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The magic of your home lies in the ambience that greets you as you walk through the front door. As such, a signature scent, one that’s uniquely yours and speaks to you, is another aesthetic element to think about when putting your home together, just like you do with furniture, lighting, and decor.
When it comes to aroma, scented candles are a must. The best scented candles are formulated with high-quality fragrance oils that allow the creators to capture complex fragrance profiles that other products can’t, and achieve the right intensity. Candle scents are not overpowering or too light, and they tend to linger long after the candle is extinguished, making the scents feel like a natural element of your environment.
Curious about how to pair candles with your decor to achieve different themes? Keep reading to find out.
How to Choose the Perfect Scented Candles for Your Decor Theme
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Here’s your quick guide:
Define the Theme You’re Going For
Your decor theme is the roadmap you’ll use to select your fragrance because you’ll want to match what you see with what you smell. Choosing the perfect lighting for each part of your home helps to establish an atmosphere, but pairing sight and smell elevates and enriches the ambience. So, what decor theme are you going for?
- Minimalist: a minimalist theme is relaxing and characterised by clean, uncluttered spaces with neutral tones here and there. Think crisp, airy scents like white tea, eucalyptus, soft cedarwood, and cotton. Avoid overly heavy or sweet fragrances as they’re overwhelming and can keep you from creating the preferred sense of ease and simplicity.
- Modern: A modern theme is energizing and uplifting. It’s characterized by neutral tones, sleek surfaces, and exposed metals. It pairs well with bold and refined fragrances like smoky woods, vetiver, grapefruit, and leather.
- Traditional: A traditional theme is characterised by classic furniture, rich colors, and timeless patterns that evoke formality and elegance. It goes well with warm, comforting scents like oak, clove, rose, vanilla and cinnamon.
- Bohemian: Characterized by layered patterns, rich textures, and natural elements, this theme goes well with exotic and earthy scents like amber, sandalwood, fig, and patchouli.
- Coastal: Characterized by ocean-inspired decor, light fabrics, and bright colors, the coastal theme pairs well with fresh, breezy scents like jasmine, citrus, sea salt, driftwood, and coconut for ultimate relaxation and airiness.
Choose Your Home’s Signature Scent
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Having established your decor style, now settle on the scent you’ll make your signature. Scents are generally categorized in families. Pick a family or two only, so that there’s some consistency throughout your home while allowing subtle variations from one room to the next. Here are the families to choose from:
- Woody: Sandalwood, cedarwood, patchouli, vetiver
- Citrus: Lemon, orange, grapefruit, bergamot.
- Sweet: Caramel, vanilla, chocolate.
- Floral: Rose, lily, lavender, jasmine.
- Spicy: Clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom.
Select one scent as the anchor, such as lemon, and use it throughout your home. For some slight variation, you could pair it with sandalwood in the living room, vanilla in your bedroom, and cinnamon in your kitchen. In this way, there’ll be cohesion throughout the home, and also some individuality to match yours or other people’s preferences. Choose unique candle scents that add personality to your home and create a memorable atmosphere for a distinct sensory experience that’s exclusive to your home.
Coordinate Your Candle Designs with Your Home Decor
Since coordinating your candles with the decor is about melding the visual and the scents, ensure that your candles’ designs also align with the overall decor theme. Here’s how to choose:
- Minimalist: Choose clear glass or simple matte white candle jars.
- Modern: Go for black, sleek metal, or concrete candle holders.
- Traditional: Choose holders with bronze or elegant gold accents.
- Bohemian: Opt for textured glass, patterned ceramic or terracotta holders.
- Coastal: Get white, light blue, or driftwood containers.
The right candle design will elevate your decor even when the candle is not lit. Remember to trim your wick regularly to make your candle last longer.
Make Room for Seasonal Variations
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Even with your signature scent, you’ll want to make some adjustments to celebrate different seasons. Here are some tips on the scents to go for with each season:
- Winter: During the coldest months, layer your signature scent with vanilla, smoked woods, pines, and spices for greater comfort and warmth.
- Spring: As the weather starts to warm up, go for light floral and citrus scents.
- Summer: During these hottest months, opt for oceanic, coconut, and fresh herb notes for a breezy, light feeling.
- Fall: As the temperatures start to fall again, opt for scents that bring warmth and coziness like clove, amber, cinnamon, and warm woods.
Craft a Signature Scent That Defines You
Scented candles are among the best ways to infuse your home with a fragrance that shows who you are and tells your story. They create an atmosphere that reflects your personality and values, and conveys the emotions you want those who come through your door to feel. So, go ahead and choose a signature scent that speaks about you and makes your home feel as unique as you are.