How to Find the Best Candles

You're at a local market, you stop at a candle booth, the aesthetic and scent selection is perfect, but you have the lingering doubt that you're not sure if your dream candle is well-made and will perform well. This article gives you some of our key tips for picking the best candles at local markets (while weeding out the poor quality ones).

The first obvious step is to smell as many candles as you please! We chandlers truly want you to find your favorite scents. Take your time to think it through; there is no rush. We enjoy seeing our candles being enjoyed. Plus, you being at home in our booth encourages more customers to stop and do the same! You are not in the way at all by taking your time. 

Also, make sure to check the labels. Serious candlemakers will follow labeling guidelines. Check for details like the candle weight (in oz and g), the business location, and a warning label with three safety icons. If the labels don't follow proper guidelines, that is a good indication that the maker is not invested in their work. 

Ask the chandler what their testing process looks like. High quality candles undergo extensive testing for scent throw and wick size to ensure they perform well over time. The best candles will have been tested not only for their wick/fragrance/jar combo. Can the chandler ensure the candle jar is made to withstand intense heat? Do they know approximately how fast the burn pool will reach the sides of the jar? Do they use different sizes of wicks for different fragrances, even with the same jar size? These kinds of questions will tell you a lot about the chandler's process.

Here's another fun part for candle nerds: try to analyze the cold throw. A balanced fragrance will have a good variety of fragrance notes. Cheap candles often only use "high" notes that are picked up easily (think lavender, Fraser fir, and lemon). Premium candles balance these high notes with "heart" notes and "base" notes as well (like sandalwood, apple, and benzoin). 

Put the chandler to the test by asking about the candle's hot throw. Balanced fragrance matters when you burn your candle because the heart notes and base notes will be what carries the scent experience past the first 20 minutes after lighting. When you first light your candle, the high notes will be clear, but as time goes on, the heart notes and base notes become more apparent. When burning, it won't smell exactly like it does on the shelf. Ask the chandler how the fragrance changes when burning if you feel unsure!

Ultimately, you need to enjoy what you put in your home. These tips are just meant to help give you confidence in your purchases! Have fun shopping at local markets this season! We hope you find candles you love.