You may remember last month that I started a brand new blog series all about the candles I’d been burning? Well, I had such great feedback from you guys that I couldn’t wait to get started on a second ‘what I’ve been burning’ post. And today I’ve finally finished writing it up and am ready to share it with you all. I hope you enjoy it …
CANDLE BELLE WAX MELTS : HOT CINNNAMON, COOKIE DOUGH & SLUSH FAIRY
At the beginning of November I came across my old wax tart burner from Yankee Candle while I was clearing out a cupboard. And as I’d seen a huge list of gorgeous-sounding wax melts for sale at Candle Belle, I just couldn’t resist ordering some so I could use it again!
I bought a box of 9 melts for £13.95, and picked a wide range of different scents that I thought I would enjoy. And last month I tried 3 of the melts out in the burner. These were Hot Cinnamon, Cookie Dough and Slush Fairy. I hadn’t tried any wax melts from Candle Belle before, so I had no idea whether they smelt nice or now, how much scent they gave off or how long each tub would last for. Luckily, they were all fantastic and I’m so glad I decided to give Candle Belle a try.
So, as you would probably imagine, both Hot Cinnamon and Cookie Dough smell good enough to eat. And Slush Fairy reminds me a lot of the Snow Fairy scent that everyone seems to go crazy for at Lush towards Christmas. All 3 of the wax melts filled the entire downstairs of my house with scent, and even after the tealight had burned out you could still smell them for hours. I was really impressed!
According to the Candle Belle website, the melts have a burn time of 30-40 hours when used in an electric warmer, and 16-19 hours when used on a tealight one. As I said before I was really impressed with these, and I’ll definitely be repurchasing Hot Cinnamon and Cookie Dough when they’ve run out. I’m not quite as sure about Slush Fairy though as it’s just a little too sickly for my liking. Having said that though, the rest of the family have said this is their favourite of the 3, which shows that everyone has different tastes.
WOODWICK SUNSET BONFIRE TRILOGY CANDLE
Last month, lots of you asked if I’d ever tried Woodwick Candles. And I had to admit that I hadn’t! So I thought I’d pick up one of their awesome looking trilogy candles so I could feed back what I thought of them to you guys this month. It took me over an hour to decide which one to go for – but I eventually settled on one called ‘Sunset Bonfire’ which I thought was perfect for November!
Sunset Bonfire has 3 layers of coloured wax, and each of them has a different scent to them. The top layer is called Campfire Marshmallow, the second layer is Gold Spun Sugar, and the third layer is Sand and Driftwood. In my excitement I forgot to photograph the candle before I started burning it, but I noticed that the top two layers are about the same size, and then the bottom layer is much larger. This suited me just fine though as I love the smell of driftwood – it’s one of my faves!
Upon lighting the candle for the first time I noticed that the flame looked a little odd. In fact, it reminded me of the black flame candle from Hocus Pocus! But I think that may just be to do with the fact that the wick is made of wood, so it’s bound to look a little different to the more conventional candles. Woodwick candles also crackle as they burn, and I have to admit that I was surprised at how loud this one was. I could hear it crackling away over the sound of the TV! I’m not complaining though. The crackle reminds me of sitting at the side of an open fire, keeping myself warm. I love it. And after a little while you don’t even notice it.
During November I burned the majority of the top layer of wax. And it smelt amazing! It’s as if Woodwick toasted some delicious, gooey marshmallows and then just posted them to me in a jar. It’s that authentic! I found that the scent of this filled the whole house, and I was impressed at how evenly it burned. I just love it. I can’t wait to make a start on the second layer, and I’ll of course include my thoughts on this in a future ‘What I’ve Been Burning’ post.
CARD FACTORY PUMPKIN CHERRY PIE CANDLE
Next up I found this Pumpkin Cherry Pie scented candle that I bought from The Card Factory last Autumn. I remember burning this loads when I got it as it smells absolutely delicious. I’d say you can smell the cherry much more than the pumpkin, but that’s OK with me as I’m a massive cherry fan.
For a candle that was relatively cheap this actually gives of quite a lot of scent. It doesn’t fill more than one room at a time. But I usually burn it in the living room when I’m working, and you can smell it from wherever you sit. And the room is actually really big! The jar that this comes in is pretty much the same size as a large Yankee Candle, which I think shows great value for money. The only downside to it is that it has a tendency to tunnel while burning. But I guess I can’t really moan about that when I haven’t forked out loads of my hard earned cash for it.
I’m not sure how long these particular candles are supposed to burn for, but I remember using mine most of last November and for a good few weeks this year, yet there’s still a fair amount left in the bottom. I haven’t seen this particular fragrance on sale this year, but The Card Factory have a wide range of other scents available. I definitely think they’re worth a try!
NEXT MULLED WINE CANDLE
And last but not least I’ve been burning a new candle I picked up from Next recently. One that smells like Mulled Wine. Yes, the Christmassy scents have elbowed their way into my home already. Oops!
I came across this particular candle when I was shopping in Next for Christmas presents, and as soon as I lifted the lid the smell of mulled wine hit me. It was absolutely gorgeous and I just knew I had to have it. It’s just a shame it didn’t really live up to expectations when I got it home and lit it …
Firstly, it hardly gives off any scent. I found I had to sit smack bang at the side of it to smell it at all. And secondly, it tunnels from the off. The first time I lit this I left it for a good 8 hours, yet it just burned straight down. You can just about see from my picture that there’s loads of wax left at the top. Yet with the majority of my other candles, they burn well until they get to around half way. I honestly don’t think this will last for anywhere near the 55 hours of burn time that Next say it will.
