This month I burned 3 Candles & 5 Wax Melts!

I’m still shocked that November has already come to an end but am happy with the overall group of fragrances I melted this month. Hopefully I’ll be able to keep this up in December too! What was your favorite fragrance of the month? Share in the comments below!

The post Fragrance Empties | November 2018 appeared first on Melting With Michelle.

(Also, I apologize for the awful quality of this month’s photos – I’m still trying to determine where the best place is to take pictures in our new space!)

This month I burned 4 Candles & 2 Wax Melts!

As far as October goes, this has been the least exciting fragrance-wise in years. I won’t let that discourage me next month though and hope to revive my melting game before the year is over! What was your favorite fragrance of the month? Share in the comments below!

The post Fragrance Empties | October 2018 appeared first on Melting With Michelle.

This month I burned 2 Candles & 0 Wax Melts!

I’m pretty bummed that I didn’t get to melt a single wax melt in September, especially since the majority of my collection are scents I would’ve enjoyed this past month. (Sometimes being a seasonal burner is tough, lol.) The exciting thing I discovered while burning the two candles was that fragrances really travel and linger in our new home! We were living in a rather large space for the past year and a half which I think negatively effected my burning habits. Hopefully we can get settled in soon and start enjoying my stash again!

What was your favorite candle of the month? Share in the comments below!

The post Fragrance Empties | September 2018 appeared first on Melting With Michelle.

Pumpkin Banana Muffin

Bath & Body Works, 3-wick

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Scent
9

Performance
7

Throw
5

Repurchase?
No

A delectable fragrance that smelled identical to freshly baked muffins. It’s too bad this candle hardly threw at all, even when put on the melter

This month I burned 5 Candles & 2 Wax Melts!

Even though I didn’t necessarily discover any new fragrances in August, this was still a great transitional month for me! What was your favorite candle of the month? Share in the comments below!

The post Fragrance Empties | August 2018 appeared first on Melting With Michelle.

Pumpkin Pie (1-wick, x2) – A true to life pumpkin scent with the addition of a delicious buttery crust! These tester candles were hands down the strongest I’ve ever had, especially when finished on the melter. BBW needs to bring this back next year!
Pumpkin Pecan Waffles (3-wick) – Like usual, this was incredibly strong and threw all the way to the second floor of my house. It smells like a sweet cereal and I tended only to burn it in the morning until it got puny wicks and had to be put on the melter.
Sweater Weather (3-wick) – A Bath & Body Works classic that smells like a crisp fall day and perfect for the cooler weather. This threw around a 7, was very enjoyable, and I will definitely be picking it up again next year!
Creamy Nutmeg (3-wick) – True to it’s name this is a heavy nutmeg fragrance with a hint of cream, yet it was pretty light while burning. However, once I transferred it to the melter it threw wonderfully and the scent appeal actually improved as well. Not a favorite for me and if they ever brought it back I probably wouldn’t pick it up again.
Rustic Harvest (1-wick) – A repackage of Woodwick’s Autumn Glow from 2012 and it’s just as amazing as I remember it being! It truly smells like the epitome of fall; caramel, apples, and sugared pecans. It threw wonderfully and I would forever repurchase if this is brought back!

Autumn Leaves – A fresh Fall fragrance with undertones of apple and cinnamon that I adored last year and only just liked this year. This melt was super strong though and last well over 12 hours!
Hedwig – This was very heavy on the chai spices on cold, especially the clove. However, it transformed into the most beautiful spiced cheesecake fragrance when melting. There isn’t any crust note but it’s packed with creaminess. It’s an absolutely beautiful blend that I wasn’t expecting and will try to buy more when it’s available!
Praline Spice – On cold, this was a very spicy fragrance that I wasn’t sure if I’d enjoy. Upon melting it lost all of it’s spice and ended up smelling like a salted caramel scent which I am not a fan of at all. If you are one that enjoys salted caramel though, I suggest picking this up.
Cranberry Cookie Crumble – A deliciously sweet cranberry fragrance with the perfect amount of bakery added in. A definite favorite that Wal-Mart should seriously bring back!
Cranberry Oatmeal Cookie – Another delicious cranberry fragrance that is a little less sweet than the cookie crumble version but still equally amazing.

