Our sense of smell is one of our strongest memory triggers. Ever walk past someone wearing a particular scent and have it remind you of “the one who got away”? Does the smell of warm apple cinnamon remind of you baking pies with mom as a child? Do you have a certain scent you wear when you want to feel you’re sexiest? If you’ve answered yes to any of these, you know what I mean.
Research shows that odors have a significant effect on the central nervous system. Fragrances also seem to have the ability to affect our thoughts and behavior. Work got ya stressed? Light a soy candle with a Lavender or Jasmine scent and feel your tension lift. Vanilla can be very calming as well. If you need a “pick me up”, burn something with a citrus scent such as Orange, Lemon or Lime Verbena. My personal favorite at the moment is a mixture of Vanilla, Strawberry & Musk. It just makes me happy.
There are also certain scents that offend people and may promote negative physical responses. Cigar smoke can send some people running for the bathroom. Even though we used to offer Patchouli in our soy candle line, I had to just about have to hold my breath while pouring this one.
If you notice, marketing people have long caught on to this concept. Remember the certain “herbal scented shampoo” commercial that left us blushing? And there was something about the “orange morning wake-up burst” promise that had me buying a different brand face wash recently.
I feel so lucky to be able to choose whichever scent tickles my fancy at the time. As a candle maker sometimes the hardest part is to remember our scent line can’t always be all MY favorites!
So the next time you need to unwind, relax, or “take yourself back”… Light your favorite candle scent. It’s one of life’s last affordable luxuries.
Tell me your soy candle experience story. What scents take you where?
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