A soft, nutty fragrance note that may take sweet, bitter or slightly green nuances. The scent is luxurious, bitter-sweet, soft, and beautifully delicate.
Try: Tonka Boudoir by Maison Maison
A blend of ingredients that describes a warm, powdery, sweet scent. It consists of a soiree of ingredients such as vanilla, patchouli, styrax, benzoin to name a few. It is used to create oriental fragrances that convey a rich, spicy feel. In aromatherapy amber is frequently employed to calm the mind and protect heart health.
Try: Madagascar Amber by Maison Maison
is described as having a scent that is sweet, soft, and mild, and yet extremely powerful. Liquorice, in its pure form, is often considered identical to anise - intensely honeyed but also rich with a root-like, slightly caramel fragrance.
Try: Market Fig by Maison Maison
is a rich gum resin obtained from the bark of a group of trees called styrax that is both sweet and smooth in fragrance - much like vanilla. Traditionally used in incense, benzoin has a strong scent that gives amber its spicy, exotic, and resinous notes. Within aromatherapy benzoin is heralded for its calming, warming and decongestant properties.
Try: Market Fig by Maison Maison
often referred to as the “prince of citrus,” bergamot is a sunny, pleasant, versatile citrus scent. This small, round fruit is similar in scent to a sweet orange, but has a fresh fruity quality with spicy hints, and it is used to create some of the most inspiring and evocative fragrances. It's aroma is refreshing and rounded; sweet, but complex and deep at the same time; similar to lime, but with floral, herbal, and resinous undertones. Bergamot's aroma is similar to that of a freshly brewed cup of soothing earl grey tea.
Try: Madeleine de Proust by Labogie
has a sweet, woody, sappy, green fragrance. A sharp and familiar fragrance that is both soothing and calming, the aroma of birch also promotes relaxation to an overworked mind and body.
Try: Indio by The Very Good Candle Co.
is luxurious, subtle and mysterious, much like its taste profile also. Its aromatic, slightly musty odour comes from the volatile oils found largely in the flesh of the peppercorn. Warm, woody smell that is fresh and sharp.
Try: Arizona Wood by Maison Maison
warm, luscious with a tart hint-of-raspberry juiciness. Blood orange beautifully complements other citrus elements of mandarin, neroli and grapefruit as well as a captivating blend of rose, geranium, clove or cinnamon. In aromatherapy, blood orange is considered uplifting, stimulating and a natural anti-depressant.
Try: Indio by The Very Good Candle Co.
has balsamic undertones and a camphoraceous odour that reminds you of an antique heirloom or a luxurious aftershave. This aromatic wood scent can call to mind pencil shavings and fine cigar boxes, both of which are often manufactured from cedar. Of course it smells woody, but that’s just too simple: it also has a freshness, with hints of resin. If you’ve ever walked in an evergreen forest, cedar will transport you back there.. It’s mostly the foliage (from trees grown in the mountains of Morocco, or USA) that is steam-distilled to produce the intense oil, which is also used in aromatherapy for calming and balancing.
Try: Ancient Forrest bt Rowan Beg
is one of the most nostalgic aromas of winter. One of 'The Christmas Spices' it is enticing, comforting and sweet, all at once.
Try: Home for Christmas by Rowan Beg
is considered as one of 'The Big Four' spices, the other three of which include cinnamon, nutmeg and peppercorn. Sweet, warm, woody and spicy, cloves taste and smell like Christmas. Clove a staple of many culinary spice mixes, including garam masala, five spice and ras-el-hanout, while their potent oil has antiseptic and pain-relieving properties.
Try: Cèdar Provence by Maison Maison
the fragrance of coconut comes primarily from the pulp and water. It's a sweet, creamy, exotic smell is both light and fresh. Warm and breezy, coconut is reminiscent of long beach days under azure blue skies and a hot midday sun. Within aromatherapy coconut oil is employed to ease stress and induce warmth and relaxation.
Try: Coconut Nectar by Wxy.
used extensively in Chinese medicine, the scent of cypriol is a woody fusion of cedar, vetiver and patchouli. Earthy, grounding notes include bay leaf, black pepper and gentle spices.
