How to Make Soy Candles Smell Stronger
Soy candles have a lot going for them: they’re clean-burning, renewable, and way less toxic than paraffin. But we’ll be real—sometimes they need a little extra help in the “wow, what is that amazing smell?!” department.
If you've ever lit a soy candle and waited for its scent to fill the room, but that never quite happened, you're not alone. As a natural wax, soy is a bit more temperamental when it comes to hot throw (aka how well it fills the room with fragrance while burning). But the good news? There *are* ways to boost that scent power and enjoy all the other benefits that soy wax offers. Here's how:
1. Keep Your Wicks Trimmed
We know, we know—you’ve probably seen “trim your wick to ¼ inch” on every candle label ever. But there’s a reason it’s Candle Commandment #1. A properly trimmed wick helps your candle burn evenly, and prevents excess soot. It also allows the wax pool to form evenly so the fragrance has a chance to shine. When a wick is too long, the burn gets too hot, and that can mean the fragrance burns off too fast.
So to sum up, a short wick = a better burn = a better scent.
2. Give It Time to Melt
Ever lit a candle for 10 minutes and wondered why it smells like... not much? Soy wax is slow to melt (we love her for being so chill), so it needs time to create a full melt pool—that’s the liquid wax across the top of the candle. When you see liquid wax from edge to edge, that’s where the scent throw really starts to kick in.
Another perk of burning your candle for at least 1–2 hours on its first burn? You also prevent tunneling, which is when wax builds up around the sides of the jar, but a big tunnel burns down the middle.
3. Mind the Room Size
Soy candles are a little like Goldilocks - they need a room that’s not too big, not too small, but juuuust right. Our single-wick 5.3 oz candles might not fill a giant open-concept living room—but they’ll absolutely cozy up a bedroom, bathroom, or home office. For larger spaces, embrace the opportunity to burn a couple of candles at once - when the scents mix, it’s like having an entirely unique-to-your-space candle!
4. Know that Some Scents Throw Stronger Than Others
Not all fragrances are created equal. Some scent notes (like citrus, cinnamon, or eucalyptus) are naturally stronger and tend to smell stronger than more delicate ones like vanilla or white tea. At Sugarspell, we obsessively test all our scents in soy wax to make sure they actually perform—not just smell good in the jar.
5. Keep It Clean
Dusty candles or soot-covered wicks don’t just look sad—they can mess with your scent throw. Before lighting up, make sure your wick is trimmed and the surface of your candle is free from debris or leftover wick bits. (A wick trimmer will be your bestie for this!) Your candle will thank you with a better burn and a stronger scent.
Soy’s Got Subtle Superpowers
Soy candles may not punch you in the face with fragrance like paraffin sometimes does—and honestly, we’re okay with that. What soy does give you is a clean, natural burn with a softer, more layered scent experience.
With a few simple tweaks and the right care, soy candles can absolutely fill your space with mood-lifting, memory-sparking scent. And at Sugarspell, we’re all about making sure they do.