Best Christmas Candle Scent Recipes For DIY Candles
Discover the best Christmas candle scent recipe for DIY candles in easy-to-use printable candle scent mixing charts! These Christmas scented candle recipes are anything but basic.
Christmas is a special time of year when fairytales come to life. Elves and Santa, too, can be spotted almost anywhere. Snowflakes create mosaics on our windows in the chilly air, and twinkling lights line the streets from dusk until dawn. Houses brim with the sound of holiday music and scents of cinnamon, spruce, and peppermint. And if you’re ever so lucky to have Christmas snow, it truly feels like a wonderland.
The days may be the shortest of the year, but the memories can last a lifetime. And while we may encounter many a cold night, a single candle can warm the soul and light up our lives with the spark of a flame.
If you’ve dreamed of making candles for Christmas, now’s your chance to awaken your dream and capture the magic of the holiday season in a homemade candle!
I’ve put together Christmas candle scent recipes that are anything but basic. They’ll brighten the far too-early sunsets and add a personalized touch to your holiday celebrations by bringing cheer to your home with merry holiday fragrances and warm candle scents that feel like a big hug.
So, if you’re unsure where to start creating Christmas candles, I’ve got everything you need to make the perfect candles to fill your home with comforting aromas and happy holiday scents!
We’ll talk about the best Christmas smell, how to test candle scent recipes, and easy steps for use, along with our printable candle scent mixing charts you can keep.
Let’s deck the halls with a glow this season!
For your convenience, this article contains some affiliate links to find the supplies needed easily; read the full disclosure policy for more information.
What’s The Best Christmas Smell?
Have you ever noticed that we primarily describe seasons by scents, colors, and tastes? The holiday season is no different – the smell of freshly cut pine trees, candy canes, cinnamon, and a color palette of green, white, and red brings holiday traditions to mind. Take a look at this list of the best Christmas scents and see if you disagree.
BEST CHRISTMAS SCENTS:
Put some of these ready-made candle scents to work, or turn to our printable Christmas candle scent mixing chart below to make amazing candles with unique candle scent combinations. You’re sure to find inspiring ideas to bring the aromas of the holiday season into your home.
3 Ways To Test Candle Scent Recipes
Here are three ways to test these Christmas candle scent recipes at home in addition to your own ideas for scented candles for any occasion. Because it is never too early to start creating Christmas DIY crafts, especially when it comes to holiday candles!
Quick Jar Test:
For a quick test of a scent recipe, add drops of each scent according to the percentage to a cotton ball.
For example, if you want to smell the Holiday Cheer scent before making a candle. Add 5 drops of cinnamon, 2 drops of orange, and 2 drops of amber to a cotton ball. Place the scented cotton ball in a glass jar.
After a few days, open the jar and take a whiff. If you like what you smell, make a candle or test it in a candle melt next.
Wax Melt Test:
Candle wax melts are a very inexpensive way to test candle scents. Follow my instructions to make soy or beeswax candle wax melts to test a scent. I have done this many times, and I know you’ll find it helpful, too.
Small Candle Test:
Another affordable way to test a candle scent blend is to make a small candle. This can give the best example of how it will perform in a candle. Opt to make a small two or four-ounce candle. Ensure you give it 3 to 7 days to cure before lighting and smelling the hot throw.
Related To: Candle Scent Quiz
How Do You Use A Christmas Candle Scent Recipe?
It’s easy to make candles that smell like Christmas in minutes by following this key technique!
Before you begin, it’s helpful to know how much candle fragrance your candle wax can hold. Most candle wax makers will include this on the label and/or in the product’s description.
For example, this soy wax has a maximum fragrance load of 12%. Meaning it can hold up to 12% or almost 2 ounces of fragrance per pound of wax. If you’re unfamiliar with this term, read my scented candle guide or pick up a copy of my candle-making book, Creative Candles Made Simple!
Once you know the amount of fragrance your candle wax can hold, choose your desired fragrance load. Do you prefer a lightly scented candle or a strong scented candle? To give you an example, store-bought candles have a common fragrance load of 6%. In contrast, high-quality candles can have a fragrance load of up to 12%.
Now that you’ve chosen your wax and desired fragrance amount, you can put them into a fragrance load calculator and calculate the fragrance load for your homemade candles.
If this all sounds complicated, don’t worry. I’ve made it easy to get started with tested Christmas candle scent recipes you can use in various candle sizes.
How To Use A Candle Scent Recipe:
Divide the total amount of fragrance you need for your candles by each percentage included in the candle scent blend.