Try: Arizona Wood by Maison Maison
aroma is woody and smoky but with a higher concentration of terpenes it has a lighter, more lemony note than that of it's contemporary Frankincense. which give it a lighter, more lemony note. The overall scent of elemi can best be described as "terpenic", an aroma typified by fresh pine needles, clean, green with citrusy and coriander undertones.
features a distinct camphoraceous smell, which some people describe as sharp and slightly medicinal — a little like rosemary. It's a multifaceted forest scent with hints of mint, honey, and citrus. Like mint, inhaling eucalyptus opens your sinuses and clears your mind.
Try: Stormur by The Very Good Candle Co.
sweet yet somewhat spicy and peppery with a liquorice-like, anise note. It is a top to middle note that blends beautifully with fragrances in the wood, citrus, spice and mint families.
leaves produce a complex, green, sweet-milk fragrance. The aroma of the ripened fruit, however, is honeyed, floral and conjures memories of long, warm, healing days of welcomed summer sun.
Try: Black Fig + Vetiver by Kyuka
is a distinctive and refreshing aromatic fragrance with notes of sweet balsamic, green nature and warm spice. In aromatherapy Fir is frequently used to clear cluttered thoughts and focus the mind. Not only can fir bring a touch of the outdoors to your home, it can also help to create a clean and welcoming environment.
Try: Indio by The Very Good Candle Co.
has an aromatic, earthy, scent. Musty pine notes, alongside citrus notes and spicy undertones frankincense has similar scent notes to garden herb rosemary.
is a sophisticated, fresh fragrance on a contrasting warm woody base. It opens with a vividly fresh mix of bergamot and ginger before settling into semi-spicy mix of pepper, vetiver and cedarwood. Rich and full, but quite subtle.
Try: Asagiri by The Very Good Candle Co.
originated in Peru and was introduced in Europe more than 200 years ago. The fragrance profile is a delicate but warm powdery floral with vanilla and marzipan notes. Butterflies can't resist it!
is one of the most prized types of wood in Japan. This tree is a type of a cypress that grows only in this part of the world where it is considered a “sacred” wood. The wood of this tree has a charming, subtle lemon-like scent. The aroma is healing - it lacks an often prominent medicinal note commonly associated with woods. The scent of hinoki wood is often compared to air, paper, dry woods, fresh linens, pine needles, a cup of hot lemon tea.
Try: Asagiri by The Very Good Candle Co.
has a sweet, relaxing aroma, which blends particularly beautifully with Cedarwood, Bergamot, Lavender, Geranium. It is uplifting but also calms the mind thanks to its woody, floral camphorous scent.
much like lilacs, hyacinths are flowers whose pleasant but powerful scent is strongly associated with early spring. The fragrance of hyacinth often conjures fresh spring walks or old fashioned perfumes. A classic floral.
Try: Market Fig by Maison Maison
the powdery aroma of Iris is truly undeniable and can often be reminiscent of suede or freshly-baked bread. Lending base notes of violet, the iris fragrance can vary slightly from plant to plant, often adding welcomed spicy, woody and dry notes. The soft, fleshy scent is evocative of the opening a powdery cosmetic case or application of a favourite lipstick.
Try: Tonka Boudoir by Maison Maison
lends a floral scent that is rich and sweet. To some, jasmine alone can be described as almost "too sweet". However, when combined with other scents, jasmine adds a welcomed top note . Considered a sensual fragrance, jasmine is often described as being intoxicating and exotic.
is of the most common fragrances used candle making and it's easy to see why. The soft, camphorous scent often lends a subtle scent of fresh pine. In aromatherapy lavender is heralded for its gentle, soothing properties that can reduce stress and help to create a sense of tranquillity and peacefulness - inhibiting worry and low energy.
in perfumery is a very sunny citrus note. This citrus is a bigger personality than its counterpart bergamot but is also 'greener' and more bitter. This note is different because its scent is impregnated with the skin of the citrus fruit, it brings a big smile to the fragrance. Its aroma is described as fresh, sweet, fruity, juicy, sharp, tangy with elements of candied orange with a delicate floral, neroli-like undertone.
is both sweet and vegetal - often compared to the scent of freshly cut grass. Matcha provides a moment of ritual and introspection, a moment of self that offers a quiet inner celebration of grace and soulful beauty.
