Look after your candle and it will look after you

If you look after your Botanical Forrest candle, it will last longer and continue to smell gorgeous.  Not all candles are made equal, so if you have invested in a quality handmade candle, the last thing you want is for it to not burn correctly.

Here’s our top 5 tips for getting the most out of your candles, to keep them smelling beautiful for as long as possible.

• Burn time – The first time you light your candle is the most important. Whatever you do, resist the urge to light it for 30 minutes to see what it smells like! Soy wax has a memory so if the wax doesn’t completely melt to the edge of the container the first time you light it, it will never burn beyond this point when you light it again.  You’ll end up creating a rim of unused wax which will be wasted precious wax and fragrance.  Burn your candle for between 2-4 hours at a time and wait for the wax to reach a full melt pool to the edge of the container each time you use it.  You may find for the first hour or so, you won’t get much scent from the candle.  This is normal with soy wax and you’ll be able to get a better scent throw with subsequent burns.
• Trim your wick – Always trim the wick to 5mm before each burn. This will give a cleaner and brighter burn. If you leave the wick long as the wax burns it may cause soot and the wick to become too hot. Trimming your wick after every use is a great habit to get into.  We recommend only trimming wicks on cooled candles, to prevent debris from falling into hot wax.
• Location – Where you place your candle in your home is important. Place them in areas with as little draft as possible. Drafts cause an increase in oxygen which causes the flame to flicker and your candle to burn more quickly.
• Putting your candle out – Your first instinct when putting out a candle is likely to blow it out. This can ruin the hours you spent creating an aroma in your room. Blowing out a candle replaces the fragrance with the smell of smoke. A candle is best snuffed out using a candle snuffer.
• Once your wax reached about 5 mm from the bottom of the container, it’s time to say goodbye to your candle.  Resist the urge to             continue burning it until there’s no wax left because the bottom of the container may get too hot and the fragrance is likely to have all   gone by then anyway.  The good news is that you don’t have to throw away your beautiful container.

Our last tip is about repurposing your candle container.  Once you have enjoyed your candle and only a small amount of wax is left at the bottom of the jar, our containers can be reused for all manner of bits and pieces or re-cycled.

• Prepare your candle container for reuse – Soy wax can be easily washed out of our glass and metal containers to remove any residual wax. Simply fill with boiling water and leave to cool.  The residual wax will rise to the top.  The vessel can be reused for all manner of bits and pieces or re-cycled. Whether you pop a tea light into an amber jar or use the aluminium tin to store your pens, cosmetics, is up to you!

We hope these tips have been helpful to you to get the most from your candles and that you enjoy them!

To see our range of candles and wax melts click here.