Lélior introduced a concept we can’t get enough of: the DIY candle experience! Priced at $27.96 for a 10-oz candle, and inspired by the St. Regis Hotel, the candle blend of white lily, quince, and cherry blossom transported us to a luxurious mental retreat. Now, neither of us have actually visited the St. Regis hotel yet, so we can’t speak on how well the smell resembles that particular hotel lobby. Regardless, the fragrance was intoxicating and almost kind of addicting.
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The best part here lies in customization! We could easily adjust the fragrance intensity by controlling the amount of fragrance oil we wanted to add to our candle wax. Additionally, the sustainable, refillable design resonates with our environmentally conscious side. With an impressive 80-hour burn time (yes, really) and all-natural ingredients, Lélior really shines when it comes to candle offerings.

ScentAir's Golden Bamboo candle really redeemed ScentAir as a home fragrance brand for us. At $30 for a 7-oz candle, it positions itself as a premium yet accessible option. The scent profile is intricate—satsuma, Tahitian lime, and Fuji apple combined with golden bamboo, sun goddess rose, and white amber. We mainly smelled bamboo, apple, lime, and a little bit of amber.

Small-batch production and hand-pouring in the USA add artisanal credibility. ScentAir states that they use a soy wax blend for their candles and cotton wicks. This candle had a sunny yet not overwhelming fragrance that filled our smaller spaces with a wonderful, light aroma. The 50-hour burn time proved slightly inconsistent, however.

Voluspa enters the arena with a handcrafted approach, featuring a coconut wax blend and promising 100 hours of fragrance. The Kalahari Watermelon candle's 18-oz vessel comes adorned with a metal lid featuring Japonica detailing, an aesthetic touch that hints at luxury. It was $34.

Promising notes of chilled watermelon, pressed lime, and holy basil sounds enticing. Yet, the HIGHLY anticipated watermelon fragrance proves disappointingly faint. We felt that the scent of watermelon was artificial and sickly sweet. While the glass jar remains beautiful, the overall experience fell short of our expectations.

The NEST New York Sunlit Yuzu & Neroli candle promises a joyful fragrance. Priced at $48, this candle boasts a carefully crafted composition featuring sunlit yuzu, mandarin, and neroli blossom. Its yellow-tinted glass vessel etched with frosted stripes speaks to elegant design, while the promise of a 50-60 hour burn time initially sounds appealing.

While the candle delivers an amazing scent, we found the burn time misleading and the fragrance intensity challenging to moderate. The candle's credentials are impressive—cruelty-free, vegan, and free from formaldehyde, parabens, and phthalates—yet the price point doesn’t seem worth it. This candle burned way too quickly and its fragrance was too intense for our taste.