Candles

Two kinds of candle: in a vessel or on its own

A candle either comes poured into a vessel that holds the melted wax, or stands on its own on a plate, in a holder or on a tray. We stock candles in glass and in tins, with a few in ceramic or marble, and plenty of pillar candles.

Scented candles sit in our candle range too, with a few candle refills. They also have their own page, for when fragrance is where you want to start. When colour and shape matter more than scent, width, height and wax are the choices that count.

Widths, heights and burn times up to 90 hours

Our candles come in a range of widths and heights, so check the size on the product page. A few pillar designs come in a run of heights at one width, such as 7cm across and 7cm, 12cm or 19cm tall, or 10cm across and 10cm or 20cm tall, which makes it easy to build a group that steps up in height.

Where we list a burn time, it runs from 1 to 90 hours. More wax generally means a longer burn, so a wide, tall candle tends to outlast a slim one. A few candles come as sets, in packs of two, four or twelve, and a few packs hold slim tapered dinner candles, the familiar shape for a pair of candlesticks.

Measure a holder before you order. A candlestick socket should grip a candle snugly without forcing, and a lantern or hurricane needs space around the flame and headroom over it.

Paraffin wax, soy blends and cotton wicks compared

Paraffin wax is a refined, firm wax that takes colour evenly and keeps a crisp shape, which is why it suits candles made to stand without a container. Soy wax is a softer plant wax made from soya bean oil. Blended with paraffin, it gives a creamier wax that suits candles poured into glass or a tin, where the vessel holds the pool of melted wax.

We stock candles in paraffin wax, and soy and paraffin candles made with cotton wicks. A cotton wick draws melted wax up to the flame and burns steadily when it is kept trimmed. A few of our candles are made by hand, and one or two are twisted by hand.

White, cream, beige, grey and green candles

We stock candles in white, cream, beige, grey and green. White, cream and beige are the easy choices: they sit quietly on a mantelpiece, glow warmly once lit and look calm in daylight. Grey suits a cooler scheme of stone, linen and painted wood, and green brings a garden note to a table laid with foliage or a windowsill of plants.

For contrast, a few come in black or brown, and a few in silver, gold or amber, which catch the light in the evening. A few festive candles are made for Christmas. Two or three shades of one colour together, such as cream with beige or grey with white, look considered without much effort.

A mantelpiece group, a dining table pair, a bedside scent

Candles look best in groups. Three or five of different heights on a tray read as one arrangement on a coffee table or mantelpiece, while a pair of slim candles in candlesticks frames a dining table. On a long table, keep the lowest, widest candles in the middle and taller ones towards the ends, so guests can still see one another across the food.

A scented candle does its best work alone, on a bedside table or a hallway console where the fragrance meets you at the door; one scent per room keeps the air clear. We stock candle holders, tealight and votive holders, candle lanterns, and lanterns and hurricanes on their own pages, along with decorative trays and bowls for gathering a group, and LED and flameless candles for spots where an open flame is not practical.

Burning candles safely on a plate, in a holder or in glass

On the first light, let a wide candle burn until the melted wax reaches the edge; putting it out early can leave a tunnel down the middle that is hard to correct later. Trim the wick short before you light it, keep candles out of draughts, and if a flame smokes or flickers, put it out, let the wax cool and trim the wick again.

Stand a lit candle on a heat-resistant surface, away from curtains, shelves overhead and anything that can catch, and never leave one burning in an empty room or within reach of children and pets. With a jar or tin, stop when about a centimetre of wax is left, as the base heats up towards the end. Store spare candles flat, somewhere cool and out of direct sun, so tall ones stay straight and colours do not fade.

We offer free delivery worldwide on all orders over £99. Dispatch estimates are shown on each product page.