IT’S a quick and easy way to give your home a festive glow and smell.
The scented candle is as much a part of Christmas as Brussels sprouts, cracker jokes and a ding-dong with the in-laws.
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You know it makes sense, if it can cheer up grumpy Grandad.
From warming spice and cinnamon scents to pine needle and berry, your choice of aroma is almost endless.
But designer candles, for as much as £100, can burn a nasty hole in the pocket, while everything else is also going up in price.
Laura Stott tests some savvy buys – traditional, as well as modern LED versions that glow when you light the wick – and marks them out of five for value.
Yankee Candle Snow Dusted Pine, 538g, £14, cardfactory.co.uk – 4/5
This whopper is handy for high use.
Fresh and crisp, the aroma is definitely Christmas in a jar and captures that snow-on-the-ground scent with wafts of eucalyptus and vanilla.
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Not the prettiest but with 120 hours’ burn time and a fragrance that lasts, even when the candle isn’t lit, this is the hard-working Santa’s helper.
Mandarin, clove and cinnamon LED candle, 120g, £14, from marksandspencer.com – 5/5
The ideal gift, this twinkly beauty smells and looks divine.
Once lit, its LED lights sparkle round the outside in a magical snow scene.
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Lovely on a mantel or maybe windowsill, even if unlit, this showstopper’s fragrance with sweet mandarin, cinnamon and a hint of vanilla lasts well but is not overpowering.
Winter’s Eve candle, £3.99, www2.hm.com – 5/5
Best whiff. Small but mighty, its aroma packs a punch.
With a burn time of 18 hours, the nuanced scent, created with top perfume experts, beats many designer candles.
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Its lovely whiffs of caramel, ginger, spice and vanilla are deep and delicious.
Tiny, but top quality at a great price.
Get a few to scatter around or use as stocking fillers.
Mulled Wine LED candle, 70g, £8.50, tesco.com – 3/5
Red glittery surround lights up once you take a match to the wick to create a festive scene.
Eight hours’ burn time is a lot for your money but the sweet, cloying smell was not my favourite – more Jelly Babies than mulled wine.
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Not quite as decorative as some other LED burners, but a table or mantelpiece novelty.
Home For Christmas candle, 180g, £8.99, amazon.co.uk – 3/5
Soy-and- paraffin wax candle hand-made by London-based Brixton Candle Studio.
Hipster styling with dark glass jar, basic black label and jam jar-style lid is all fairly minimalist.
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Smells fab – orange, smoky caramel, tonka bean, musk and rum whiffs could be an aftershave.
Complex, interesting, fashionable.
Gel-frosted berries candle, 80g, £3.99, Aldi (in stores) – 3/3
Beautiful glass jar design with berry, pine needle and cone trimmings looks so festive.
Berry scent is rather sweet and not so strong but once lit, this candle is perfectly pleasant and fills the room with nice wintry whiffs while also giving off a lovely soft glow.
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Great value and looks far more expensive than it is.
Bath & Body Works winter candle, £17.50, 411g, next.co.uk – 3/5
This three-wick soy-and-wax treat with decorative lid is full of festive fragrances including pine needle, orange and spiced clove.
Essential oils give a deep, lasting scent.
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Tangy citrus is particularly rich.
Quite pricey but quality and fragrance lingers.
No chemical niff or duff note.
Nice label and packaging.
Livarno candle, £3.99, Lidl (in stores) – 1/3
Cherry-red glass jar candle delivers a winter berry fragrance but not the sort you would want in your home.
Its very artificial and over-powering pong made me sneeze.
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Look is a let-down too.
No mistaking this for a designer flame, with a label covered in hazard signs I couldn’t remove – not festive.
I’d use as a loo air-freshener, but that’s it.
Christmas orange and cinnamon, 300g, £4, tesco.com
Classic glass jar and gold-lidded burner, traditional feel in look and fragrance, with a citrusy tang and warming aroma.
Made of paraffin wax, this did not have the longest- lasting scent but it filled the room nicely.
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Excellent value at under a fiver and big enough to last for the holiday period.
Would make a nice present.