Creamy Nutmeg (wallflower, x2) – The name really does perfectly explain this fragrance! While this was a pleasant aroma, these wallflowers weren’t strong at all. You got whiffs when walking by but that was about it.
Give Thanks (hand soap) – I am seriously kicking myself for not hoarding this back in 2016 because this is BBW’s Pumpkin Pie candle in soap form! Not only does it smell incredible but the scent really lingered!
Marshmallow Pumpkin Latte (hand soap) – A decent enough vanilla soap with a subtle hint of spice for the fall months, but nothing I’d go out of my way to purchase in the future.
Cozy Sunday Morning (body lotion) – My all-time favorite body care fragrance from Bath & Body Works! I’ve tried savoring this lotion for years but am SO thankful to have purchased some backups on eBay last year!

November may have been a bit crazy, but the transitional scents were quite enjoyable! My favorite fragrance of the entire month was hands down Hedwig from Super Tarts! I’m really looking forward to begin burning more festive scents now and hope to get through a decent part of my stash!

What did you burn in November? Share in the comments!

The post November 2017 Candle Empties appeared first on Melting With Michelle.

But first, make sure to check out the other girls in the series if you haven’t already!

Amanda at Thrifty Polished
Angela at Angela Kay
Jay at The Candle Enthusiast
Julie at The Redolent Mermaid
Sandra at Finger Candy

First and foremost, let’s discuss one of the larger retailers featured on my blog – Bath & Body Works. This company is usually the queen of fall yet this year they really let us down. Aside from the core White Barn candles, BBW only offered two small collections that both featured the same scents. There were only 3-4 new fragrances and they weren’t anything to go crazy over. Rather than giving us 4+ collections like they usually do, they decided to release an essential oil line and move straight into Winter at the beginning of October. This was a major mis-step, leading to hardly any purchases from me; I really hope they revert back to their traditional fall lineups going forward.

In terms of wax, I don’t tend to buy much from vendors and can’t speak for any of their small businesses. What I do tend to purchase quite often though is Scentsy, yet I haven’t done a single haul this fall. The company discontinued some of their best scents, didn’t release anything intriguing for the season, and honestly offers their festive fragrances a month too late in the year. Again, another letdown, especially for their prices and ship time.

Finally, we can’t forget to discuss Wal-Mart’s collection! This was probably the most vast on the mainstream market and had the most variety. At $2 a pop for clamshells, this is honestly the most affordable option, especially if you want to try multiple fragrances. The company really hit it out of the park this season and I found 3 brand new fragrances that quickly made it into my favorites! Harvest Moon, Moonlit Magic Pumpkin, and Pumpkin Patch Maze were absolutely incredible and I highly suggest checking them out while they’re still on the market!

Autumn 2017 may not have been the best year for buying candles or wax, but otherwise is was pretty great. I will always cherish this experience and hold other special memories close to my heart. If you’re new here, make sure to go check out the other posts from this series, here!

What did you think of the candles & wax offered this Fall? Share in the comments!

The post Fall Fun Series | Seasonal Wrap-Up appeared first on Melting With Michelle.

Each and every year growing up, I watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade with my parents while the aroma of dinner wafted throughout the house. Then, without fail, my Dad and I would sneak a flaky roll before dinner had even been served. It’s a simple tradition, but one that I hope to carry on as we start our own family in the years to come.

Thanksgiving weekend also marks the anniversary of when my husband and I started “officially” dating. It also marks the anniversary of when we got engaged! We’ve always celebrated those events by putting up the Christmas tree and beginning to decorate the rest of our home. If time allows, we also try to go out to a fancy dinner that Saturday night as well. While we now have a new anniversary to celebrate, we’re still planning on keeping this tradition alive too.

When it comes to Thanksgiving, it’s always been more about these little traditions that make the day special rather than decorations or special recipes. Down the line, I would like to amp up the decor for the holiday but now it’s not the top priority as we don’t host our own dinner yet. Nevertheless, I always look forward to this time of year and the symbolism is brings along with it.

Do you have any special Thanksgiving traditions? Share in the comments!

The post Fall Fun Series | Thanksgiving Traditions appeared first on Melting With Michelle.

