Yankee Candle Water Garden: Resurrection

On December 30th, 2020, I wrote a review of Yankee Candle's Water Garden fragrance. It was nothing short of scathing – I condemned the candle for its waxy, unpleasant scent when lit, going so far as to say "Either this candle I've got is a dud, or Yankee majorly failed with this one... I'm hoping it's the former, because I find it hard to believe they'd put out such a gross scent"... harsh!
Not long after I published that review, I would chuck my small jar of Water Garden into the trash. What was the point of keeping it around if I wasn't going to burn it? But even after that jar was long gone, I remained curious about Water Garden. Multiple people in the Team Yankee Facebook group lauded it, with many pronouncing it as one of the company's best fresh/floral scents. After all, I had quite enjoyed the fragrance on cold sniff. And don't even get me started on the wax color and label... after much thought, I decided I would give Water Garden another chance. Besides, the small jar I'd purchased months ago had been old and discolored, and on second look, it appeared to be of... dubious quality (the most glaring issues being the waxy scent, which even old Yankees should not give off, and the unusually long jar neck, a telltale sign of a knockoff). So I jumped on a 2018 pour large jar and I must say... I am much happier with the results this time!

Water Garden, with my
favorite Illumalid.

For starters, it's the right freakin' color! This beautiful light teal is how Water Garden is meant to be. Also, there was an update to the photo on the label – I personally prefer the old one, but that's neither here nor there. 

The most important thing is the smell, and this is certainly an improvement over the last one! It's the same watery fresh floral scent as I got on cold sniff last time, but it actually smells like that when lit! It's definitely less sweet when burning – which does make me like it significantly less – but it's still a fairly nice scent. I would liken it to the air freshener we kept in my childhood bathroom, which I believe was also a waterlily type scent... not a bad thing, since I remember being quite fond of that air freshener! Maybe not my absolute favorite, but I will definitely be using it in the upcoming warmer months.

Let me tell you, this thing throws like a beast. I started getting whiffs just a few minutes after lighting, and it completely filled my room within the half-hour. I opened the door to my bedroom and the scent traveled all throughout the top floor of my home, eventually filling the bottom floor as well. I’ve never had a candle fill my entire house before! 

So do I think it's magical? Would I rank it up there with the all-time greats? Is it even my favorite fresh scent? ...No. For me, Water Garden is a 6/10 scent with an 10/10 throw. If you remember from my first post, my entire motivation for wanting this candle in the first place was its name, wax color, and label. And I am most certainly delighted by that... it creates a gorgeous wax pool.

And until next time... xx

Yankee Candle Golden Spiced Pear – A Rare Autumnal Gem

You know when you're suddenly in the possession of something you never ever thought you'd own? It's such a strange feeling – holding it in your hands, seeing it right in front of your face, relishing in your good fortune. Not to be overly dramatic, but that's how I'm feeling with this one.

Simply put, I never thought I would own Golden Spiced Pear. As long as I've been expanding my meager Yankee Candle collection, Golden Spiced Pear has been on my list. Or just Spiced Pear. Even Orchard Pear would do. I just wanted to have some sort of pear-themed Yankee Candle. Pears are easily one of my favorite fruits, and the smell of a ripe pear is second to none. It just made sense to have a Yankee Candle scented after it. 

The problem is that Golden Spiced Pear has been discontinued for quite some time, and the eBay scalpers know that. I've seen it in both the black band and classic post-2007 styles (the latter of which I have), but they must have stopped producing this scent sometime before 2016, as I haven't seen any with the "keyhole" label. Both of the aforementioned styles fetch prices exceeding $50 (sometimes MUCH higher), and as badly as my heart yearned for it, I couldn't justify dropping that much cash on a candle. But then it happened – a barely-used jar popped up for roughly $25 including shipping. I pounced. I had to! And a few days later, I was greeted with...

the absolute MAJESTY that is Golden Spiced Pear. I spent a solid 10 minutes with my nose buried in this candle, trying to work out each one of its beautiful notes. Of course, there's the heavenly aroma of sweet, juicy pears, intermingled with the soft spiciness of nutmeg. This candle is unusual in that it lacks the cinnamon/clove overtones so often found in Yankee Candles, and while I'm a huge fan of those spicy notes, it's refreshing to see them left out for once (or, if they are there, they aren't taking center stage). There's also a sort of syrupy note that I can't quite put my finger on... maybe there's a little bit of maple in there? In any case, this scent is absolutely sublime. It's warm and cozy and so delicious... I can't really put into words just how amazing this smells. It is a must-have for the food & spice fans, if you can get your hands on it!

