I LOVE candles! I love them so much that my obsession can get expensive… I have at least one burning during all waking hours. While Yankee was the best years ago, it’s not that way anymore. At least not in my opinion. While some smell good in the jar, once lit they fail to impress.
My current favorite brand is Swan Creek Candle Company. They aren’t cheap, and you’ll likely not see some big sale like with Yankee at Christmastime. But I have a pro tip to share!
Buy kits and be a candlestick maker!
I’ve tried formulas for making my own candle scents with essential oils — and while they weren’t a total fail, they weren’t the best ever either. If I added the number of drops of oil suggested, the smell was too faint.
If that wasn’t bad enough, I have a bag containing a bajillion wicks that are the wrong size for the containers I planned to use. Refill kits are easy and if you’re not wanting to create your own candle brand for resell, I think it’s the best option.
So here’s the easy math and why you should do this yourself…
Large Swan Creek candles (24oz) are $26 and the medium-sized ones (12 oz) are $16.00 bucks. A 24oz refill kit — complete with 4 wicks — is $20.00. While you save $6 by refilling your large jar, you’ll save $12.00 by refilling 2 of the medium sized candle jars making them only $10.00 each. $10 for 75 hours of glorious fragrance, you guys!
Hot glue and a microwave required:
You’ll need a hot glue gun to stick the wicks to the bottom of your container — and you’ll heat the wax (in the provided microwave safe container) in 2 minute intervals (3 minutes for my microwave). Pour the melted wax into your jar, let it cool and set-up, and you’re good to go!
My favorite scents…
I’ve tried many of the scents offered by Swan Creek. These are my favorites… just my opinion:
- Bourbon Maple Sugar and Toasted Walnut Pralines are great — Campfire is not great.
- The Fresh Strawberry scent is amazing — the Blueberry is not.
- Roasted Espresso and Maple Pumpkin Pancakes are both pretty darned good.
- The White Peach and Clove is a strong scent and is good if you like peaches and clove.
Now you know: A U.S. industry overview suggests that about 80% of Americans buy candles as a gift at least once a year, indicating they’re a very common gift choice.