaller rooms, fruity fragrances are usually sweet and contain ingredients such as pomegranate, lavender, or jasmine. They can easily be overpowering, but on the other hand, are great for masking smells. You can get good use out of a fruity candle in any room, though we would avoid lighting in the kitchen due to a clashing of smells when cooking.
Citrus: Citrus candles are ideal for lighting year-round, and they are also great for kitchens and bathrooms. Usually, they contain ingredients such as lime, orange, and grapefruit. You can leave a citrus candle lit for hours without noticing it becoming too tangible, although we recommend doing so in larger, airy spaces that will make the experience more enjoyable.
Herbal: To help you unwind after a long day, herbal candles are great for lighting in bathrooms and kitchens, and for ensuring your home smells fresh. They are usually scented using herbs such as mint, thyme, geranium, rosemary, and more, and work perfectly in wider rooms.
Ozonic: A bit like smelling fresh washing or sea air, ozonic candles are a go-to for many who want their homes to smell lovely, but subtly. You can light an ozonic candle anywhere in your home, but we suggest placing it in a middle ground (such as an entryway) to flood scent throughout your rooms. They also work well in a bathroom or a laundry room.
Spicy: Best for lighting in colder months, spicy candles are usually quite strong both when lit and before lighting. Crafted with sandalwood, cedar, or patchouli oils, spicy fragrances work well in larger rooms with big windows, mainly because of their smoky, on-the-nose underlayer.
Woody: Similarly to spicy fragrances, woody candles are ideal for fall and winter. They will be sure to add a slice of cozy to a room that might need it, although, since they can easily grow too overpowering, we recommend rotating them across different spaces. Woody fragrances are usually obtained from sandalwood, pine, patchouli, vetiver, and cedarwood.
What is the Best Candle Wick Material?
Candle wicks can be anything from wooden (for crackling candles) to cotton. Over the years, we've noticed that cotton wicks provide the most even, soot-free burn. So, where feasible, stick to that as your first choice.
How Can You Look After Your Candle?
Burn time: When first burning a candle, you'll want to keep an eye on it for a good few hours. Do not blow it out until the wax has evenly melted and has reached the sides — this is to prevent tunneling. You should do this as best practice every time you light it. On the other hand, you only want to light a candle for three to four hours at a time: past this time, it might begin to burn faster as the vessel will overheat.
Candle tools: You might want to invest in a candle snuffer to extinguish your candle safely and tidily. Using a wick trimmer can help prevent tunneling and should be used whenever the wick of your candle begins to curl. A wick dipper allows you to safely move your candle's wick to the position you want it while the wax is still hot. Sometimes, your wick may begin to lean to one side of the candle; that's when this tool can prove very helpful.
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