Another great thing about this candle is the throw. I swear, I was already getting a strong whiff from across the room not 5 minutes after I had lit it! The longer the wax pools, the more the fragrance permeates the space – it's very noticeable, but not headache-inducing. At the time of writing, I've had it burning for roughly 30 minutes and it's already completely filled my rather large bedroom with its gorgeous aroma. It's quite a heavy scent, if you know what I mean – it feels like a soft, thick blanket of fragrance over me. This would be perfect for a chilly night in autumn or winter. I'm saddened that this will be out of season in a matter of weeks – I just can't see burning this when it's 70 degrees and sunny outside. Ah, well... I'll sure be looking forward to breaking it out as soon as fall starts coming around again!

In conclusion, this may be one of the most beautiful candles I have ever had the pleasure of smelling. The fragrance strikes the perfect balance between juicy pear and spicy nutmeg, making sure that neither one overwhelms the other. It's the ideal candle for a cozy night in, or any other time you're craving this delicious scent. I will look forward to burning this as often as I can without depleting it too quickly – it IS rare, after all!

[Update: It is now 2 days after the original posting of this article. The scent lingered long after I had put the candle out, and traveled all throughout the second floor of my house as soon as I opened my bedroom door. I was even catching light-to-medium whiffs of it nearly 24 hours after first lighting it. Even after burning YC Sage and Citrus for 4 hours(!!!) yesterday, I was still catching whiffs of Golden Spiced Pear, if you can believe it! The stunning scent combined with the incredibly staying power has secured this in my top 3 favorite Yankee Candles... it may even be my new number 1!]

And until next time... xx

Yankee Candle Amber Moon

Long time, no post! Allow me to explain – online college is ca-RAZY! I only took 3 classes last semester and that was manageable, but a full 5 classes?! No no no! I'm simply drowning in work! I think any normal person would be able to handle this just fine, but between procrastination, executive dysfunction, and pure laziness... it's simply too much! I've also scored a side-gig transcribing for an insurance adjuster. It's not raking in the big bucks by any means, but it's a source of income while I attend school full-time. So now you know where all of my time is going!

Today for you I have a candle that is, quite frankly, more than a little bit of a letdown. I'd heard that Amber Moon was a light thrower, but I decided to take the plunge anyway. Besides, super-duper strong scents make me a little sick, so I like candles with a lighter fragrance.

But let me tell you, this is TOO LIGHT. It's a really beautiful fragrance in the jar – a gorgeous, almost sexy scent with the best set of notes I think I've ever heard:
Top: Sugared Mandarin, Bergamot, Orange 
Mid: Vanilla Petals, Jasmine Satin, Violet Leaf 
Base: Golden Amber, Patchouli, Sandalwood, Vanilla 

Unfortunately it has absolutely zero, and I do mean zero throw. I usually burn candles on my dresser or on top of my bookshelf across the room, but since I'd heard this one was light, I decided to burn it at my desk while I worked. I've had it going for about 3 hours now and I am getting the tiniest itty-bitty wee hint of a fragrance. I actually had to take the Illumalid off get anything from it – THAT'S how light this scent is. It's an absolute crime for Yankee to make such an amazing, beautiful, complex scent and then totally drop the ball on the throw. Maybe my candle's just a dud. There's a difference between a light throw and NO throw. Or maybe Yankee done f 'ed up on this one! I guess I'll never know...

Oh. And it was announced that Daft Punk broke up today. One of my all-time favorite bands is done after nearly 30 years. :( Today is just not my day!

Yankee Candle Bluebeary Muffin - Rare Black Band Treasure

I love Pinterest because it's basically an excuse for me to hoard pictures of all my favorite things without judgment, and Yankee Candle is no exception. I've got a board that's about 50 pins strong at the time of writing. 

The "more ideas" tab is a blessing and a curse. At the same time I get to find new pins to fill my board and discover things I didn't even know existed, it also leads to a lot of unfulfilled candle desires. Would I really ever spend $200 on a 25-year-old candle that may not even smell good anymore? Of course not, but that doesn't mean I can't dream about what oldies like Hearts & Flowers or White Lace might have smelled like back in the day. See? Blessing and a curse!

