Naming a fragrance can be tricky, which I have come to find out! I want to convey what has gone into the scent but also make it catchy for the customer. It's a fine balance between being literal and also poetic!
Sniff, Sniff!
The hours I've spent smelling candles is nothing to be sniffed at (hehe.....). I have spent hours smelling each candle over these past years. Talking to myself and saying each chosen name out loud. As well as chatting to my ever patient husband over a glass of wine in the evening and getting his views and ideas.
The End Result
Little Village Candles has 11 permanent fragrances in its collection. Along with 2-3 limited editions that are released throughout the year. The names range from: Dark Honey & Tobacco, Bluebell and Red Rose to Waterlily & Sea Salt, Cassis & Fig and Pear & Vanilla. Each candle (I hope) gives the customer a good idea of what is in each fragrance and a heads up on the scent they will smell when their candle is lit.
]]>In candle making you must always plan ahead, I'm currently thinking about next years' scents (even Halloween!) and as the Christmas period is one of the busiest for a chandler we must always allow enough time for sourcing of our fragrances, testing, re-testing, and finally promoting our chosen Christmas scents.
Hearing jingle bells!
It's strange to be thinking about Christmas when summer hasn't even happened but I love to get an idea of what scents were a hit last Christmas, what my customers loved, and what they asked for which I, very annoyingly, didn't have. I have my trusted fragrance suppliers and like to go to them first. I peruse what they have in stock and order smaller fragrance samples that I can use in testing new candles. My husband's and children's noses get very confused smelling Christmas Pine in May!
LVC Christmas Candles are born!
Feeling Christmassey is all about the scent, in my opinion. Fragrance can make or break a candle and reed diffuser and, what I always want, when customers pick up a Little Village candle, is for them to not only smell the fragrance but FEEL it as well.
I knew that Frankincense & Myrrh was a hit from last year and therefore wanted to keep it coming back this year but I wanted to add another to the mix....enter Christmas Tree. When I initially sampled it I wasn't sure but WOW! once that first test candle was lit I was POSITIVE it was going to be my new Christmas candle for 2022. When lit you actually feel you are surrounded by Christmas Trees in a wonderfully snow filled pine forest. It's amazing and so enjoyable! It became clear then that my two Christmas candle scents would be Christmas Tree and Frankincense & Myrrh.
My Christmas mission for 2022 was accomplished!
Steph xx
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Although not needed in today’s modern age, living by candlelight in the evenings helps quiet the mind and as the Dane’s would say give you that Hygge feeling.
When we introduce candles into our daily life we can control the pace of our mind and our environment.
Some Reasons To Keep Burning Your Candles
1. CALMS THE MIND
Floral aroma like lavender and herbal aromas like peppermint have been proven useful in the treatment of various physiological disorders through aromatherapy - specifically burning an aromatherapy candle. The body and mind react significantly to scent.
2. IMPROVES MOODS
Scented candles can induce calm and alleviate stress. Some candles are even specifically created to support positive moods.
3. STIMULATES MEMORIES
Scent, emotion and memory are inexplicably intertwined. Scent can trigger the limbic system in the brain that is home to memory and emotions. It's truly amazing what our bodies/brain can do and remember. Even down to the smallest scent triggering memories.
Burning candles as part of your daily ritual can have a positive impact on your mental health.
I have spent the past few years learning about candle making and, WOW, have I learned some INFO! When starting my candle making journey I had no idea of the nuances and techniques involved to create a good quality candle. I want to share what I have learned with you.
Before taking the leap into making my own candles, I enjoyed buying and burning candles just like everyone else. Some candles were amazing, others didn't smell of much and some barely burned or had MASSIVE flames! Now I know what these issues mean and I want YOU to know as well as so when you part with your hard earned cash for a lovely candle - you get your money's worth.
One of the key elements of your candle is how that candle smells. Some candles lose their scent quicker than others, some claim to have more scent than any other candle. Let's be clear here - just like dissolving anything in liquid; wax has a limit to how much fragrance it can take. If a candle is made and the fragrance percentage is over the recommended amount for that wax..... a whole lot of stuff can happen when that candle is lit. The candle wax can bobble up and breakdown or a layer of oil can be present on the top of the liquid wax when burning, which is highly flammable and the fragrance oil itself can end up catching alight!
Just as candles that are too fragranced can cause damage; a candle that isn't fragranced enough won't be dangerous but it does mean that either that candle company hasn't tested is wax and fragrance ratio enough or they just cut corners and haven't added enough fragrance. Some companies do a 2nd pour of wax to fill in any imperfections when the wax sets the first time around - there is nothing wrong with this and is a way for the candle maker to smooth out any imperfections....BUT sometimes the 2nd top up is the only part that is scented which means as you burn the candle the scent dissipates. A good candle will smell amazing right to its last burn.
Scent throw is a term that you might have heard before. There is hot and cold scent throw. Most people want their candle to smell lovely when it's not lit as much as when it is lit. There is a science to this and any chandler worth their salt will have tested and retested their chosen candle fragrance with their chosen wax and even their chosen wick can make a huge difference to this. You might find that you buy a great smelling candle and when you light it you get nada. Could be so many variables (as you have read above) .