For example,
Suppose you need a total of 3 ounces of fragrance to make six 5-ounce candles with a 9.5% fragrance load. If you want to make the first recipe, Holly Jolly – then you’ll add .90 ounces of vanilla + .30 ounces of peppermint + 1.20 ounces of cinnamon + .60 ounces of lemon, which equals = 3 ounces total.
Pretty straightforward, right? Let’s get started!
Related To: Christmas Handmade Candles
The Best Christmas Candle Scents Of the Season
You’ll feel like Santa checking off this list of holiday candle scents of the season! Don’t miss the tips above to test each scent and how to use the candle scent recipes for various candle sizes.
I have included links to high-quality, phthalate-free natural fragrances or essential oils for each recipe. This is my way of giving you many options for choosing your candle fragrance type.
Let’s let it glow with the best Christmas candle scent recipes!
Holly Jolly
This slightly sweet holiday baking candle scent recipe will add some holly jolly to your kitchen this season.
30% vanilla
10% peppermint
40% cinnamon
20% lemon
Winter Woods
Refresh your space with a serene, snowy scent of myrrh, clary sage, lavender, juniper, and frosted vanilla. This candle scent recipe perfectly captures the fresh scent of winter in the woods.
25% clary sage
10% myrrh
25% lavender
30% juniper
10% vanilla
Prefer a ready-made candle fragrance? Try Bramble Berry’s Black Amber and Lavender Oil; it’s a sophisticated mix of black myrrh, lavender, amber, vanilla, clary sage, and tonka bean.
Fireside
This Fireside scented candle of rich clove, fresh pine and vetiver, earthy cedarwood, and a dash of apple will add a festive touch, glowing over the fireplace hung with stockings.
30% clove
20% pine
10% vetiver
20% cedarwood
20% apple
Peppermint Bark
You’ll be ready to watch a holiday movie with a cup of hot cocoa topped with snowflake marshmallows and peppermint candy cane after making candles with this scent!
25% creamy vanilla sugar or vanilla
50% peppermint
Christmas Tree Farm
Just like we can’t have autumn without a pumpkin spice candle, we can’t celebrate the holidays without Christmas tree candles either. This scent recipe is a twist on the classic aroma of fresh cut Christmas tree with the added warmth of sandalwood and anise
35% black spruce
10% anise
25% sandalwood
20% amber
10% vetiver
Bramble Berry’s Black Spruce and Anise say it smells like crisp air but isn’t your typical woody scent if you’re looking for a ready-to-use option. The blend includes anise, wild berries, amber, black spruce, and sandalwood. That finishes with bottom notes of balsam fir and vetiver.
Holiday Cheer
Create a warm welcome of holiday cheer with a beautiful blend of bright orange, comforting cinnamon bark, and warming amber in this Christmas scented candle blend.
50% cinnamon
25% orange
25% amber
Frosted Forest
Fill your home with the seasonal spirit when you make Christmas candles with notes of pine, juniper, balsam fir, eucalyptus, and a sublime pairing of lemon and cinnamon. Frosted Forest is an invigorating candle scent you don’t want to miss this season!
10% pine
25% juniper
20% balsam fir
20% eucalyptus
10% lemon
15% cinnamon
Short on time to make candles? Use Juniper and Balsam Spruce oil from Makesy (get 10% off with my exclusive code CREATEWITHKRISTY10). It’s a fresh breath of frosted mountain air with eucalyptus, lemon peel, pine wood, juniper, balsam fir needle, sweet apple, and cinnamon.
Mulled Wine
Who doesn’t enjoy a glass of mulled wine during the holidays? Make candles with this blend of orange, apple, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and bergamot to delight the senses. Pair it with homemade wine bath salts or red wine soap for the gift of relaxation.
20% orange
10% apple
20% cinnamon
20% clove
10% nutmeg
20% bergamot
Printable Christmas Candle Scent Recipes
Finding the perfect holiday candle scent is so easy with these printable Christmas candle scent mixing charts! Please find it and countless more candle-making resources in the Simple Living Library.
Candles are a holiday essential for me and my best go-to give to spark a flame and keep you feeling warm and cozy all season long! With these printable Christmas candle scent mixing charts, it’s easy to find a new favorite candle for the best time of year.
If you want to make your festive gifting a little more personal, make your own scented candles and DIY candle bags -they’re a guaranteed gift to treasure.
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Save these Christmas candle scent recipes to your candle making Pinterest board, and while you’re there, be sure to follow Life-n-Reflection for more inspiring ideas.
Did you know you can Tag #lifenreflection on Instagram to share your DIYs with me?
Such beautiful ideas for scenting candles for Christmas. I love these festive blends.
Awe, thank you Helen, I really enjoyed creating each candle scent.