One of these old, rare candles I stumbled across in my travels was the adorable Bluebeary Muffin. This was a collaboration between Yankee and the now-defunct collectible line of stuffed animals, Boyds Bears. Here's what it consisted of:

• a repackaging of the existing Blueberry Muffin fragrance, with a new label featuring the punny name and a blueberry-themed Boyds Bear
• a jar topper featuring a bear eating a blueberry muffin
• the Boyds Bear seen in the candle's label

Cute, right? As with all black bands Yankees, this one carries quite the hefty price tag, made even higher by its affiliation with such a highly collectible brand. The whole set, including the jar topper and bear, can run for upwards of $150 on sites like eBay. So imagine my surprise when I found the complete package for a fraction of the price on Mercari!
Yes, seriously. Only $35 with shipping and this adorable piece of Yankee Candle history could be mine! How could I be expected to pass it up? The only catch, if you can even call it a catch, is that the candle had been previously burned, but 99% of the candle was still intact, so I didn't mind! A small chunk of change and a few days later, my wish came true... Bluebeary Muffin was finally mine!

Bluebeary Muffin with my
beautiful new lampshade.

Just look at that label. An adorable bear, decked out in blue attire and an apron, sitting next to a tray of freshly baked blueberry muffins? Too cute! You've gotta love that deep blue wax color, too. Obviously this is the main appeal of this candle – regular Blueberry Muffin is cool and all, but who doesn't want one that features a cute bear and a silly name? I'm a sucker for stuffed animals and all things cute, so this is right up my alley.

(Side tangent, I got the wonderful crackle glass lampshade seen in the photo for just a few bucks at Goodwill! I had been looking for one of these in the smaller size for a while, but they're more expensive than you might expect. So imagine my surprise and glee when I found this at Goodwill! I can't remember exactly how much it was, but it was definitely less than $5. I love the hand-painted details, and the flickering flame looks beautiful shining through it. I also found a small jar of Pink Sands and a box of Berry Trifle tealights at that same Goodwill... not too bad if I do say so myself!)

Now onto the part you really care about... the scent! This is certainly a fragrant one. As soon as I opened the box it came in, I got a strong whiff of that beautiful blueberry fragrance. It's sweet without being overly artificial, and if you sniff closely, you can detect just a hint of cakey-ness... it's an amazing scent, and definitely one for the "food and spice" fans like myself! The throw is also amazing, considering this candle's age – 15 minutes of burning and I was already getting a delicious blueberry aroma wafting through my room. Once burning, it's even less artificial than on cold sniff, and you really feel like you're sitting in front of a heaping bowl of ripe blueberries, or that there's a scrumptious blueberry treat baking in the oven. Blueberry muffins are my favorite, so I really enjoy this, even more than I anticipated I would!

Bluebeary Muffin candle
topper.

Of course, I can't post about this candle without discussing its accessories. First up is this charming jar topper, showing a bear enjoying a blueberry muffin. Surrounding her are buckets full of blueberries that she no doubt picked herself! I find this jar topper super cute, and it gives me an incredibly adorable mental image: a cute fuzzy little bear wandering about, collecting blueberries in her pockets, and coming home to make herself a batch of yummy muffins. It's also served its purpose well – it fits snugly on top of the jar and seals the fragrance in very well. The other black band Yankee that I own came to me without a lid, which I suspect allowed all of its fragrance oils to escape. Leaving the lid off of something that I think already has a delicate fragrance to begin with (Christmas Eve) is a recipe for disaster. Legend has it that black band Yankees were the most highly-scented of any candle ever produced by the company, and I'm so happy that I received such a good example of that! 

And of course, the star attraction for Boyds collectors – Muffin B. Blueberry! (Yes, that's her official name.) She's a very cute fawn-colored bear sporting a blue plaid headband and dress, as well as a cream-colored apron emblazoned with the word "Bluebearies" across the chest and embellished with a plaid pocket to match the rest of her ensemble. Her left foot features an embroidered image of a bunch of blueberries, and her right has the rarely-used Yankee Candle icon logo (the only other place I recall seeing this logo is on the jar lids pre-2016). She's a cutie patootie and I'm so happy I have her in addition to the rest of the set! Of course, I would have been happy with just the candle, but having the same exact bear as seen on the label is just too perfect! 

