Favorite Candle Question and my Candle Secret

I just knew I could count on my favorite blogger buddy, Susan, over at Writing Straight from the Heart, to ask a question I couldn't easily answer.  However, I managed to not only find a picture of my favorite candle, I'm prepared to let you all in on one of my secrets.

My favorite candle is a relatively inexpensive candle by Candle-Lite that I get at Walgreens.  It's also available from these stores.  While I love the Yankee Candle, PartyLite, and other high end candles, I really don't want to spend that much money for something that is going to go up in smoke (sorry - couldn't resist)  

My Favorite Candle

Lavender & Cedarwood...

Now for my secret:

I have two warmer thingy's that you are supposed to use for candle melts.  The first one I purchased at a PartyLite party for something outrageous like $25.00.  I know! 

The other one I found at WalMart for about $4.00.  It's the one in my office.

When my favorite candle is on sale at Walgreen's, it's almost always cheaper to buy two.  One candle goes to my bedroom.  The other candle has a small amount scooped out and stuck in the candle warmers. 

The scent from a PartyLite melt lasts about 7 hours while the Candle-Lite scent lasts weeks.  Considering the living room candle is kept burning for about 10 hours per day - that's pretty dang good!   Every few weeks I add a bit of the lavender/cedarwood candle to the burner.   When that candle is all used up, which takes about 6 months or more, the one from the bedroom becomes the new "re-fill" candle for the warmers.  I rarely use up more than 2 or 3 scented candles each year.

When the tea lights are on sale I scarf up many huge bags.  All my fancy pillar candles are the inexpensive scentless ones (except at Christmas when I must have cinnamon or pine.)

There is another reason the scentless candles are the wise as well as thrifty ones to burn.  It's a bad idea to burn heavily scented candles when you are having a dinner party. 

Other Fun Stuff:

• Gina over at The Shabby Chic Cottage is doing some fake mercury glass.  Very cool...
• Roz over at La Bella Vita brought us Italian Asparagus and Potato Gratin.  Be still my beating heart!  If nothing else - you must see the pictures.
• Diann over at the Thrifty Groove is another favorite stop.  She always manages to combine the practical with the pretty.
  

Finding Storage in Unexpected Places

Candle Storage

Who doesn't love candles?  Many of us tend to stock up when there is a great sale. However, candles aren't always easy to store.  They don't stack well and the different sizes means they take up more than their fair share of shelf space.

I have always loved vintage train cases, but they are becoming harder and harder to find.  Take a gander at the prices on Etsy and ebay.  The  price combined with shipping can get pretty expensive, so keep your eyes peeled at the garage sales this summer.

I use my train cases for candle storage.  They fit neatly under my living room shelves in what would be empty space.  I decoupaged two of them many years ago. One turned out rather cute and the other, well - not so much.  The green one on the left is  "on the list" for a redo.  And the the one on the far right is still in its original  vintage state. All three are crammed full of candles and holders

The stacked baskets hold tapers and the basket second from the right holds my greeting card file. 

My favorite is the black one. I slapped on some black paint, glued on cute cherubs and vintage musical instruments, sealed it really well, and called it a day.  

Love the cherubs on the back in their little carriage...

Each side is different and follows the music theme...

More cherubs on the top...

I'm looking forward to re-doing the green one.  When doing the green one (I have no idea of why I picked that color) I discovered that tissue paper images on a dark color don't work very well.  A real "duh" moment!

How do you store your candles?