In 2018 I burned 46 Candles & 39 Wax Melts!

As we wrap up this year it’s sad to see that my melting has reduced 50% since 2016 yet my collection has hardly dwindled. With that being said, I think it’s time to take a break from this blog as its taken the enjoyment out of fragrances for me and made it into more of a chore. I do still plan to track my empties but on a simple spreadsheet. If you still want to keep up with what I’m burning, check it out HERE.

Hoping you all have a wonderful 2019!

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

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!

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This month I burned 8 Candles & 8 Wax Melts!

Every sweet scent that filled my home in February complimented each other so well. I was most surprised by Magic Cookie Bar and let down by Nutty Butter Cookie Bars. My hands-down favorite though was Chocolate Pistachio – I could’ve burned only this for the entire month!

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

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This month I burned 6 Candles & 7 Wax Melts!

As you can see, I wasn’t just busy melting this month but also updating my empties format. I’m really hoping you like the new easy-to-read review format! The fragrances that were melted in January were certainly great overall, but my favorite hands down was Around the Campfire. I’m certainly done with these cozier scents and moving on to something much sweeter!

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

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CANDLES

• Chestnut & Birch – “Roasted chestnut, caramel sea salt, birch bark”
• Crunchy Pistachio Vanilla – “A sweet, nutty treat of pistachio, almond and lots of rich vanilla”
• Fireside Comfort – “Rich vanilla, smoked leather, and cedar wood”
• Ski Lodge – “Smoky vanilla, deep green cypress, and rich agar wood”
• Smoked Vanilla – “Smoked tahitian vanilla, sandalwood, southern bourbon”
• Sunday Morning Pancakes – “A mouth-watering combination of warm fluffy pancakes and sweet maple syrup. It will leave your house smelling like a cozy bed-and-breakfast”
• Winter – “Pine needles, icy mandarin, and winter woods”

WAX MELTS

• Around the Campfire – “Caramelized marshmallows joins the scent of gently smoked hickory, birch and oak wood wrapped with ambered myrrh and olibanum”
• Crunchy Pistachio Vanilla – “A sweet, nutty treat of pistachio, almond and lots of rich vanilla”
• Firewood & Fir Balsam – “Smoky firewood and fir balsam with forest pine, warm eucalyptus, burning embers and white cedar”

One of my major goals this year is to decrease the amount of candles I have in my stash, so I’m going to really try sticking to this burn list. Hopefully I’ll be able to add a few other fragrances into the mix too!

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

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In 2017 I burned 55 Candles & 91 Wax Melts!

After having so many poor experiences in 2016 with new-to-me candle companies, I was only brave enough to try 2 “new” ones this year; Super Tarts & Sonoma. I’m happy to report that I would gladly purchase from both of them again! The majority of my melting though was with Bath & Body Works candles & Wal-Mart wax.

Favorite Scents of 2016

Chocolate Pistachio // Bath & Body Works
Umbridge // Super Tarts
Key Lime Pie // Sonoma
Berry Waffle Cone // Bath & Body Works
Corpsman // Super Tarts
Moonlit Magic Pumpkin // Better Homes & Garden

Aside from discovering a handful of new favorite fragrances this past year, I’m so happy to have also met several other lovely bloggers who totally get this crazy obsession of mine. My main wax-related goal for the new year is to melt through so much of my stash that I have less than 100 candles in storage. I’d also really like to be able to share the inventory website that my husband and I created too, but that needs a little more work! Enjoy the remainder of your 2017 and have a happy new year!

How many candles did you burn this year & what are your melting goals for 2018? Share in the comments!

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Chestnut & Clove (3-wick) – I’ve always had the best luck with this transitional scent in the past, but it didn’t perform too great in my open concept house. It was somewhat enjoyable but just didn’t stand out.
Marshmallow Fireside (3-wick) – This was hands down the worst version of MF I’ve ever experienced. It had puny wicks from the very first burn and didn’t throw at all, even when placed on the melter. An extreme let down as I look forward to burning it every year in December.
White Mint Latte (3-wick) – A surprisingly incredible candle all around! You really got whiffs of cocoa, mint, and coffee. Not only that but the burn was flawless and it threw all the way to the second floor of my house. Finally a hit for BBW!

Marshmallow Candy Cane – I’m not the biggest peppermint fan but this fragrance was fantastic! It had the perfect combination of peppermint and vanilla and performed beautifully.
Cozy Chai – An incredibly strong, spicy scent perfect for cozying up during the holiday. Next time I place a Scentsy order, I’ll probably pick up a couple more bars.
Rum Raisin Cookie – I stand by what I said last year – this smells like a freshly baked raisin cookie with an undertone of rum extract. It’s very enjoyable however Scentsy unfortunately discontinued the fragrance.

Marshmallow Fireside (wallflower) – This was a very old wallflower and quite strange as it only threw in one spot far away and not in it’s immediate surrounding. When I could smell it, I did enjoy it.
White Mint Latte (wallflower) – The throw on this wallflower threw great! For the first 24 hours. Then it was non-existent, aka a total waste of money.

I was pretty bummed that I didn’t have the chance to burn through more of my stash as December is one of my favorite times of the year for fragrances. I did have an enjoyable holiday though and hope you all did too!

Moving into 2018, I plan on restructuring my empty posts as they tend to be a bit wordy. Is there anything you would definitely like to see included or not included going forward? Share in the comments!

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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!

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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!

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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!

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