The weather has cooled, the days are shorter, the woolies are out and there are berry shades everywhere: autumn is upon us. Candles can be used all year round, but is there really anything quite like it to get you all cosied up and settled in to the autumn season? We think not.
But how will I choose the perfect autumn candle for my collection?! We hear you.
While we firmly believe that one can never have too many candles, it is also true that at this time of the year the student budget may be stretching a little thin. So, to help you out, we had three candle connoisseurs give their opinions on some seasonal favourites available in Exeter. Each gave the candle a quality rating out of ten, then agreed on value for money. Expect a truthful review of each item – our experts did not hold back. Here are 15 candles for the autumn season, reviewed and rated so you don’t have to:
Autumn Night (Yankee Candle)
Hannah = 6
Steve = 7
Bryony = 5
Apparently reminiscent of an autumn evening, this candle is an intense mix of bergamot, black peppercorn and oak which their website describes as having a ‘brisk earthiness’ and ‘woodland notes’. However, our reviewers thought it was quite a strong fragrance. Steve said ‘It’s quite a masculine smell. Might be good for guys trying out candles for the first time who are afraid of smelling too sweet.’
Where we found this candle: House of Harris
Price: £££ – £19.99 for a medium jar
Black Cherry (Woodwick)
Hannah = 8
Steve = 8
Bryony = 6
This one focuses on the indulgent fragrance of sweet black cherries. However, it also has other fruity notes that include maraschino cherries, grapefruit, lemon zest and pomegranate seeds. Hannah thought that it had ‘a very rich and fruity scent’ and said it could be used in either autumn or winter. As with all of Woodwick’s products (as you might have guessed by the name), this candle has a charming extra feature in the fact in crackles as it burns, providing the ideal autumn atmosphere.
Where we found this candle: Debenhams
Price: ££££ – £24.99 for a large hourglass candle
Teakwood and Tobacco (Urban Outfitters)
Hannah = 7
Steve = 7
Bryony = 8
With our reviewing process, we tried to find a few candle brands that people might not have tried out before, and were all pleasantly surprised to find that Urban Outfitters had a small range of beautifully scented candles! We thought this one was particularly apt for autumn, with prominent notes of orange, leather, amber, black tea and patchouli to name a few. Also, because it’s Urban Outfitters, it also comes in a handsome little jar, making it perfect especially for those who like their candles to be aesthetically pleasing as well as fragrant.
Where we found this candle: Urban Outfitters
Price: £££ – £12 for a small candle
Autumn Glow (Yankee Candle)
Hannah = 7
Steve = 8
Bryony = 6
Yankee Candle’s classic autumn scent, this candle blends bright citrus and blossom notes with woody undertones of patchouli and amber. It’s quite a popular product, so you should be able to find this easily. Our reviewers agreed it was an average candle in terms of quality, but thought that it fit the autumn season well.
Where we found this candle:House of Harris
Price: £££ – £19.99 for a medium jar
Wild Sage and Cedar (Primark)
Hannah = 3
Steve = 1.2
Bryony = 3
We tried to test candles from a range of price brackets in this experiment, so it was only fair to have a whiff of Primark’s own value collection. We did try. This candle was supposed to smell like wild sage and cedar, but unfortunately that was not the case. It was on sale for 50p so the price certainly matched the quality, but it is safe to say our reviewers were not blown away. Hannah gave a rather generous review: ‘These aren’t particularly fragrant, no. But if you’re someone who likes really soft scents, or just the ambiance of a burning candle, then these are fine, especially because of the price.’ Steve was not so positive, saying: ‘I gave it the extra .2 because of the price, but it’s terrible really.’
Where we found this candle: Primark
Price: £££ – 50p for a very small candle (didn’t get full marks because of the quality, sorry Primark)
Russian Leather (MoltonBrown)
Hannah = 4
Steve = 6
Bryony = 7
The is a very powerful candle that claims to combine leather accord, pine, birch and cade. While these were certainly present, there were also strong notes of black tea and tobacco, the latter we thought was quite intense. As with all of the candles in this range it comes in very stylish packaging that was appreciated all-round, but as to be expected of the luxury brand, they’re slightly pricey. On the whole, it received mixed responses, with Hannah saying: ‘It’s a very musky scent, and a bit pungent for me. It’s not bad, but just not one for those who don’t like strong smells.’ However, if you like that sort of scent, and have a bit of money to spend, then this is certainly one for you
Where we found this candle: Molton Brown
Price: £ – £39 for a small candle
Highland Escape (The White Company)
Hannah = 7
Steve = 7
Bryony = 9
This limited edition candle is perfect for a cold evening, and the website claims that it will warm the senses from within. It combines the scents of spiced saffron, vertivert, patchouli and even a little whisky to provide an earthy and comforting atmosphere. It even comes in a pretty container flecked with gold and sliver stars. Though it has a definite warming feel, we also thought that it was more on the winter side of the season, and would make a good transition candle. Bryony said ‘It’s very piney and fresh – it would set things up for winter nicely.’
Where we found this candle: The White Company
Price: ££ – £60 for a large candle
Autumn (The White Company)
Hannah = 9
Steve = 8
Bryony = 9
A lovely product from The White Company, this aptly named candle takes an innovative approach that sets itself apart from the warmer, spiced fragrances usually associated with the season. It fuses fruity and floral notes of pear, apricot and quince with classic musk and amber. Hannah was particularly impressed, saying ‘This one is so nice and they even do a set with all four season candles! The autumn one is very fresh and light.’
