What better time to give your home a sense of hygge than winter? Though I despise winter weather, I love the little elements of comfort that go with the season: Christmas spirit, a hot drink, extra cuddles with Cecilio and lots and lots of lights and candles.
I bought a lot of candles (and friends and family gifted me some) because to me, having a [fake] Christmas tree without the earthy pine scent did not feel right. I needed that sense of coziness in our apartment. Candles add that warmth and hyggelig factor: the more scented, the better. Unfortunately, I do have a very mild sense of smell so it is difficult for me to smell them unless I get up close to them or after I take a shower (because the steam and hot water clears out my sinuses and phlegm).
I have various winter candles from Bath & Body Works, Cost Plus World Market and Yankee Candle. Here is a rundown of them and the fragrance notes. Even though Christmas is over and we are ringing in the new year, I will still be burning these babies as long as the weather outside is frightful.
Bath & Body Works
Fresh Balsam (made with pine, cedarwood and eucalyptus essential oils): This has a mild–medium scent and closely resembles a tree. I find that the more I burn and use it every night, the stronger it gets. Honestly, I like this but I don’t necessarily love it. My other candle, Cedar Pine (from Cost Plus World Market) has a stronger tree scent. I put both of those candles on top of our coffee table, which is right next to the tree.
Myrrh (made with pine and clove leaf essential oils): I want to love this, especially with the raving reviews about this. Maybe it’s just my nose, but I can’t really smell it unless I stick my face in it after I burned it for a few hours. I can smell the spicy hint of clove, but it is still on the mild side. If you want something more subtle, I highly recommend it. It is fitting right next to the wise men figurines of my nativity scene though (since one of the gifts the wise men gave to Baby Jesus was myrrh)
Peppermint (made with peppermint essential oil and notes of creamy vanilla): Of all of the BBW candles I have, this one is my absolute favorite. It was love at first sniff. I already look forward to a lot of peppermint treats during the winter, and this candle is just the icing on the peppermint bark. It is STRONG, and I can smell it from a few feet away. I placed this on my dining table so that it gets rid of the food smell after dinner. The vanilla in this candle is mildly sweet, but this candle overall is not sickenly so. It has more of a clean scent that resembles toothpaste.
Cost Plus World Market
Cedar Pine (made with cedar pine essential oils): This captures the essence of a freshly cut tree more than the BBW Fresh Balsam. There is a note of some wood, although I can’t really tell because the ingredients are not listed.
Eucalyptus & Mint (made with eucalyptus and mint leaves): I love the packaging of this (jar and sticker). It’s a tiny candle that my nephew gave me for Christmas. The mint is mild though, and it seems like the hot throw (the fragrance that is released while burning) decreases. So while I love the packaging and the cold throw (the fragrance that the candle has before it burns), the hot throw disappoints me. Oh well, it balances out my other stronger candles.
Yankee Candle
Sparkling Cinnamon (made with cinnamon stick, clove, cardamom, bay leaf and cedarwood): Though there’s no notes of apple, this candle smells like hot apple cider at a family gathering. It’s more of a fall candle, but I just started burning this and it’s perfect for winter as well.
Aromatic Orange & Evergreen (made with sweet orange, evergreen, cinnamon, clove, vetiver, balsam and cedarwood): I fell in love with this scent as we were shopping for candles for my mother-in-law, so I had to get this for us. I placed this right next to our tree as well for that extra earthy scent. The sweet, clean orange note balances out the rawness of the evergreen and spices from clove, cinnamon and cedarwood so it’s not as overwhelming.
Christmas Cookie (made with creamy vanilla bean, nutmeg, cinnamon, sugar, vanilla, butter, baked notes): I usually don’t like overly sweet perfumes or candles, but I have taken a liking to this one! You can see that the notes contain all of the ingredients to make freshly baked sugar cookies from the oven (I devoured the Trader Joe’s sugar cookies), which is exactly what this candle smells like! If you are ultra girly with a sweet tooth, then you will absolutely love this!
I hope you enjoyed reading my winter candle collection, and maybe you could try a few whiffs of these for this winter!
What are your favorite candle scents?
Hannah is a travel writer, graphic designer, and the founder/editor of Hannah on Horizon. She is based in Sacramento, California, living with her husband and two adorable dogs. She shares tips on how to experience luxury travel on any budget, and how to maximize time at each trip or destination, no matter what your budget or amount of vacation time at work. She enjoys making you feel like you have visited each destination with her through her storytelling and informative writing style.