Between 400,000 and a million years ago, our ancestors made fire. This one creation changed the course of everyday life, and it would be several hundred thousand years more, according to the National Candle Association in Washington, DC, before candles appeared. Candles and candlesticks have since become a regular part of religious celebrations, a decorative note in homes and restaurants, and lighting them has become a soothing personal ritual for many.
With the home revival, candles (and candlesticks) have found a resurgence as people invest in these rather small but impactful additions.
People who sell candles have noticed. “Tapers are definitely a top-selling gift item,” says Sandeep Salter, the owner of Salter House, a Brooklyn-based homewares store, referring to the candles that come to mind when you imagine candlesticks.
The 7-inch-tall Twisted Beeswax Taper candles ($14 for two) are especially popular at her store, said Ms. Salter. “I think people have incorporated the solemnity of lighting candles at mealtimes into a more mundane practice. As in many other places around the world, it is no longer held exclusively for large festive tables.”
For those in the market, there are different types of candles to choose from. In addition to the tapered parts, which are thin and cylindrical and become more slender towards one end, there are pillar candles, which have more weight and bulk, requiring a candlestick with greater space to insert or support them. Votive candles are smaller than pillars and spires, and tea lights are even smaller. Both candlesticks are usually not much to look at, but their holders cannot be less exquisite than other candlesticks.
While you can pay a lot for a candle, you don’t have to: Thrift stores and resale sites like eBay can be a treasure trove for finding them at a discount and in bulk. Candlesticks can also be inexpensive. There’s the classic beatnik approach, sticking a tapered pipe into an old bottle of Chianti, or even cutting a hole in a potato (or apple) – anything that can hold a candle upright and catch the melting wax will work in no time. time.
Regardless of budget, pairing a candle and candlestick benefits from experimentation and improbable pairings.
Candlesticks, candlesticks and holders
The Murano-adjacent Candy Glass Short candle holders ($135 for two) are 4 inches tall and available in four candy store-inspired colorways. Areaware’s 2.5-inch-tall patio candle holder ($35), sold in three shades, is also made of glass and has a dual function: One side can hold a votive candle and the other side a tapered pipe.
Designed by Philippe Starck for Baccarat, the glass-and-crystal Harcourt Firestick ($1,220) is a Kathy Hilton favorite. With the RW Guild Reed Candlestick (starting at $210), there are plenty of options. It is sold in eight heights, ranging from 2.5 to 16.25 inches tall, and three finishes, including silver and two brass treatments — an assortment recalling the variety of Ted Muehling’s Biedermeier candle holders for ER Butler & Co. (starting at $250), which is available in 19 sizes, starting at 3 inches long, and five metal finishes.
Technically a candlestick, Virginia Sin’s two-armed Duo Candlestick ($58) comes in four colors and measures an inch long. Technically not a candlestick, Tracy Ren’s Blue & White Candelabra ($88) is 3.5-inches tall, has a single taper, and is inspired by blue-and-white Chinese porcelain.
Like the coastal town it shares a name with, Astier de Villatte’s ceramic Positano candle holder ($385) is a sight to behold. Just over 17″ high, it can support pillars or tapered sections. Also designed to display both is x Lea & Nicolas’ pair of 4.5- and 2-inch tall holders made from terra cotta ($70 for two).
Much finer material is the sterling silver of Georg Jensen’s approximately 6 inches high Grape Candlestick ($5,500). Its maker, a purveyor to the Queen of Denmark, introduced the design, embellished with small fruits, in 1930. If you’re looking for silver: In his prescribed, out-of-print cookbook, “Life and Food,” architect John Pawson recommends even older ones. styles including Georgian and Victorian candlesticks. “A surprising choice, given their curves, could undoubtedly be simplified, although not improved by subtraction,” writes Mr Pawson.
Intricately crafted foliage adorns the 3-inch-tall Small Leaves Candle Holder ($66 for two) by Giacomo Alessi, a craftsman in Sicily designated a Living Human Treasure by UNESCO. Another timeless style: the 10-inch-tall classic candleholder from Tiffany & Company made of lead crystal ($100).
Farmhouse Pottery in Woodstock, Vt., designed the Essex Candlestick (from $55) for West Elm. It is made of wood and is sold in three sizes, from 5.5 to 9.5 inches high, and in four colors. Also colorful is Geraldine Gonzalez’s ($35) holder, which is lined with dyed tissue paper and becomes even more vibrant when a votive or tea candle is lit inside.
Tapered and Pillar Candles
Plentiful and affordable, IKEA’s white Jubla taps start at a 7.5-inch (from $8.99 for 20) and are made from stearin that the retailer says is derived from animal fat. Creative Candles’ three-foot tapers ($42 for one) are an eye-catching option that can be purchased in four colors. Their blended waxes, according to the brand, include beeswax, paraffin and carnauba.
Sister Moons’ Light-the-Night Beeswax Taps ($30 for two) are sold in five shades and two sizes, an 11-inch height that’s round and a 14-inch one that’s more angular.
Made from beeswax in Oaxaca, Mexico, the Blush Floral Taper Candle ($45) is a style native to that city, used to celebrate marriage proposals. House of Saku’s Round Earth Pillar Candle (starting at $39) looks like it could have been carved from stone, but it’s made from palm wax and sold in five sizes between 5.9 and 15 inches high. Lex Pott’s Color Blocked Pillar Candle for Hay (starting at $45), made from paraffin wax, is also available in five heights, from 5.5 to 13.75 inches tall.
The elegant Graziani Lacquer Twist Tapers ($28 for two) are 11 inches long, made of paraffin wax, and sold in some 22 colors. Even more elegant is Dadant’s Double Spiral ($20 for two). The beeswax taper, available in 12 colors, looks like it’s wrapped in ribbon.
And also scented tapers?
While many beeswax candles have a light, sweet, and pleasant scent, that doesn’t really count as “scented.” If you’re looking for something distinctly sharp, consider Diptyque’s Berries Scented Taper Candle ($25). Like the French maker’s popular Baies fragrance, it smells of berries and rose, and is made with a blend of vegetable and mineral waxes.
Loewe’s Honeysuckle Wax Candleholder ($107), also scented, is a delightful optical illusion. Made from a mixture of paraffin-hydrocarbon wax, it’s both a candle and candle in one sculpted piece that looks almost too pretty to burn.
All Consuming is a column about things we see – and now want to buy.