Where we found this candle: The White Company
Price: ££ –£20 for a signature small candle, or £40 for a votive set of the four season candles
SKOG (Scandinavisk)
Hannah = 9
Steve = 9
Bryony = 9
‘Skog’ is Norwegian and Swedish for ‘forest’. The inspiration for this candle comes from the woodlands that stretch from southern Scandinavia to the Arctic Circle in the north, hence why the candle is also titled ‘calm of the boreal forest’. It is scented with a gorgeous combination of spruce and pine needles, woodland lily, musk and leather. This is another candle that comes in beautiful packaging, its dark green painted glass glowing calmly when lit.
Where we found this candle: John Lewis
Price: ££ – £29 for a small candle
Incense and Embers (Jo Malone)
Hannah = 5
Steve = 7
Bryony = 7.5
Blending smokey tones with bright notes of fir, white pepper and amber, this candle is absolutely perfect for autumn. Again, this a brand that does not skimp on style – their candles come in beautiful glass containers, even presented with a bow on the top! During our time at the Jo Malone section of the store, we spoke to Denise, a lovely and extremely helpful brand representative who gave us some great tips. She told us that Jo Malone ensure the fragrance is present throughout the wax, whereas other brands only focus this around the wick. She also said we should try to purchase candles with lids if we could, as this helps to maintain the candle’s scent over time. As for this candle specifically, Bryony thought it was another quite intense one, but said: ‘it’s perfect for autumn and definitely makes me think of bonfire night.’
Where we found this candle: John Lewis
Price: £ – £47 for a small candle
Evening Bonfire (WoodWick)
Hannah = 9
Steve = 10
Bryony = 8
This candle is incredible. The brand says it conjures the setting of a cool night around the campfire and they aren’t wrong. It has top notes of vanilla, tonka bean and tobacco over mid and base notes of wood, amber and sandlewood. Candles from the Hearthwick range have a long length wick that runs across the candle, meaning that you also get the comforting visual of a line of flames as your candle burns. All our reviewers said this is perfect for both guys and girls – it’s Steve’s all time favourite candle so definitely a big recommendation from us.
Where we found this candle: Debenhams
Price: ££££ – £26.99 for a large hearthwick candle
Dark Amber and Ginger (Jo Malone)
Hannah = 8
Steve = 8
Bryony = 8
This candle is part of Jo Malone’s intense home candle range. Brand representative Denise told us these candles not only boast an impressive potency in their fragrances, but that they also use some rarer ingredients. For this particular product, the standard autumnal scents of amber and ginger are accompanied by rich black orchid, water lily and black cardamom. It also comes in a sleek black glass container for that added sense of luxury. Our reviewers were big fans of this whole range, but unfortunately we could not include them all. However, they agreed that although this range could be slightly pricey, it was certainly worth every penny for the quality of the product. Furthermore, if you really want to splash the cash Jo Malone also do a range of their signature candles in a supersized 2kg showstopper. Burning for an impressive 220 hours, these are the ultimate home accessory, coming in at a whopping £300! Denise told us that she had the Lime, Basil and Mandarin one at home, and assured us that it was absolutely worth the money for the unbeatable fragrance and aesthetic. Unsurprisingly, none of us could quite be convinced that this was a smart purchase, despite desperately wishing otherwise. We can dream…
Where we found this candle: John Lewis
Price: ££ – £56 for a small candle
Autumn Pearl (Yankee Candle)
Hannah = 6
Steve = 7
Bryony = 5
This is one of the brand’s less glaringly obvious seasonal scents. It combines the fragrances of orchid, plum, jasmine, vanilla and sugar, among other sweet notes. Everyone agreed that it was definitely on the sweet side and not very autumnal, but that it was still a nice candle.
Where we found this candle:Debenhams
Price: £££ – £19.99 for a medium jar
Warm Woods Trilogy (WoodWick)
Hannah = 9
Steve = 10
Bryony = 9
As if they didn’t already make some of the best candles on the market, WoodWick have also released a number of trilogy candles made up of three complimentary layers. This one compromises Fireside – their signature amber musk, Redwood and Sandlewood Clove – both earthy and woody smells. This was a firm favourite for all the reviewers, who pointed out that not only were these a lovely mix of fragrances, but that the colours of each layer made for a pleasant looking candle, too. Bryony pointed out that they were a little more expensive than their regular range, but all agreed that this was justified for the unique blend that you get for the price.
Where we found this candle: House of Harris
Price: £££ – £19.99 for a medium jar
Halloween Sweets Trilogy (WoodWick)
Hannah = 10
Steve = 10
Bryony = 8
One for the season, this exclusive trilogy candle is another of Woodwick’s trilogy products. This one combines the adorable fragrances of some classic Halloween treats: Candy Corn, Caramel Candies and Jack O’Lantern. They are all quite sweet, but not overpowering, as it also has warming notes of autumnal spice. Technically we cheated here, as this one can’t be bought in Exeter, but it was simply too perfect not to include in our list. Hannah got it from Amazon for an amazing price and said that even though it is very specific to the Halloween period, that she will definitely be replacing it: ‘It has three scents, so you get three different autumnal vibes. It’s a classic – I will be buying again.’
Where we found this candle: Hannah’s personal collection (she got it from Amazon)
Price: £££££ – £10 for a medium jar
As we said before, you can never really have too many candles, so treat yourself and indulge in a new one for your collection. We hope that this list has given you a comprehensive overview of some of the autumn candles available in Exeter – we certainly had a good time doing the reviews! Watch out for a winter edition soon…