I wish I had an exact date to put on this set, but I don't. The Boyds Bears website claims that this was issued in 2002 and retired the same year, which makes sense at first – the bear's tush tag has a copyright date of 2002. Things get confusing when you look at the lot code on the candle, which indicates a pour date of 2004. So maybe the bears were produced in 2002 only, but the candles were being made as late of 2004? Meaning that the original owner bought the bear in 2002, then waited until 2004 to buy the candle? Or maybe she bought the bear with the candle in 2002, burned up the candle some time before 2004, and then went out to purchase another one? We've got a mystery on our hands! 

I got a little bit too invested in the Great Bluebeary Caper and decided to check out the Yankee Candle website on the Wayback Machine. I checked out a snapshot of the website from mid-2004 and perused the "Gift Ideas" section, since I figured that's where it would be. No dice! I did find some more ursine paraphernalia, as well as some other interesting bits & bobs. (Did you know that Yankee Candle used to produce body products like shower gel and hand lotion?) I even found regular old Blueberry Muffin, but nothing featuring Miss Blueberry. I even went back to 2002, when this was purportedly released, and didn't find much. I did learn that the original Blueberry Muffin was a new fragrance at the time. I'm beginning to suspect that maybe this was sold at other retailers like Hallmark, and that the candle was not the main focus of the set. Still, it was fun to do some sleuthing!

This post has gotten very long, hasn't it? I guess I'm just excited about this charming little set. Yankee Candle used to be so quaint! Somehow I could never see such a collaboration happening nowadays, especially considering that Boyds Bears have been out of production for more than half a decade. Still, I'm very privileged to own such an interesting piece of Yankee Candle history. I have no doubt that this set has evaded much more serious collectors than myself, but I'm just thankful I snagged such a good deal! My advice is to start looking in other places than eBay... you might be surprised at what you find!

And until next time... xx

Yankee Candle Christmas Wreath

If this candle were human, it would be a sophomore in high school.

I'm being serious! Today's candle (another Facebook Marketplace find) comes to us aaaall the way from 2006. Times were simpler... the iPhone hadn't yet been released, the recession hadn't yet hit, and the world was just a better place. It was also the year in which Yankee Candle transitioned from its beloved "black band" design to the wide-picture label that everyone now associates with the brand, even though it's been out of production for years. I know that this specifically was made in 2006 without even having to check the lot code, because this was the only year this design was used.

My pre-owned small jar of Christmas Wreath,
with a festive and very cute lampshade topper.

There's something so quaint about these old labels. The italic housewarmer text, the gold lettering in the middle of the photo, the simplistic fragrance names... it's indictive of an era gone by. Nowadays Yankee will put out a candle called "Festive Fun Fresh Christmas Party Spectacular" with the world's smallest photo of a gift box on the front, but back then, they didn't bother with bells and whistles. It's just Christmas Wreath, plain as day. And I like that simplicity!

As for the scent itself, I really enjoy it. It's one of those green Christmassy scents, as to be expected. It's a close relative to Balsam and Cedar, but there's something else to it. It's slightly sweeter, which I suppose could be attributed to the hollyberry notes listed by Yankee. That's my main gripe with Balsam and Cedar – not being sweet enough for me – and this candle remedies that perfectly.

As for the throw, it's... not great, to be frank. While far away, I get a little whiff of something piney and that's about it. I really can't fault this candle for that – it is 15 years old, and I received it without a lid (although I did get this cute snowman lampshade), meaning that the fragrance oils may have escaped over time. I am able to get a pretty good scent off it when I get close, though, and I'd describe its burning smell exactly the same as its cold one – Balsam and Cedar wishes it was Christmas Wreath. This is like Balsam and Cedar's cooler older sister. It's got that same strong pine scent but with an added pizzazz. I'm gonna be honest, I wish they still made this. I'd probably buy another one.

Well, that'll do it for today's entry! This is one oooold candle, but believe it or not, it isn't the oldest in my collection! That'll be for another time ;)

And until next time... xx

The Old Candle Barn Apples & Spice

What's this? A non-Yankee candle? Preposterous! 

Yes, it's true. This is my very first candle that was not manufactured by Yankee Candle or one of its subsidiaries. In fact, this isn't even from a mainstream or mass-produced brand... crazy, I know!

