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Beanpod's Belgian Waffles
This fabulous soy wax candle takes me back to those late nights at Aunt Sarah's Pancake House down south at my BFF's college. They had the best Belgian Waffles this side of the Atlantic and it was the only thing I would order. Beanpod managed to include a subtle hint of maple syrup to the mix and make it irresistibly delicious.

Colonial's Golden Pear
One of a handful of new candles from Colonial is Golden Pear. It reminds me of my Aunt Ginni's Baked Sliced Apples. I now suspect that her secret ingredient may have been pears, because this candle smells just like her famous holiday treat. The mix of nutmeg and cinnamon with equal parts pear and apple make this particular candle unique and exotic. Another incredible scent from Colonial.

Illume's Angel Food
Illume has a knack of producing candles so exact that I often fear I may begin devouring the candle rather than burning it. Angel Food is no exception. No one makes a tastier Angel Food Cake than my mother and this smells just like her kitchen after she removes a fresh and fluffy cake from the oven. Illume also included a decent amount of warm vanilla, making the best just a bit better.

Yankee's Almond Cookie
When it comes to cookies, I'm a chocolate chip gal all the way. However, sometimes a little deviation from the norm can be a very good thing. This candle smells exactly like a homemade cookie from a tiny bakery in Little Italy and is powerful enough to fill an entire room. Being one who does not cook or bake, I like to keep this burning to give the illusion to guests that I do.

~lisa*

Scents for Thanksgiving

So, there are a ton of great scents for the upcoming holiday and I am going to try to cover a good handful of them in this post. Here goes...

Beanpod
Cinnamon Spice - This scent smells exactly like cinnamon chewing gum; it's strong and super powerful. If you don't like Big Red, then you will not like this candle at all. I personally think it's fantastic.

Toasted Hazelnut - I think this scent is a nice change of pace from the usual ones that the season has to offer. But it still provides the warmth and delightful aroma that one would desire for this time of year. It actually smells like Ferrero Rocher tastes and c'mon, how could that ever be bad?

Yankee
MacIntosh Spice - This is such a simple holiday combination of apples and cinnamon, yet Yankee somehow manages to do it in an original and exhilarating way. It's delicious and is the perfect fragrance in room spray form. A little spritz goes a long way, so you definitely get a lot of bang for your buck.

Cranberry Chutney - I have been in love with cranberry scented candles since my days working at Pier 1 where I discovered their Cranberry Balsam candle. Cranberry Chutney is incredibly potent and really fills the entire room. Delightfully sweet and aromatic, it's one to definitely have on hand throughout the winter months.

Colonial
Pumpkin Pie - Mmm...pumpkin...my favourite pie of all time. I found this scent to be very easy on the pumpkin and strong with the spices. It burns nicely and is more than suitable for any holiday house party.

Warm Apple Cake - This is absolutely one of the sweetest candles I've tried. It is smooth and easy, with no one dominating scent. The apples, cinnamon and vanilla all combine together to bring a fabulous candle to the table.

WoodWick
Cranberry Fig - Completely different from Yankee's Cranberry Chutney, this cranberry is more tart than sweet, but just as satisfying. In regards to the fig scent, well, my only exposure to a fig would be via Fig Newtons and Fig Newmans. That being said, I do detect the smell of a freshly opened bag of those yummy treats. It seems WoodWick has brought us another wonderful candle for the season that perfectly melds these two great scents.

(WoodWick Green) Valencia Orange - "Wow" was my immediate reaction to getting a whiff of this candle. I have never smelled such a juicy, refreshingly sweet and tangy candle in my life. My mother argues that Illume's Valencia Orange is better, but I say nay-nay. Illume's is good, but not orange enough for my taste. WoodWick's is the one to own.

Hope this helps with your holiday candle decision making. Be safe and have fun!

~lisa*

Miscellaneous

There are plenty of fabulous scented candles that I can review, but I think it's just as important to mention the unscented ones. I really respect a candle company that gives consumers a truly wide array of choices. There are plenty of people with allergies that cannot handle fragrances and then there are people who simply do not wish to have scented candles, period. I personally detest it when I'm in someone's kitchen or dining room and they are serving food while burning a scented candle. (That's a big no-no because the usually delightful aroma of WoodWick's Rum Raisin instantly becomes abhorrent as it puts me completely off the pizza I'm being served.) Both Beanpod and WoodWick have really nice unscented candles in jar form, with Tag offering them in pillar sizes. I like that there's more options than just the usual taper or tea light candles. (btw, Colonial Candle has unscented tapers that come in a wide array of brilliant colors.)

And finally, I have to mention the Flameless from Candle Impressions. I like them because they have timers and actually flicker like a burning pillar candle. My brothers have them all over their house and also, my grandmother enjoys the look of a real candle without the fear of forgetting to blow it out come the end of the night.

Just some thoughts and options to keep in mind with the approaching holidays. Thanks for reading and check back soon!

~lisa*

Three More for the Fall

Yankee's Moonlight Harvest
When the cool weather rolls in, I am all about cider donuts and anything pumpkin. Moonlight Harvest definitely brings me back to those days out at Johnson's Farm picking out pumpkins to paint and carve just as the sun was going down. With the super dark purple color, this is a great candle for the season - inside and out.

WoodWick's Currant
I found Currant to be tangy yet sweet and it reminded me of those delicious Linzer Tarts that I used to get at the local bakery on Sundays. The currant is definitely present and accounted for but the citrus sweeps in and creates another gorgeous candle from WoodWick.

Colonial's Indian Summer
I love Indian Summer because it's a nice blend of my two favourite fall treats - ginger snap cookies and Mama's pumpkin bread. It's warm and inviting and I feel would be excellent on a coffee table when hosting a holiday soirée.

~lisa*