Try: Matcha by Wxy.
a member of the daisy family, mugwort has a herbaceous, musky aroma reminiscent of cedar-leaf and sage. It also has light berry-like notes with hints of woody marigold and chamomile undertones.
is a heavy base note scent that is usually compared with woody, earthy, amber smells. It is often added to fragrances to add old-world aromatic base notes.
Try: Pipe Tobacco by Rowan Beg
provides a warm, spicy, sweet profile adored throughout the winter months. It is the perfect alternative (or complementary spice) to clove and cinnamon. Nutmeg adds subtle hints of spiciness to fragrance - just as it does to cooking and baking. A true 'crowd pleaser'.
Try: Home for Christmas by Rowan Beg
is earthy, woody and sensual with hints of musk and amber. Oakmoss is often added to perfume and essential oil blends due to its fantastic 'fixative' qualities - the property that allow a fragrance to linger for longer. As you might suspect, there's a touch of damp forest floor within the scent profile of this beautiful, woody ingredient.
Try: Stormur by The Very Good Candle Co.
we all know the smell of orange; like any citrus, it has an upbeat and cheerful scent reminiscent of summer and warm weather. Considered a top note in regards to fragrance blending, orange blends well with warm scents such as cedarwood, juniper, clove, frankincense, lavender and sandalwood.
Try: Home for Christmas by Rowan Beg
is a complex ingredient with a large, complex palette of notes. Sometimes, it builds on its heady, floral-animalic note while at the same time, it has a fresh, baby-like, soapy clean scent.
deep, dark, earthy. Often referred to as the 'scent of the 60s', patchouli was often worn neat on the skin of the bohemians. It's important to note that patchouli isn’t a wood, or a root - it’s a frilly green-leafed, purple-flowered member of the mint family, called Pogostemon Patchouli. Amazingly, from those fragile-looking leaves comes a sweet, spicy, smoky, cedar-esque scent so powerful it has to be handled with care.
Try: Ibiza Patchouli by Maison Maison
the name means “small grain” in French, and it refers to the fact that traditionally petitgrain was distilled from immature bitter orange fruit. Today, twigs and leaves are more likely to be used. And it smells heavenly–green, sparkling, bright, with a distinctive orange blossom accent. Although similar, neroli has a sweeter, more floral fragrance that is highly prized in perfumery. Petitgrain is extracted from the leaves and twigs of the plant, whereas neroli is distilled from its blossoms.
Try: Tonka Boudoir by Maison Maison
has a sharp, peppery spicy scent with rosy overtones. These qualities make it a mainstay in a lot of dark, woody fragrances. Pink pepper adds a soft piquancy to fragrances by allowing floral and woody notes to shine through. It adds a spicy, radiant top note and blends particularly well with floral, woody, and citrus notes.
tangy or sweet, juicy or tart: more sophisticated than a strawberry, but every bit as luxurious. An unusual ingredient in fragrances but one that adds a subtle layer of sophistication.
Try: Pilton by The Very Good Candle Co.
a fragrance without roses is almost as unthinkable as a love affair without kisses. Not only are roses the most romantic of flowers to look at: they’re an absolute cornerstone of perfumery – the most important flower of all, from the point of view of a nose: sometimes powdery, sometimes woody, musky, myrrh-y, clove-like, sometimes fruity, or just blowsily feminine – but always, intensely romantic. 'A roses's charm is in its beauty and its fragrance.'
carries a blend of citrus, grapefruit and petitgrain notes. An essence derived from the leaves of the bitter orange tree rose wood adds a fresh top note to mature fragrances.