Apples & Spice in my new and extremely
charming gnome-themed candle holder.

The subject of today's post hails from The Old Candle Barn, a candle factory slash gift shop located in the amusingly-named Intercourse, Pennsylvania. While I don't live too far from the Barn and I could definitely make a day trip out of it if I wanted to, I've never actually been there! This candle comes to me courtesy of the wonderful Facebook Marketplace. (Seriously, if you've never tried it, I would highly suggest poking your head in and taking a look around... you can find some real treasures!) It was part of a lot, which also included: 

• half-full 22 oz. of YC Greenhouse (which I may review here sometime)

• WoodWick Sparkling Orange in a very pretty jar

• a generic brand Christmas Cookie which went to my sister

and... possibly my favorite new addition... 

•the AWESOME gnome candle holder you see in the photo! (My sister is a huge fan of gnomes and offered to buy it from me, but I refused to part with it! I just love it way too much.)

All of this for $20?! What a steal, amiright?

As for the candle itself, I really like it! I'll be honest, it's a pretty generic scent and is a near-exact dupe of Red Apple Wreath, but I'm a sucker for anything cinnamon-apple, so this is no problem for me! The throw is absolutely stellar – it fills the room, and FAST. That's one of my gripes with Yankee Candle... you light it and it takes a half-hour to actually start giving off a scent. This baby needed maybe 5 minutes to start filling my room with that wonderful spiced apple aroma that you just can't go wrong with! 

One odd thing I did note is that the wick mushroomed very quickly. Usually it'll take 3-4 hours for that to start happening, in my experience, but I saw the mushroom begin to form around the 45-minute mark. Very strange, but it isn't a big deal... just something I noticed.

Well, I suppose that's all for today. I finally lit my small jar of YC Sugar & Spice earlier, and I weirdly didn't like it as much as I thought I would... for something with Sugar in the name, I'd expect it to be a little sweeter. There's a sugary element to it, but it smells weirdly savory at the same time... if I had to give it a new name, I'd call it Salted Caramel. That's what it reminds me of!

And until next time... xx

Yankee Candle Midnight Jasmine

Now here's a Yankee Candle classic! I'm not sure when it debuted, but it seems to be post-2007 – I can't find any instances of a black band jar of this. Even though it's on the relatively newer side, this candle has cemented itself as a favorite – 350+ 5-star reviews on the Yankee Candle site don't lie! I grabbed my Midnight Jasmine during a sale about 3 weeks ago, and I'm only now burning it for the first time. I've been itching to ever since I got my first whiff of it, though... it's absolutely lovely!

My small tumbler of Midnight Jasmine.

There are some citruses and other flowers listed in the notes, but to me, this is just a pure jasmine smell. It reminds me of the Love's Soft Jasmin perfume I had as a child, but much subtler and more natural smelling. I honestly don't know if I've ever smelt a real jasmine flower, but I imagine this is how it would smell... light and delicate, but with that unmistakable floral scent.

I really like the label on this one! It's just a couple of cute little jasmine blossoms on a lovely blue background, with what looks to be a tree in the distance. The old version of this one is even better, because it has way more blossoms! Yankee Candle can get ambitious with their photos at times, but nothing beats the simplicity a bunch of pretty flowers! (Though I think there might be some contention on that...)

That being said, the throw leaves a lot to be desired. I've had this going for at least an hour and I can't smell it unless I get super close. I'm holding out hope that it'll get stronger with time, because I really want to love this candle. I'll report back in an hour or two and see how it's going...

Alright, so it's been about an hour and I smell it... a little bit? I left the room and I noticed it when I came back in, but it isn't particularly strong. I get little whiffs every now and again, but not much... I wish it were a little more powerful! I'll certainly keep burning it (unlike Water Garden, as seen in the background of the photo, which I should honestly just throw out). It's perfect for those occasions when you'd like the ambience of a candle, but not an overpowering fragrance. If I were to ever buy it again, I'd probably go for a small jar.

One great thing about this candle, though – I managed to get an absolutely flawless first burn on it. I sensed that I may have trimmed the wick too short, and that the wax wouldn't reach the edges, so I used the foil method and voila! The wax melted absolutely perfectly to the edges, completely straight. I love starting a candle off right with no tunneling! 

And until next time... xx