on giving up candles + and a very rare thing: a giveaway (!!)

I love scented candles. I'm all about ambiance and scented candles provide that soft glow plus yummy smell for the win. Luring people into my home with the false hopes of baked goods is my fav. Are you baking a pie? Yes, come in! Jay kay, it's a candle. Sucker! Now stay so I can have adult conversation for thirty minutes because my kids won't stop telling me about Paw Patrol. Ahem. That's never happened.

I've been known to have a bit of a fetish when it comes to scented candles. Yankee Candle sales made me wild. Those organic soy lavender candles? I'm drooling. Overspending at Ikea every.single.time? Yes, but those candles are such a steal! But here's the thing. I haven't bought or burned a scented candle in my house for probably two years.

Why? A few reasons. Firstly, I have three little kiddos and flames and kids are not the best picture in my brain. I used to have scented candles on every side table and book shelf in my home before I had littles, and now there are exactly two surfaces they can not reach in our entire condo. And one is the top shelf of the closet. You get me.

Secondly, The soot. We have a lot of white in our house, and I started noticing black residue on certain surfaces after I'd been burning a candle. Our white eames-style chairs especially attracted soot, and it was super hard to get off! It was especially creepy seeing the soot on surfaces because it reminded me that HEY THAT SOOT AND WAX GOES SOMEWHERE. A candle doesn't just disappear when you've burned it for the maximum amount of hours. It's in the air and we're breathing it in.

So when Jamie introduced me to Scentsy I was intrigued. In the long run, it's far more affordable than buying scented candles + there's no flame or extremely hot wax, so it's safe for a home with children + the wax doesn't burn up into the air like candles. Here's the deal. You invest in a warmer ($24+) and then all you have to do is stock up on scented wax from time to time. One bar of scented wax is $6 and lasts about a month, which is how long my $20+ Yankee jar candles used to last me! Plus there's all sorts of combinations you can buy to lower the costs of warmers and wax. And? The warmers are cuuuuuuuuuuute! Here are a few of my favourites:

I'm hosting a party for Jamie at the end of the month and am definitely going to be stocking up on my favourite scents and getting a new warmer. I've already hosted one party for her and I was glad to introduce her to some new potential clients, but mostly it was a fun chance to get a bunch of friends from different social circles together for some wine, food, and girltime. If you're local to Montreal and want to come, e-mail me for details! It's always fun smelling all the available scents (there are like a bajillion). Right now I'm really into fresh scents, like herbal or citrus scents. Here are my top four, but it's always buy 5 get 1 free!

Coconut Lemongrass / Just Breathe / Lemon Verbena / Zen Garden

I was an easy sell to Scentsy and i'm not an easy sell to much. I use homemade or Costco-sold cleaning products, not Norwex. I use glass and plastic containers from Winners, not Tupperwear parties. And I buy my no-name essential oils from well.ca, not DoTerra. I'm convinced that most direct-marketed products are overpriced and unnecessary. Scentsy is absolutely the exception, which I was not expecting! But I've tried buying warmers from other retailers and they heat the wax too hot which changes the scents and the longevity of the wax. I bought a cute warmer from Target but after only a couple months the light bulb died and I couldn't find a replacement anywhere (it was a crazy specific wattage)! Meanwhile, my girl Jamie promises to replace any light bulbs that burn out, FOREVER, for warmers you've purchased from her. Nice, right?

Now, a quick word on plugging products on my blog. It's not something I do anymore. I used to do all sorts of giveaways on here, but that's not the heart of this blog anymore. I'm not writing because there's something in it for me, or because I want more followers. I chose to do a Scentsy giveaway for a few reasons: I want to support my dear friend who is just starting out in this business, I 100% love the product, and I think its worthwhile to share with you. You should know that I'm not receiving anything for doing this post - no free products or other incentives.

so blah blah blah, you want to know about THE GIVEAWAY. I hear you.

The winning reader will receive $24 towards the warmer of her choice + a bar of scented wax (which is 60 hours of warming time!)

This would totally cover a plugin/ nightlight warmer like the two below to the right, or you could put it towards a more expensive warmer (like that babe, Parlor). It's up to you!

Here's how to enter:
1st entry: go like Jamie's Scentsy facebook page  and come back here and comment, saying you've done so.
2nd entry: comment below a second time saying what you'd spend your $30 on.
3rd entry: share about this giveaway on Instagram or facebook, and comment back here a third time saying you've done so (including the link for proof, players)

I'll draw the winner on Friday! Good Luck!

ps - open to Canadian residents only