Candles can create the perfect ambiance, making your home feel warm and inviting how do you choose the best candle scent?
What do memory, and personality have in common?
They both rely on your keen sense of smell. Out of all of your five senses, your ability to smell is arguably the most amazing one.
Studies show that people can remember a scent with 65% accuracy, as long as a year after smelling it. There’s also research that suggests your sense of smell can directly impact the type of personality you have. This is because the area of the brain you smell with is also the area where your personality exists.
While our noses are amazing, they can also make it tricky when trying to pick the perfect scented candle. While one person’s nose may fall in love with a deep woodsy smell, another can find the same smell revolting. So how can you pick the perfect candle, to create a truly enjoyable experience?
Read on to learn the secret to finding the perfect candle scent.
Choosing the Best Candle Scent
Candle fragrances are very personal, similar to our sense of taste. Before you can pick out the best candle scent for yourself, you’ll need to know your taste in smells.
Here are a few tips to help you choose a candle scent you’ll love:
- Test smell candle before purchase
- Read the scent description carefully
- Take a scent quiz
Smelling the candle first is always the safest way to ensure satisfaction. If you can’t smell the candle ahead of time because you’re shopping online, you can still pick apart the scent description. Read the description several times to make sure there aren’t any notes of fragrances you don’t agree with.
You should always find out more about the candle your buying before making the purchase. Look up reviews, see how long it usually lasts, and see if any friends have tried that particular brand.
Finally, when all else fails, take a scent quiz online to find out what scent matches your personality. There are tons of free online quizzes that will help you determine what smells make you smile.
Spaces and Scents
Now that you have an idea of what type of scents you like, you need to decide where you’ll be putting your candle. The location of the candles will play a big part in the type of scent you should select.
Kitchen Scents
Do you want your kitchen to always smell like you’re baking something delicious? Subtle, sweet smells, tend to be the best choice. We suggest that you choose scents that mimic types of food for the kitchen area.
Warm apple pie, freshly baked cookies, and, cinnamon bun scents, do wonders for making guests feel at home in your kitchen. When you are cooking, the candle’s fragrance will interact nicely with the food aromas.
Try to stay away from any floral scents in the kitchen area, as these tend to have the opposite effects. Strong floral scents will collide with any food aromas, leaving guests confused about what they’re smelling.
Large vs Small Room
You should also take into consideration the size of the space the candle will be in. Do you plan on putting your candles in a large room, or a more intimate small area? Here are a few tips for choosing a candle scent based off the room you’ll be in:
- Large room = Bold scent
- Medium room = Blend of soft and bold
- Large room = Bold or subtle scents
If you’re going to be using a large room, with high ceilings, you can choose stronger fragrances. Larger rooms, also mean you should be choosing a larger candle to complete the job. If space is going to be small, like a bathroom, you’ll want to go with a smaller candle that’s not as fragrant.
Experiment with Smells
To provide yourself and guests with the best aromatic experience, you might have to do a bit of experimenting. Go ahead and buy several bold scents, only trying one at a time.
Switching between candles every day could make it hard to distinguish which scent is your favorite. Instead, we suggest using one candle for at least a full week, before switching to another.
Allow the fragrance to fill up the room and experience life with that fragrance. Then choose a new room and a new candle and start the process over.
Fruit Blends with Fruit
If you’re choosing a bold scent that’s fruity flavored, you can try using more than one at a time. For example, a strong apple scent can blend nicely with a berry scented candle.
Yet, try to avoid mixing strong fruity scents, with any earthy fragrances. Blending apple with berry is nice but blending apple with pine tree fragrances is just confusing.
Big Bold Scents
Looking for a scent that takes up the entire space? Then big, bold scents are the first place you should be exploring. Here are a few candle fragrances that lean towards the extreme side:
- Agave Nectar
- Jasmine
- Apple
- Clover
- Bamboo Musk
- Pine Tree
- Berries
Remember, bold scents don’t typically mesh well with food aromas in the kitchen. Instead, you should plan on putting your strong scented candles in a large space, with good airflow.
Soft Subtle Scents
If you need a soft candle scent, we suggest using lavender, rose, or fresh linen. Remember to carefully read the candle’s description to make sure there aren’t any hidden strong scents waiting to sneak out.
For example, if you want a soft scent, try to avoid anything with notes of lemon. While lemon scents are great at refreshing a room, they aren’t so good at being subtle. Oftentimes if a candle even has a hint of lemon in it, the lemon will dominate all of the other smells.
Ambiance and Aroma
Finally, to create a truly immersive aromatic experience, try using a subtle candle scent in your bathrooms, and bold candles in the living room. The distance between the candles will keep them from clashing, yet they’ll still be able to create an ambiance of aroma. Soon, your entire house will be a delight to breathe in, no matter what room you’re in.
We love helping our readers find inspiration for every room in their house. That’s why we have articles about how to decorate, declutter, and so much more!
Are you ready to find the inspiration you need to make your house a home? Check out our lifestyle section today for fun decorating tips. Thanks to Unearthed Candles for consulting!