Cranberry Cookie Crumble from Better Homes and Gardens was released during the 2016 holiday season and Cranberry Oatmeal Cookie is still on-shelves as it was released in the latest fall collection. The two definitely have have the same base with the slightest differences upon examination. The oatmeal version has a much sweeter cranberry note while the crumble has a tarter cranberry and prominent sugar cookie note.

Aside from cranberry scents, I always look forward to eating cranberry sauce on Thanksgiving and could always go for a glass of cranberry juice. I usually mix in a magnesium supplement to my cranberry drinks to sweeten it up a bit. Otherwise, I’m still looking for those cranberry items that’ll make it into my holy grail items for years to come!

What are your favorite cranberry fragrances and recipes? Share in the comments!

The post Fall Fun Series | Craving Cranberry appeared first on Melting With Michelle.

I’ve always correlated Harry Potter with this time of year, so it was absolutely incredible to walk around Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade. We were fortunate enough to spend 3 days in the parks and it only got better as the time went on.

Our first day was filled with overwhelming excitement. Witnessing Diagon Alley for the first time, just as Harry did, brought tears to my eyes. Everywhere you looked there was something to discover and we couldn’t take enough pictures. Actually, that’s pretty much all we did that day, aside from drinking butterbeer of course.

The second day, we were just as excited, but more so to be back in a place that felt like home. Rather than everything being new to us, we were able to appreciate the finely crafted details and really enjoy the ambiance. You truly feel like you’re in another world inside the park; I can never give enough praise to those who designed that space. By the end of the day, we had completed all of our spells and just relaxed by the The Hopping Pot as if we were another pair of wizards on the street.

Finally, our third and last day within the park was a bittersweet one. Knowing this would be the last time we’d be here for years, we again just found a place to sit with our drinks for the majority of the day to soak it all in. We adored watching people practice their spells and witness others see Hogwarts for the very first time. We even saw a marriage ceremony in front of the castle! But our favorite place in the busy village of Hogsmeade was the sitting area behind The Hogs Head. It didn’t seem like many people noticed the area and you get a gorgeous view of the castle; it was perfection.

While this isn’t your typical fall outdoor adventure, it was an incredible one that I’ll never forget. This season is so much more special to me now and we are so happy to have chosen Harry Potter’s world as our honeymoon destination. While most people relax in a tropical setting, we relaxed in one of the most magical settings there is, surrounded by happiness and excitement. The rest of our stay at Portofino Bay was also beautiful, but I’ll save that for another day.

Have you had any great outdoor adventures yet this fall? If so, share in the comments!

The post Fall Fun Series | A Magical Time of Year appeared first on Melting With Michelle.

CANDLES

• Sweater Weather – “Fresh Sage, Juniper Berry, Aromatic Eucalyptus, Fresh Woods”
• Pumpkin Pecan Waffles – “Maple Syrup, Golden Waffles, Pumpkin Spice, Brown Sugar”
• Chestnut & Clove – “Warm Roasted Chestnuts, Fresh Ground Clove, Forest Pine Needles, Cedarwood”
• Rustic Harvest – “Creamy toffee, maple and raisins with subtle hints of rum”
• Creamy Nutmeg – “Grated Nutmeg, Cinnamon Stick, Sugared Almonds, Creamy Vanilla”

WAX MELTS

• Autumn Leaves – “A vibrant medley of birch and maple leaves with pomegranate, juniper berry and orange blossom.”
• Hedwig – “Chai Tea, Creamy Cheesecake, and Clove”
• Praline Spice – “Cinnamon Bark & Vanilla Cream”
• Cranberry Oatmeal Cookie – “Sweet cranberry, cinnamon sugar, caramel swirl and buttered pecan into the heart of a sugar cookie.”
• Cranberry Cookie Crumble – “Ceamy oatmeal, fresh juicy red currant berries, butterscotch, farm-fresh milk notes, nutty almond and rich vanilla.”

Aside from the prominent juniper and cloves scents this month, I always associate cranberry with November because of Thanksgiving. I can’t believe the holidays are almost here – the wedding craziness certainly made this year fly by. I’m excited to get started though and am lighting Sweater Weather up right now!

What are you planning on burning this month? Share in the comments!

The post Burn List – November 2017 appeared first on Melting With Michelle.