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The Best Smelling Candles
There's a lot of hype around brands like Yankee Candle, Diptyque and Voluspa, but which candle is really the most fragrant? Find out which candle smells the strongest when burned.
Few things are more frustrating than excitedly buying a candle, lighting it at home and ... smelling nothing. I hear you and feel your plight, which is why we tested 15 candle brands to determine which brand makes the most fragrant candles.
How We Tested
First, I limited the burn time to two to four hours. Most brands recommend burning candles no longer than four hours, lest you get that well action where the wax clings to the side of the glass. Second, I chose to light candles in the living room so drafts or walls didn't impede the scent flow. Third, I let each candle burn alone at first. Once we narrowed down the top contenders, I lit two at a time to see which one overpowered the other.
The Results
It was difficult not to let my scent preferences affect the scores. And, I have to say, the strongest candle wasn't my favorite fragrance. But my nose doesn't lie when it determined that not one but two brands smelled strongest — WoodWick by Yankee Candle Co. and Bath & Body Works. It was really too close to call with these two, but they overpowered other candles I tried by far.
It's worth mentioning two very close runners up, though — Byredo and Le Labo. Not only did these two give off strong scents, but they smelled the best, too. Yankee Candle and Bath & Body Works candles gave off very heavy, in-your-face scents, whereas Le Labo and Byredo released complex, luxurious scents you'd expect in a fancy hotel.
