If You’re Not Using These TikTok-Approved Items for Your Expensive Candles, You’re Doing It Wrong
As someone who burns through candle after candle this time of year, I’ve found myself wondering how I could make my cold weather candle budget last longer or go a little further. Enter the candle warmer. The TikTok trend that has taken off this season, I finally jumped on the bandwagon and bought the lamp that may have started in all: this $50 vintage-inspired design available on Amazon, which you can see styled out in my home above.
Would this candle warmer lamp really help me preserve my pumpkin clove, alpine fir, and apple orchard candles a little bit longer? Is it the answer to making the most of splurge-worthy candles? I purchased the lamp (independently; I was not given this product to review), and put it to use. And now, I think every true candle lover needs one of these at home — and here are some tips on how to make the most of yours, whether you buy one for yourself or are lucky enough to get this as a gift from someone this season.
As far as where to put a piece like this, I choose my bookcase (though a console, living room side table, desk, or countertop could all work, too). I have a light on each of my bookcase’s shelves to balance out its dark areas. This candle warmer provides the perfect amount of diffused light for this spot. It definitely creates a mood versus providing serious task lighting, so keep that in mind. The only place I would not suggest putting this kind of lamp is near anything flammable, like fabric, paper, or artificial flowers. Thorough there’s no open flame involved, the halogen light bulb it uses gets fairly hot —that’s the mechanism that heats up the candle and its surroundings to throw fragrance. I wouldn’t say the heat is scalding, but it’s enough to take the extra caution just in case.
I found this vintage-inspired design to be a nice alternative to the typical wax melters or tart burners you’d find on the market. It’s definitely more aesthetically appealing than those other options. It blends into my decor, masquerading as a gooseneck table lamp, but it essentially functions as a tart burner.
I’m not saying I never light candles anymore though; for me, this warmer is really most useful at the tail end of a candle’s life. Often, you’ll find there’s a good amount of wax left in a vessel, but the wick has stopped burning, so you no longer can experience the candle’s scent. That’s when one of these babies really comes in handy. Before I had this piece, I kept my candles that no longer had wick to burn in a drawer in my freezer, which I’d then pop out the leftover wax from to use in my old tart burner, which uses a votive candle (versus a bulb) as its mechanism of wax heating). Now, I can put these almost past-their-prime candles right under this warmer instead to get a little more milage out of them without any mess or extra work removing leftover candle wax their vessels.
The lamp doesn’t look cheap or flimsy, with no exposed glue or screws to be seen. The design is simple yet effective, and the compact footprint is great for small-space dwellers. The electrical cord is black, with a dial knob to dim the light to your desired intensity. The light is very warm on the Kelvin scale, which is expected of a halogen bulb. I love the dimmer effect, which feels moody and cozy at night.
I do want to manage your expectations a bit though when it comes to fragrance. Like I said, I’m not sure this lamp will really take the place of lighting a candle entirely, as the scent it throws is very subtle. Certainly, it’s a great alternative for any place where you can’t have an open flame at all, like a dorm room, but a lot of the Amazon reviewers back me up here: Using this lamp won’t produce as strong of a scent as burning a wick. That’s why I’ve been using mine when I want a nice warm glow with a subtle fragrance — and a given candle will no longer burn.