Home Fragrance

By Kirsten January 27, 2018 lifestyle

There is a drawer in my house that is the best smelling drawer of all time because it is chock full of candles. I am obsessed. I find nothing more relaxing on a Friday evening than putting my jammies on, picking a movie and lighting a beautifully-scented candle. I tend to buy the same ones on repeat and try to buy candles made with natural wax whenever I can, such as soy wax or beeswax.

If luxury is what you're after, Jo Malone is the obvious place to start. I've been in love with Jo Malone fragrances for years now - I wore Pomegranate Noir perfume on my first date with my boyfriend and to this day he'll ask whether or not I'm wearing "first date" when he sniffs out my signature scent! It's dark, rich and fruity, absolutely perfect for these dark, miserable, winter nights. But I'll be straight with you: Jo Malone's candles are ridiculously overpriced. It's £45 for a 200g candle that burns for approximately 45 hours. Estée Lauder are also notoriously cagey when it comes to what type of wax is in Jo Malone candles. Even when emailed and asked directly, they respond that the candles are a mix of natural and paraffin wax, but won't reveal the ratio! I think it's fairly safe to assume that Jo Malone candles are almost exclusively paraffin wax with only a tiny proportion being natural wax. That means they don't burn cleanly. Despite this, I still love them. The delicious scent more than makes up for the candles shortcomings and I can't say I've ever really noticed too much soot or smoke - unless I forget to trim the wick!

Another candle I love is L'occitane En Province Jasmin & Bergamote. It smells incredible before you've even lit it. My current candle has been sitting on my bookshelf for three months and I can smell it as soon as I walk in the room. The fresh citrus smell is nicely balanced with white floral and a little bit of spice! The frosted glass jar is also particularly pretty and will make the perfect makeup brush pot once it's wax-free. Whilst writing this post, I was distraught to discover that the candle is no longer listed on the L'occitane website. I'm hoping this doesn't mean it's been discontinued but I'll savour the burn of this one, just in case.

My mum is a huge fan of Neom candles, although her favourite scent is Luxury (no surprise to anyone), whereas mine is Happiness. Another citrus offering, this fragrance includes a lush blend of neroli, mimosa and lemon. A huge tick in the Neom box is that it's hand poured using 100% natural vegetable wax, meaning the scent throws beautifully without any smoke or soot and they burn totally evenly. The Happiness range is also enormous - there are candles in at least three sizes, a room mist, a reed diffuser, bath oil, hand balm, body wash, hand wash, a body scrub...you get the idea. Go forth, buy it, you're welcome.

Finally, a dupe! I love Jo Malone, but the paraffin wax is off-putting for a lot of people (no point denying it, Estée Lauder. Wee tip for you there). I discovered this alternative during a spa break with my Mum - Time & Tide Lime, Basil and Mandarin. This is just one of many mouth-watering scents offered by Time & Tide. It was hard to choose between them, so I didn't; I bought three. In case you didn't believe me at the start, I'm an addict. I also bought Black Pomegranate and Wild Fig and Grape. They beat Jo Malone on two counts: they are made with 100% natural wax and they are incredibly inexpensive - 300g of candle, 50 hours burn time, for the bargain price of £15. You read that right - £15. A third of the price of Jo Malone for a bigger candle.

What are your thoughts on candles - waste of money or a relaxing evening essential?

♡

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