Finding your signature scent goes beyond the aromas that make up your spritzable fragrance wardrobe; it can also be about securing the perfect scented candle. As any professional interior designer will tell you, it’s the small details that make a space homely, and that extends to the olfactory notes that emanate throughout.
Vogue’s favourite scented candles at a glance:
The candles I burn change seasonally, with deeper leather and woody notes in winter and brighter florals in the summer. Come Christmas, there is an entirely new crop altogether, imbuing my comfort place with the festive touches of cinnamon, apple or clove.
They also change from room to room, each having its own scent identity that reflects its purpose – be it calming, soothing fragrance combinations for the bedroom, unobtrusive yet pleasant notes where we eat and cosy and warm aromas in the living room.
The strike of a match is a transformative action that can and will instantly change the ambience of a place. Fragrance acts as a calming agent, providing a moment of repose from the exhaustion of the fast-paced lifestyles that we lead. They are mood sculptors, interior elevators, and the chicest sit atop a mantlepiece or nestled within a curated bookshelf to bring aesthetic harmony or elevate with a discerning touch.
Brands like Diptyque and Trudon are also considered veritable status symbols, with their vessels reused and repurposed to live on beyond the initial burning.
Find the signature aroma for your home with the Vogue edit of scented candles below
My all-time favourite candle, there is a reason why Diptyque’s Baies has remained not only a bestseller in the French fragrance house’s collection but on the fragrant bougie market; it’s dynamic, evolving and entirely room-filling with notes of blackcurrant leaves and Bulgarian rose. I’m addicted. It makes a foolproof gift, too; the signature vessel ignites awe as soon as it is unwrapped.
Inspired by the hedonistic spirit of an early 1990s New York nightclub at 4am – lively, tempting and inviting. The enigmatic aroma combines notes of pink pepper, cardamom and grapefruit with the unique sweetness of white chocolate, jasmine, lily, orris and caramel anchored with a woody and amber base.
The distinctive eau de parfum can be picked out of a crowd, but it’s equally as addictive in candle form. Le Labo’s Santal is a bestseller for a reason, with a slightly sweeter touch for the home fragrance. The decadent and sophisticated leather scent has been created with a combination of Australian sandalwood, cedarwood, vanilla, amber, coco and musk.
Assouline’s coffee table books are typically stacked on minimal central furniture or lined in a bookshelf calling out for a touch of colour, but the publishing house has ventured into the world of scented candles – and our favourite is unsurprisingly inspired by what the brand knows best: paper. It has notes of clove and Atlas cedar, a heart of leather and cashmere and a base of bourbon vanilla and parchment. Think an old library filled with dog-eared, well-thumbed books.
The August & Piers candles have been spotted in the homes of Kate Hudson, Victoria Beckham, Alexa Chung and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, selected no doubt as much for the refined exterior as for the quality aroma. Saint is a fruity fragrance made up of a premium cocktail of fig, cassis and orange blossom infused into natural wax.
The sophisticated double act of tobacco and leather are the notes dominating the Trudon Ernesto candle. The brand is a purveyor of luxury as one of the oldest candlemakers in the world. It is instantly recognisable by its gold shield-adorned jar, a stately home-worthy design detail so good you won't want to burn.
The endlessly alluring aroma of Baccarat Rouge 540 – a collaboration between crystal manufacturer Baccarat and master perfumer Francis Kurkdjian – comes in candle form too. It has an amber-woody composition that creates a warm, inviting atmosphere wherever it’s burned.
The husband and wife duo behind perfume powerhouse D.S. & Durga combine over 60 ingredients to create this dynamic, evocative candle. At the top, the named ingredient, myrrh, makes for a unique star and is layered with the rich note of tuberose. Fruity touches from blackcurrant make themselves known before finishing with a sweet vanilla base.
Palo santo is used to cleanse energy, and the burning of this Loewe candle can be a cathartic, ritualistic experience to remove negativity in line with the ancient South American practice. The smoky-woody candle adds citrusy Atlas cedar to the perfume triangle and is housed in the brand’s signature terracotta vessel in a chic black shade.