Thursday, March 4, 2010

My Must-Haves...

Creating a wonderful place to be means you have to make ALL the senses happy, not just the visual. Candles are great for this, but for me it’s really hard to find a keeper...

Many are all about the pretty packaging and nothing more, while others are not pretty and not so good. Some start out nice but turn strong or perfumey – these can give me a headache. Another catch? The ones that put off black smoke.

My favorites have always been are found by accident, smelling them burning somewhere, as opposed to sniffing the testers in a store. But every once in a blue moon you find that one…

I was first introduced to my favorite must-have candle many years ago when I lived in Baltimore. I smelled it at my friend Tara’s house and had to have one. She had several scents, but this one was my favorite.

I have to say you absolutely get what you pay for. It was expensive at the time, wayyyy more than I had ever spent on a candle, but so worth it. In fact I still have my first one and only now am ready for the refill.

So what is my list topping candle?

Manuel Canovas Palais d’Ete – the one in the pretty pink box. It’s the absolute perfect mix of jasmine, lily of the valley, peony and honeysuckle. I Love it…and it lingers slightly afterwards in a very nice subtle way.

I’m also a fan of burning peppermint oil in water. It smells fresh, clean and very very spa like. Another favorite "must have" of mine is Peace of Mind by Origins. Sadly I just learned today the diffuser it is no longer available, so I may just try and create it myself from basil, peppermint, and eucalyptus oils - clearly I'm desperate.

So this started me thinking...do you have any favorites we can all try?

5 comments:

Hamptontoes said...

Prior to starting a family, my husband and I enjoyed burning candles. Now with two little ones in the home we have to take a pass.

Anna/Quilted Giraffe said...

The Fresh citron candle. Mmmmm.

http://www.fresh.com/home/candle

Friend_on_12 said...

I just happily spent a small fortune at bluemercury on Tocca candles. I agree, you do get what you pay for. For my bathroom, I like the "Grace" candelina (Tocca's votive size). Its fresh, clean casablanca lily scent was named after Grace Kelly.

Dreams of Perfection said...

I do not have any fave candles. They all make my head hurt insanely. I even get belly aches at times from smelling a candle too much. I like the clean smell of fresh laundry. That smell I can deal with. I wish I could find a lovely lavendar candle though.

Kelly Giesen said...

Thanks for the suggestions. I will have to give them a try. I also love the smell of clean laundry....nothing better.