Try: Cèdar Provence by Maison Maison
many describe rosemary as having a pinewood scent - much like charred wood. Known for its distinctive fragrance that is characterized by an energizing, evergreen, citrus-like, herbaceous scent, rosemary is derived from the aromatic herb Rosmarinus Officinalis, a plant belonging to the mint family, which also includes basil, lavender, and sage.
Try: Asagiri by The Very Good Candle Co.
emits a dark, leathery, spicy scent, with tarred effects and a hint of honey. Saffron can often provide soft, earthy, hay-like notes to a fragrance that can imitate the scent of natural rubber.
Try: Oud Souk by Maison Maison
there are many variations of sage. But ultimately, sage as a whole offers an earthy aroma with an herbaceous scent. Sometimes crisp and often with strong green notes and pairings, sage is fresh but musky all at the same time.
Try: Naeba by The Very Good Candle Co.
is a deep, woody 'old-world' scent that often smells like a mix of floral, rich, balsamic, soft, and sweet accents. Because of its wonderful, nostalgic fragrance, sandalwood is often used a base note in many iconic perfumes and colognes.
Try: Lebanese Cedar by Labogie
is a powerful ingredient with an oceanic green-herbaceous, dry-woody/phenolic aroma with soft leather undertones. This aromatic is salty, briny, and very reminiscent of the smell of the beach where waves are crashing on the rocks and the seaweed is being tousled around at the ocean shore. If you've walked a beach at low tide on a misty day you will be familiar with this remarkable fragrance.
Try: Stormur by The Very Good Candle Co.
fragrances are intriguing and sultry. Warm, sensual notes of cardamom, incense, and pepper are common within this type of fragrance blend.
Try: Cèdar Provence by Maison Maison
In aromatherapy, tea tree has demonstrated its ability to naturally support the boost immune system as it diminishes that detrimental feeling of stress. Prickly, partly woody, herbal and spicy, cooling and somewhat earthy tea tree adds a wonderfully fresh note to a fragrance blend.
Try: Naeba by The Very Good Candle Co.
spicy, aromatic and surprisingly leathery in a fragrance thyme is a beautifully understated addition to a scent. Whilst it may not be an obvious choice for a fragrance blend, thyme adds a subtle, perfumed freshness that sings above darker base notes.
Try: Cèdar Provence by Maison Maison
the pleasant, natural aroma of tonka bean can be described as a mix of sweet, spicy, nutty, herbaceous, and woody. Its scent is complex and sweet like vanilla, with enticing notes of spices and tobacco.
Try: Wild Fig by Labogie
has a creamy, warm, comforting, yet also slightly exotic scent. It's a gourmand - naturally intertwined with baking and food flavouring - but a good vanilla essential oil has far more complexity than a simple sugar-cookie or vanilla ice cream type smell. Alluring and palatable, vanilla adds warmth to many fragrance blends.
Try: Madeleine de Proust by Labogie
dry, earthy, woody, leathery, smoky. Think of uncut grass on a warm day and you'll have a good idea of how vetiver smells. The fragrance is closely related to other fragrant grasses such as lemongrass and citronella. Once considered a more masculine scent, vetiver (thankfully) now features strongly in unisex perfumery and home fragrance blends. A simple, beautiful addition to fragrance blends. A Léas favourite.
Try: Serenity by Kyuka
flowers smell soft, powdery and romantic, a little like iris, and are can be played up to create a very feminine fragrance. Violet flowers have a soft, tender aura, a bit similar to iris, and smell powdery and romantic. It is a scent that is often reminiscent of violet blossom fragrance - soft, sweet, candy like, to a woody floral tonality.
Try: Tonka Boudoir by Maison Maison
can be described as a deep, rich, complex aroma that's slightly sweet and floral. Exotic, deep and floral, ylang ylang extract features top notes of jasmine and neroli (bitter orange), a fruity facet reminiscent of banana, paired with creamy custard and tangy rubber.
the fragrance of Yuzu smells like a mix of grapefruit and orange, although arguably less pungent. It is both slightly tart and slightly sweet but undeniably fresh, and light. Some find this fragrance comparable to that of lime and green mandarin.
Try: Naeba by The Very Good Candle Company