12 of the best scented candles for winter evenings

As the nights draw in earlier, it’s the moment when you want to close  the curtains, dim the lights and get cosy at home! At this time of year I’m constantly lighting candles, even with breakfast in the dingy morning light or as the afternoon starts to fade when I feel in need of a little mood-boosting pick-me-up. There’s just something so warm and atmospheric about a candle burning in an inviting room – it really helps set the scene for calm and relaxation.

Scent is so connected to our memories and sometimes associations we might have with certain places that we hold dear – candles can help us find a moment of escapism in the mundane everyday. Whether it’s an uplifting, invigorating scent to get us motivated in the morning or something a little more gentle and soothing to help us wind down in the evening.

Here I’ve rounded up 12 of the best scented candles for winter – with a focus on warming, earthy, woody scents. I love anything that can evoke a sense of nature, so it feels like I’m bringing an element of the wild outdoors in. These scents conjure up visions of winter woodland walks, dewy evergreen foliage, spicy aromas and roaring fires.

The green dots indicate the more sustainable choices. There’s a lot of debate about the toxicity in candles and which type of wax is better for both the environment and your health. Paraffin wax is said to release toxic, harmful emissions, but there’s some scaremongering linking it to lung cancer and asthma with sometimes unreliable data. Generally, soy wax is deemed to be more eco-friendly and give a cleaner burn than the more widely used, petroleum-based paraffin wax. Soy wax is biodegradable and is derived from natural vegetables, while paraffin is a by-product of the oil industry. Soy wax also burns longer than paraffin. Some brands are now swapping soy wax for rapeseed wax as there’s no risk of deforestation or environmental damage in its production.

A small detail, but you also need to take note of the wicks. Some wicks are made of lead that can release harmful chemicals – although this has been banned in many countries, some can still unintentionally have trace elements. Many brands choose to use pure, natural cotton wicks that don’t have a metal core to them.

Then there’s the scent itself. Some synthetic, man-made fragrances can contribute to indoor pollution and release harmful chemicals. Ingredients to be wary of include parabens and phthalates. Some people may be more sensitive to overpowering synthetic scents or the allergens they release – you’ve also got to consider furry friends too! Synthetic fragrances are often cheaper than pure essential oils, and that’s why some natural candles can seem more expensive. Essential oils are extracted from plants and have long been used in aromatherapy to boost mood.

So here are some of the best candles for winter, from luxurious, high-quality scents to hand-poured candles by UK independents. I’ve tried to be clear in my choices rather than just plucking a best-of from the air just because I like the look of them! I’ve considered where the candle is made, what it’s made from, what form the packaging takes and if the candle vessel can be used again. Top marks go to those using recycled materials and plastic-free packaging. The best are those that are the most transparent, the brands where you don’t have to go down a rabbit warren on their website to find out what something’s made from. There’s a slight focus on British companies and British-made products as that’s a more sustainable choice for me, but if you’re further afield, you might want to look more locally to you.

1. Fennel Patchouli candle, £30, wxy, 300g. Get 10% off until 1/11/19 with code ‘WXY10’ – aromatic with notes of fresh fennel and warming patchouli, hand-poured in a beautiful concrete vessel. wxy’s candles are made in the UK with 100% soy wax and are vegan friendly, with no palm, parabens or petroleum. Their packaging is plastic-free – each candle comes tissue wrapped in a matt grey cardboard box. When the candle has burnt out, wxy encourages customers to reuse the jar for something else. Plus, 3% of wxy’s profits go to charity – at the moment wxy are donating to mental health charity Mind. [disclosure: I received a press sample]

2. Smokey oak candle, £30, Honest, 200g, burn time: 35 hours– a woody scent with oak moss, cedar wood and Persian galbanum extracts to evoke leather and tobacco aromas. Based in Birmingham, Honest is a an independent organic skincare brand founded by Katie Fisher that seeks to ‘evoke a sense of calm and well-being whilst changing the ethics of skincare for the better’. Her candles are handmade in England with soy wax and cotton wicks, and scented with a blend of organic essential oils and natural fragrances. The packaging is biodegradable and reusable. 

3. Laurier 62 candle by Le Labo, £52, John Lewis [affiliate link], 245g – a heady scent with notes of rosemary, eucalyptus, cumin, clove and amber. Le Labo’s candles are hand-poured in the USA with 100% vegetable-based, non-GMO soy wax. They’re vegan friendly.

