For the longest time I had convinced myself that I didn’t like candles. I guess I had a fear of flames, especially when left unattended. But that changed because of the Posse’s LA Sniffa- I won a candle in one of the giveaways and rather than resifting it, I lit it up. It was Hotel Costes and it smelled gorgeous. I was told by a friend to just burn it enough to melt a layer of wax on top and then put it out. That way it will last much longer, which is nice considering the price of some of these things.
Anyway, as I wrote in a previous post my BFF Bitsy was out from NYC and stayed on my (surprisingly comfortable and only $25 at Target) inflatable bed that I set up in the dining room. She is a voting member of BAFTA, so she brought screeners to watch. We didn’t get to all of them, but I did get to see “Carol” and “Trainwreck” which were good, and “Spectre” which was not so much.
She also brought me a little gift- a candle. In a flavor that on the surface should read as disgusting: Atkins Farm Cider Donut.
Atkins Farm is a place that I grew up with in Western Massachusetts. They had apples in the fall, berries in the summer and various other things including the best apple cider ever, and their famous cider donuts. I introduced Bitsy to them years ago when we borrowed her brother-in-law’s Honda S2000 convertible and went to our favorite Birchwood Inn in Lenox for the weekend. At first Bitsy was like “what are we doing here?” until we got back to the car and I cracked open the donuts. Now, neither Bitsy or me are big donut people, but these are absolute ambrosia.
Please note however that is nigh unto impossible to eat a donut and drive a stick shift..
In any case, a cider donut scented candle sounds like it would be just awful, but it surprisingly is not. As a matter of fact it smells wonderful. It makes me want to order some donuts from Atkins Farms (they ship..)
So for you who like candles, what kind are you partial to? Have there been ones that you thought you’d hate but loved? Let us know in the comments.
Photo: My iPhone
I have no idea where Bitsy purchased this, I assume at Atkins Farms, but it isn’t on their website.
This post has made my day! I’m also from Western Mass and have spent many happy hours at Atkins. No matter what I went in there for, it was impossible to leave without a box of donuts. But now I live in Texas (where ‘cider’ just means ‘apple juice’) and those are high on my list of things I miss. I just ordered a candle from the Kringle website, can’t wait to try it out and bask in the nostalgia!
I like the regular old Yankee candles because they have such variety and are densely scented. I can’t stand the smell that lingers in the house after cooking–and I cook often–so candles and incense are used regularly in my household. Yankee Candle Sage and Citrus is a favorite but I buy the seasonal scents as well. For my office, I use one of those tart warmers that use a small lightbulb to heat a bit of wax. They last forever and don’t have the fire issue, so you might want to look into one of those.
New Orleans Candle company makes wonderfully scented, inexpensive candles with wonderful throw. They’re readily available in the US, and you can google the name to find online sources.
I’m not a huge candle person but I love the Slatkin Lilac candles. Last time I was at Bath and Body Works, they had them. I don’t know if they went to just having White Barn. Usually in the fall, I love the Bath and Body Works Country or Farmstead Apple. I go through a lot of candles because when you kind of live in the middle of nowhere, the power goes out and stays out on a regular basis.
It goes out and stays out with frightening regularity in 90210 as well..
Hi Tom! I am in central mass and was just at Atkins’ on Monday. I did get a chance to smell the candle and liked it, but didn’t take it (although I did leave with the cider donuts, of course ; ). I’m thinking I should pick one up the next time I’m out there, though, based on your review. Thanks for the recommendation!
Glad to make the recommendation- and a great excuse to het more donuts..
This will sound dull (who cares?!) but I am smitten with pure beeswax candles. For decades I collected and burned the high end stuff-Rigaud, Cire Trudon, Diptyque, L’Artisan and so on. No more. I buy beeswax tapers by the dozens, they are reasonably priced and smell heavenly. The scent is subtle, the burn is clean and there is something elegant about having lovely lit tapers when I eat lunch or work at my desk. Beeswax has an amazing smell when lit and I love the after scent when I blow my candles out.
I have burned beeswax pillars but prefer the tapers.
It’s really nice to be supporting beekeepers and bees and having that gorgeous, undefinable scent all over my house!
Hear, hear! I adore beeswax candles too! So nice at the dinner table in the dark of winter. And yes, let’s support our local beekeepers!
I haven’t really explored the high-end world of scented candles much. My husband has an aversion to them but I think it is because he associates them with the scary, toxic-smelling candles of Yankee, and the like.
I did give a friend a Lafco candle in “Tree House”, a cedar scented one if I recall. It comes in a beautiful hand-blown glass container. I hope he liked it but I haven’t heard.
Hi, Tom! I haven’t always been a big candle person, but that’s changed in recent years. Bond No. 9’s New Haarlem and Little Italy candles and a divine Voluspa (one a gift from a sweet perfume pal) did the trick a while back. Now I’m swooning over my gifts to myself: a Frederic Malle candle in Tubereuse (ah, a room scented in Carnal Flower, yum!) and Annick Goutal Noel votives. So I’m now a very happy candle camper! Enjoy yours — they sound great!
Ann, I just bought a Little Italy candle this week! Hudson’s Bay is selling its remaining Bond No. 9 stock at 60% off.
I treated myself to a Roja Dove Christmas candle, so elegant in black and gold and delicious! I bought it with no intention to burn it and it is currently lightly fragrancing my closet. I am signing up for a perfume with the same notes!
Great idea!
I’m pretty sure Kringle Candle is out in Western Mass. Check their website. They may have it. I love Lenox. We almost stayed at the Birchwood but ended up at Hampton Terrace instead. I like that place. We tried another B&B, Garden Gables(?) I think, and didn’t like it at all.
I saw they had two stores in New England, but didn’t see this candle on their site.
I think the best thing about the Birchwood is Quinn, the golden retriever. It’s a beautiful place and very well run, but Quinn will come with with you while you read..