I find these two things really disappointing as the candle itself looks absolutely beautiful. It comes in a shiny red jar with a black bow wrapped around it, and a charm with a dinky wine glass and bottle hanging from it. A lot of thought clearly went in to the design of the candle, so it’s a shame it doesn’t really live up to expectations. I picked up another candle from a different range at the same time though, so I’ll be interested to see how that compares to this one. Much better, I hope!
And there you have it, the November edition of what I’ve been burning! I hope you enjoyed reading, and don’t forget that if you have any recommendations for what I should try next, or there are any candles you’d like me to review for next months post then please let me know in the comments below.
Why not let me know what you’ve been burning recently too?
I always love to hear from you!
Twitter | Facebook | Bloglovin | Instagram | Pinterest
*All candles purchased with my own money
Copyright protected by Digiprove © 2016 Louise Smith
I’m surprised the wood candle burns so loudly too. I’d like to try one of those. I bet it is a cozy craackle.
Pretty candle containers are so nice for seasonal decorating. I love the seasonal smells and even though it is now December, I’m still burning pumpkin marshmallow. I’m about to switch to a Christmas tree scent. A good candle sets the mood like good music for me.
Shirley Wood recently posted…Cookies and Cocoa Christmas Party
Ohhh some very festive choices. I do like wax melts, they can really last some time lol sometimes I wonder if they are ever going to melt away xo
The Candle Belle wax melts sound divine, I love melts that actually diffuse the scent well and these sound like they do a wonderful job of it. I had no idea they made candles that crackle when they burn, I will have to try one of these, it sounds so cosy!
I’ve actually not heard of any of these brands before. I think I need to give some a try 🙂
I need all these in my life right now, I am a huge fan of candles and melts and all of these sound amazing
These all sound so festive! I’m also a big fan of wax melts so i’ll have to check those out!
Elodie recently posted…Gift Guide : For the Foodie
I love great candles! These candles sound amazing! I have to admit I am really curious about the Sunset Bonfire one, you can actually hear it crackle? Cool!
The candle belle waxes look great, never heard of them before so will have to pop over there and take a little look. Never tried a Woodwick candle before either. This one looks really great
Natasha Mairs recently posted…Getting Ready for Christmas with Baker Ross Christmas Crafts
I am so jealous I just love my candles and wish I could try these ones out as they are new to me – may have to add them to my wish list for Xmas
emma white recently posted…My Mother Raped Me When I Was A Young Boy
I have a crackling candle and I adore it, it sounds like an open fire and the smell from it is amazing. I love the sound of the Hot Cinnamon and Cookie Dough melts, I think I may have to purchase some x
Charli Bruce recently posted…Christmas Gifts For The Beauty Lover
Such a shame to hear about the Next candle – I’m on the hunt for festive candles at the moment – Matalan have some quite nice ones!
I have been burning Christmas scented soy candles lately. I love putting them on and watching the tree glisten. It is so relaxing.
Carol Bryant recently posted…Help If Your Dog Won’t Eat His Dog Food #WeBelieveinNB
I just started burning candles again. These seem like great scents. I don’t know why I ever stopped.
I’m a big fan of candles, especially ones with interesting scents. I totally love the idea of the crackling fire and need to try it this winter!
I am not familiar with these brands, they have some great and new scents! I am all about having my home smell cozy and to me a candle does that so well.
I need to check out candle belle as I’ve got a melt burner now and I love the sound of the cookie and cinnamon ones x
Rhian Westbury recently posted…Live Musical Adventures In November
I am a big fan of cinnamon and the cinnamon wax melt sounds heavenly. Perfect scent for the festive season.
I love burning candles at this time of year and these sound like smell amazing x
Stephanie Merry recently posted…Christmas Party Season Pampering with Harvey Nichols
I can’t decide which candle I would love more in my house, they are all so tempting. I would love to have my house smelling of cherry pumpkin pie but also of cinnamon or cookie dough. I guess I’ll be craving for sweets all the time haha
I saw the words Slush Fairy and googled it, what a great idea for a scent!
Rachel recently posted…Cute Christmas Jumpers wishlist!
Love a candle review! I’m obsessed with scented candles so good to know what others are enjoying.
The pumpkin cherry pie must smell amazing I’ve bot seen that before. I want one!!! I love cherry so I’m fine with it is a dominant aroma.
MELANIE EDJOURIAN recently posted…Age 2 Verbal Development
The next mould wine candle sounds like a juicy one to have, I have been slowly picking up some candles to burn in the evening when I am blogging.
Anosa recently posted…{Travel} City Breaks: Three of the best
What a lovely set of scents , I love candlrs and at the moment I an enjoying spiced christmaddy ones.
That WW candle looks lovely, I’ve never been too much of a Yankee Candle fan, but I do love candles!
Harriet from Toby & Roo recently posted…The cutest “sharing” advent calendar with Itty Bittys
I have never used candle melts before. I can imagine they smell amazing! I’ve pretty much given up on burning candles as the scent never lasts very long, but I think I need to check out the melts!
Sounds like I need to go Candle shopping – so many lovely sounding ones. I’m going to check out the card factory as that pumpkin cherry pie one sounds amazing! xo
I really need a mulled wine candle in my life, what could smell more Christmassy!
I want to try that Woodwick candle SO badly! The scents are something I really would love, so I might have to treat myself come payday! I was really surprised about how poorly the Next candle performed – I will definitely be giving that one a miss! x
Is it bad that I want everything listed in this post?!
Thanks so much for sharing this hun – Need to spend some money, the house doesn’t smell christmassy enough.
Charlotte x
Pumpkin cherry pie is perfect for this season! It sounds like it’s warm and homely, I’d love to try that one myself 🙂
You have chosen some interesting scents Louise. We burn something every night and at the minute it is a TImothy DUnn London Samarkand Candle which is just divine!
I have heard about t his before and it looks awesome. I should give it a try