The Best Christmas Scented Candles For Your Festive Home
Make your Christmas home smell amazing this year by decorating with layers of festive fragrance. We’ve rounded up our top Christmas scented candles that no Winter should be lacking.
Make your Christmas home smell amazing this year by decorating with layers of festive fragrance. We’ve rounded up our top ten Christmas scented candles that no December should be lacking.
There isn’t one scent that defines the festive period – instead, our homes become layered with nostalgic notes that are as important to embracing the Christmas spirit as any other decoration, meal, or tradition. From fresh Christmas tree pine, orange and clove pomander decorations, hot cider and mulled wine, all the way to the glittering scent of fresh snow, Christmas fragrances are incredibly evocative.
Of course, we don’t all live in snowy log cabins, baking sweet treats daily and enjoying real fireplaces – sometimes we have to get creative with how we add these layers of fragrance into our homes to get the same effect. This is where our expert candle makers come in. We’ve rounded up some of the best Christmas scented candles you can burn throughout the festive period to fill your home with layers of seasonal scent.
The first festive fragrance that every home should be imbued with during December is the fresh woody notes of pine needles and fir trees. We’ve rounded up all our favourite Christmas tree-inspired scents here so that you can get that “real tree” scent without any of the mess.
With the festive season comes a need for warmth and cosiness. The fragrance of spices, baking, and traditional decorations entwine to create a sense of nostalgia that sweeps us back to magical childhoods both imagined and experienced. We rounded up all our favourite winter spice-infused candles here.
A roaring fireplace is a winter staple, and even if you don’t have the real thing, adding fragrant smoky scents to your home will create a wonderful ambiance. We’ve got an amazing selection of fireplace-inspired scents making it incredibly hard to pick a top three. You can view all our smoky fragrances here.
If you’ve ever spent time in the winter mountains, you’ll know how glorious the scent of fresh snow, glittering landscapes, and frosted trees can be. These notes are more delicate, making them harder to capture in candle form, but some of our favourite scent makers have done so beautifully. Think early mornings as you step outside the log cabin, breathing in the cold fresh air.
The Best Festive Home Fragrances
The Hinoki Fantôme Candle by Boy Smells features a resinous aroma of smoking Japanese cypress and jasmine petals. Warm and meditative with an element of earthy spice notes. An absolute cold-weather necessity to warm and invigorate the senses.
The Mistletoe Special Candle by P.F. Candle Co.is a fresh, cool and crisp fragrance with festive notes of Douglas fir, eucalyptus, pine, and cedar.
The Winter Spirit Candle Set by Skandinavisk features three scented candles – SKOG is the ultimate Christmas Tree scent with pine needles and fir cones, birch sap and woodland lily of the valley. JUL smells like baked gingerbread and winter cloves, spiced oranges and mulled wine. SNÖ is reminiscent of Frozen forests and frosted berries, the sharp, fresh breath of subzero skies.
The Spiced Pomander Scented Candle by LAFCO is a modern twist on a holiday tradition. Bright bitter orange, decorated with clove buds, nestles in the warm richness of fresh cinnamon. The inviting fragrance lets you know the holidays are near
The Incensorial Candle by Boy Smells smolders with visions of Golden Era splendor. Incensorial is the winter holiday burn — A worldy display of spice with Nigerian ginger, Indonesian nutmeg, Guatemalan cardamom, and Somali incense. All of these centered around orange citrus peel and luxe notes of brushed suede and sandalwood.
Full of the nostalgia and traditions associated with Scandinavia at Christmas. It’s the warming fragrance of roaring fires, hearty food, warming drinks, and at the center of it all, the family home. A richly spiced scent with bold notes of baked gingerbread, melted honey, cloves, and warm glogg.
The Toasted Pumpkin Scented Candle by Brooklyn Candle Studio is the perfect scent symphony of toasted pumpkin seeds, cardamom, nutmeg, clove, and cinnamon notes.
The Single Bells Scented Candle by Cancelled Plans features festive notes of clove, cinnamon, cream, vanilla, apple, pine, cedar, and cypress. You already know who this is for.. and no judgement if it’s for you.
The Holiday 2022 Votive Candle Set by Boy Smells features three limited edition wintery candle fragrances. Celebrate on your own terms this season with all three modern takes on traditional opulence from the Holiday Collection.
The earthy forest fragrance of pine and balsam fir, it’s scent will inspire a nostalgia for hiking through the warm Californian mountains. The woody notes are balanced by warm amber, vanilla and spicy black pepper. A great choice for early autumn, and cosy evenings in you’re imaginary cabin.
The TAKKA Candle by Skandinavisk is filled with the magnetic pull of the hearth. Imagine the crackle of dried moss and brushwood as the fire takes hold, the smokey notes of burning logs, golden resin oozing from the pine, and the glow of faces mesmerized by the flames.
The Pine Candle by Tatine features woody evergreen notes blended with balsam oil. A sweet forest aroma with both crisp and warm resinous notes. Inspired by the whispering pines of Northern Wisconsin, holding strong personal memories. An aroma for all seasons.