4. Grove candle, £48, Evermore London, 300g, burn time: 60 hours – Fresh notes of pine needle, eucalyptus and silver fir with a base note of earthy moss. Evermore London was founded in 2014 by Sarah Bell in a quest to find a cleaner fragrance. Her sustainable natural candles are hand-poured in the UK and presented in a hand-blown recycled glass vessel. They’re made of vegan rapeseed and soy wax. The card board box is FSC certified and fully recyclable. For the next five years, Evermore is committed to following a sustainability framework; they’re planning to support non-profits, off-set carbon and produce yearly reports documenting their efforts. 

5. Ginger & Sandalwood candle, £60, Floris, 200g, burn time: 45 hours  – a limited edition winter scent with top notes of ginger, cinnamon and black pepper, combined with fresh eucalyptus and birch leaf. Hand-poured in Devon in a matte vessel that can be reused after the candle has burnt out. But it isn’t clear what type of wax is used in their candles. [disclosure: I received a press sample]

6. Feu de Bois candle, £62, Diptyque, 300g, burn time: 90 hours – inspired by the scent of a crackling, open fire, with a woody fragrance. Diptyque’s candles are made in France and their website states that their candles are formulated with natural ingredients. This scent is poured into a hand-blown green glass vessel.

7. REST candle, £39, eym. 220g, burn time: 50 hours – calming and soothing with sweet orange, camomile and lavender essential oils. Eym was set up by husband and wife team Poppy and Sam Wall after they read an article about the toxic, negative effects of synthetic candles. They create 100% natural, chemical-free candles with aromatherapy blends designed to soothe emotional wellbeing. Both the ingredients they use and their packaging are British made, and ethically and sustainably sourced. Their candles are made of soy wax with cotton wicks. 

8. Shinrin-Yoku candle, £20, Earl of East, 170g – an earthy blend of cedarwood, oakmoss and black pepper inspired by the Japanese ritual of forest bathing. Earl of East was founded by Niko Dafkos and Paul Firmin in 2014; they now have two lifestyle shops in London where they run candle-making workshops (I was lucky enough to attend one and they’re very good!). All of Earl of East’s products are made in London. Their hand-poured candles are made of soy wax.

9. Denu candle, £36.50, Aerende, 40-50 hours burn time – named after the Olde English word for valley, Denu is an earthy scent with lemon, geranium and patchouli notes (I had wanted to feature their Braeden scent, with the cosy scent of pine, cedar and bergamot, but that one is sold out!). With a passion for ethical, British-made products and useful homewares, Aerende is a non-profit organisation set up in 2016 by Emily Mathieson. It operates as a social enterprise, working with people facing social challenges to create ‘life-improving homewares’. Aerende’s vegan-friendly candles are scented with essential oils and made with natural, European rapeseed wax, and non-toxic cotton and linen wicks. Each candle is hand-poured in Wales by people with learning disabilities at Beacons Creative. The glass vessel can be easily cleaned out and reused, or recycled. Even better, the packaging is made in the UK from recycled coffee cups. 

10. Oakmoss candle, £17, Arket [affiliate link], 120g, burn time: 25 hours – deep and earthy with fresh, spicy tones reminiscent of bark and green foliage. Arket’s candles are made in France with a blend of rapeseed oil and paraffin wax. Their scents have been developed by French biochemist and perfumer Jérôme Epinette, whose formulas are based on a deep understanding of the olfactory properties of natural ingredients. The candles come in a dark green glass vessel and packaged in a simple cardboard box. [disclosure: I received a press sample]

11. Lysning candle by Skandinavisk, £55, Hus & Hem via Trouva [affiliate link], 300g, burn time: 65 hours – Lysning, meaning Danish for ‘forest glade’ and Norwegian for ‘heathland’, features notes of moss, lichen, pine needles and cloudberry. This scent is made in France with a rapeseed wax blend and features a cotton wick. The candle comes in a beautiful embossed ceramic vessel with an engraved, oiled oak lid, that can be reused again.  

12. Oakwood + Tobacco medium jar candle, £20, Hobo + Co, 180ml, burn time: 35 hours – a warm blend of smoky oakwood and musky tobacco. Hobo + Co was founded by Rachael Clark in Lincolnshire after she started to make candles as hobby. She takes inspiration from her travels and a love of the outdoors. Her candles are made of soy wax with an unbleached cotton wick. They come in simple brown glass jars with aluminium lids.