Remember that time you wanted to make your house smell like Christmas? Remember buying the ‘Holly Berry’ candles only to get them home with little more to show for it than the warm glow of candle flame? Remember making that promise to yourself to never get caught in that scam again? Candles, like any other purchase, fall under the guideline, ‘you get what you pay for.’ If you only pay fifty cents for a votive, then a half dollar worth of scent is what you will get. On the other hand, when you buy a quality scented candle, you can bring a room alive with aroma.
Quality Petroleum-based Candles
The most well-known candles are those, like Salt City and Yankee, which are paraffin or petroleum-based. These candles bring a room alive with scents like “Home for the Holidays” and “Blueberry”. The Yankee Candle Company began as a Christmas gift to Mommy in 1969 and has grown into a publically traded stock on the New York Stock Exchange. Yankee Candles are known for their rich aromas and are one of the premier quality scented candles on the market.
With a similar ability to transform a room into a garden, Salt City Candles are one of the latest and greatest competitors in the market for quality scented candles. While young compared to Yankee, Salt City Candles hold their own when it comes to long-lasting aroma. Recently, this company has revived 19th-century techniques for molding their quality scented candles. Also, unlike Yankee, Salt City candles are beginning to make appearances on the shelves of better grocery stores across the country, which means that an additional stop on the way home is no longer necessary.
All Natural Quality Scented Candles
As of the early nineties, it was no longer necessary to have to use synthetic materials to create long-lasting good quality scented candles. An all-natural variety made from beeswax was already available across the country in stores like The Body Shop. The problem with beeswax, however, is the cost-prohibitive nature of the product. At nearly ten times the price of paraffin, most consumers avoid it.
In the late nineties, soybean wax was starting to be used to create an all-natural quality scented candle. These candles do not leave black soot behind and wash easily with soap and water. What’s more, they are comparable to the best petroleum-based candle in rich, delicious scent and approximately the same cost to consumers. While these all-natural varieties are not yet available on grocery store shelves, they may be purchased online or at your local natural market.
Whether you choose the all-natural or the more tried-and-true paraffin candle, always remember to purchase good quality scented candles. This way, you will always have more than a warm glow to show for your candle purchase.
