With the proper care, our premium candles will give you hours of enjoyment. We can not stress enough how important it is to burn votives in a tight fitting holder, and to keep all your wicks trimmed to about ¼". Above all, please burn all candles safely!
Use a proper holder
When burning votive candles, always use a tight fitting votive holder. We use a premium votive wax which is made to liquefy when burning, as opposed to a pillar candle which uses wax that will hold its shape. This allows our votive candles to hold a stronger concentration of scent. If you burn one of our premium votives without a proper votive holder, the wax will not hold it's shape, your burning time will be greatly reduced, and it could pose a safetly hazard. Please, always use a proper votive holder!
Container candles generate a lot of heat within the container. For this reason, you should never put the container directly onto fine furniture, or any surface that could catch fire. On rare occasions, a container could crack or break. This is especially true as the wax level gets close to the bottom of the candle. Discarding your candle when there's still about ¼" of wax in the bottom of the candle will help prevent cracking. Make sure you monitor your candles at all times!
Pillar candles should only be burned when they are on a safe, burn proof holder. Ideally you want your candle to burn almost to the sides of the pillar. Many people prefer to leave this outside border alone as the candle burns down, while others "hug" the candle periodically to press the outside border into the flame thus eliminating the border. Always make sure your candle burns on a level surface and away from drafts which could cause an uneven burn.
Efficient burning
One of the most important things you can do to keep your candles burning efficiently is to trim the wick regularly. In most cases, you should trim your wick prior to each time you light it. If you burn your candle for a long time, you may notice an effect called mushrooming. If that happens, extinguish your candle, and trim the wick taking care not to spill any melted wax. When you relight it, the mushrooming should be gone.
When burning any candle, periodically make sure that the wick is staying centered. On votives and container candles make sure that the wax is melting evenly across the top of the candle. As the wax liquefies from the wick outward, this is called the melt pool. The larger the melt pool, generally, the more scent is released. Ultimately, you want you votive or container candle to create a melt pool all the way across for maximum scent release.
Your candle often will have a "memory" based on how long you burn it the first time. In pillars, and to some extent in container candles, the size of the melt pool will grow by about 1" for each hour burned. Tunneling is the effect caused when the candle did not create a large enough melt pool at the first burn, and the candles burns in a tunnel without reaching to the edges. To reduce or eliminate tunneling, burn your candle long enough the first time to create a melt pool close to the edge of the pillar. In container candles, you may even burn so that the melt pool reaches all the way to the glass. Containers are a little more forgiving of the tunneling effect, especially as the candle burns lower into the container. Nonetheless, you still want to establish a fair-sized melt pool the first time you burn your container candle.
Some people suggest that you put the candle in the refrigerator or freezer before using to make them burn longer. While this is generally true, there are tradeoffs. First, anytime you chill a candle, you run the risk of the candle wax cracking. This may affect the way the candle burns. Second, the amount of scent a candle throws is generally affected by the size of the melt pool. A colder candle will take longer to create a melt pool, thus diminishing the scent release.
Cleaning and reusing your containers and votive holder
Some people say a drop or two of water placed in your votive holder before inserting the candle will make it easier to remove the wick tab and remaining wax when you are finished with the candle. Sometimes, the wax interacts with the water as it is heated by the flame and it will crack and sputter.
We feel the best solution is just to make sure you don't burn your candle all the way to the bottom of your votive holder. When you are done with it, put the votive holder or glass container upside down on a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil. Under constant supervision, place the cookie sheet into a barely warm oven or toaster oven set to no higher than 200 degrees fahrenheit. Check the progress constantly, and when you feel the wax has melted out of the containers, remove very carefully from the oven. Using oven mitts, gloves, or something else to protect your hands from the heat, wipe the containers out very carefully with paper towel. A film of wax may remain. This can be removed by constant polishing, or by a good scrubbing in detergent. Make sure you allow the glass to cool before placing in water or the glass make shatter.
Mushrooming
Occasionally a candle will mushroom. This is when the flame grows larger than usual and soot is visible escaping from the top of the flame. All candles are susceptible to mushrooming from time to time. Heavily scented candles tend to mushroom more than lightly scented or unscented candles. Persistent mushrooming can be reduced or eliminated by keeping the wick trimmed to ¼".
Getting maximum scent throw
The fragrance that a candle emits is often referred to as "dry throw" and "wet throw." Dry throw is what you notice when a candle is unlit. Wet throw is what you smell when the candle is burning. Some candles have a mild dry throw, but a very noticeable wet throw, and vice versa. This is caused by the unique characteristics of each fragrance.
Each fragrance oil reacts differently with the wax that its in. There is a delicate balance between the amount of fragrance oil used in a candle. If too much is used, it can leech out of the candle. If too little is used, the scent is not strong enough. Also, waxes used for votives and containers are softer, and they can generally hold more fragrance oil than pillars. All of our candle formulas have been individually tested using various combinations of fragrance oil, wax and wicks to get the optimal results.
The melt pool is what we call the liquefied portion of wax surrounding the wick. The size of the melt pool will usually affect how well you can smell the scent. As your candle burns longer, and the melt pool size increases, so should the scent. Using multiple candles will usually increase the amount of scent you can smell. Try using several votives, putting them in different places around the room.
Most people prefer a variety of scents, depending on their mood and the occasion. Some scents are just naturally stronger than others. Often, lighter scents will be as pleasing as strong scents. Experiment, and find your own favorites!!