The Broken Rosary Candle by Boy Smells stars spiced notes of cardamom, moss and cinnamon leaf, complemented by heady cedarwood, lush rose water and pumiced orris.
The Redhead Candle by Boy Smells is grounded in redwood cedar, while notes such as frankincense, amber, and cashmeran add a regality. Vetiver and ginger add spice, while saffron and poppy add an exoticism.
The Taiga Candle by 42Pressed takes its inspiration from secluded conifer forests. Imagine white spruce and hemlock covered with frozen moss and a hint of fresh mint.
The White Christmas Candle Set by Skandinavisk features two scented candles – JUL smells of baked gingerbread and winter cloves, spiced oranges and mulled wine. SNÖ is reminiscent of frozen forests and frosted berries, the sharp, fresh breath of subzero skies.
The SNÖ (Snow) Candle by Skandinavisk captures the beauty of fresh winter snow as it lays itself across the frozen landscape. The crisp scent of fresh air is warmed by the infusion of winter berries and rich woodland. Far from cold, this fragrance captures the reflection of early morning light as it glitters through delicate icicles and frosty windows.
The NORDLYS Candle by Skandinavisk reflects the magical wonder of the Northern Lights, famous for their symphony of light, colour and movement across cool Norse skies. Beautifully balanced and refreshing, this candle features citrus notes blended with sea salt, giving it a crisp and mysterious fragrance.
The fresh fragrance of fir trees is blended alongside warmer notes of aged-leather and lily of the valley. This refreshing scent captures the magic of log cabins deep in the Nordic north, where home meets the green and mysterious outdoors.
The Apple Picking Candle by P.F. Candle Co. is a limited edition favourite. Featuring the fragrance of freshly harvested apples, mulled cider, warm toasted cinnamon, and a hint of damp autumn leaves. Combined, they create a wonderfully nostalgic fall scent. Spicy undertones of nutmeg, orange, and cedar brighten up this seasonal candle.
The limited edition Festive SKOG Candle by Skandinavisk takes you into the heart of vast northern pine forests. The fresh fragrance of pine needles and fir cones, birch sap and woodland lily of the valley. This refreshing scent captures the magic of log cabins deep in the Nordic north, where home meets the green and mysterious outdoors.
If you read a round-up post featuring Christmas candles and SKOG by Skandinavisk hasn’t been included, don’t trust it! Thankfully Lisa Joyner at House Beautiful agrees with us and Skog is listed alongside some really lovely choices saying “Warming, magical and unmistakably Christmassy, SKANDINAVISK’s mini scented candle is remarkably delightful.”
Over at the US version of House Beautiful their team listed the 24 Amazing Candles That Smell Just Like the Holidays. Cire Trudon’s Ernesto Candle gets a high mention with the team saying “This Christmas candle packs all the heat. With base notes of tobacco and amber and head notes of rum and bergamot, it’s sure to get you in the holiday spirit. ”
At Good Housekeeping, Charley Ward rounded up the best scented candles for the festive season. Charley’s list is filled with elegant fragrances from brands including Jo Malone, Roja Parfums, and Diptyque. Evermore’s latest fragrance release Smoke is included, with Charley saying “If you like intense, moody scents, go for this one. It’s smoky and intriguing, reminiscent of bonfire night and the crackling flames of your winter log fire.”
Later in the list, Aery’s Nordic Cedar candle is described as “a rich, sophisticated mix of saffron, oudh, and neroli, encased in a beautiful minimal white votive. It looks – and smells – far more expensive than it is. ” – we couldn’t agree more.
On the Evening Standard, Ellie Davies picked out the best Christmas candles for gifting and creating a cosy ambiance. She says “Scent has a powerful way of transporting us and is closely linked with memory. But it also has an overwhelming ability to set a mood. So it makes complete sense to switch your home’s signature scent during this time of year to ignite the seasonal spirit.”
Ellie’s list features a wonderful combination of festive fragrances from some of the best designer candle makers. Of course, Skog gets the mention it deserves saying “you won’t be able to resist the seasonal magic with this one.” The Boy Smells new Holiday collection also get’s its place on the list with Ellie saying “For Christmas 2021, there is a brand new scent in the line-up. Figurare takes a contemporary twist on a fig leaf-based aroma with a hint of black pepper and cardamom as well as rose, lavender and fir balsam. The candle joins the relaunching of Broken Rosary with its notes of cedarwood, rose water and orris as well as De Nimes, a candle based on the French city with earthy violet, eucalyptus and blueberry and darker wood undertones.”
On this year’s Harper’s Bazaar roundup of the best winter candles for Christmas, Roberta Schroeder picked Bella Freud’s Peace and Love candle. The list itself isn’t the longest but has some lovely choices.
We have too many amazing festive candles to be able to list them all in this post, so it’ll be well worth checking out our entire collection of Christmas candles – we won’t judge if you decide you need them all!
