Review of Kathy Ireland "acafe society" Home Baked Scented Candles (Part 2)

by Christina, added 9/12/11 Brand: Kathy Ireland HOME Type: Home Baked 9oz Shaker Jars Scents: Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Vanilla Cream Pound cake Strength: Light to medium

Introduction to my review of Kathy Ireland bakery scented candles “Part 2” Before I begin this review, here’s a little background on this line of candles I pulled directly from Kathy Irelands website. “acafe society by Chef Andre, celebrates food, family, fun and urban chic. These candles capture the excitement of contemporary living and offer you great modern style. The acafe society line is broken up into 2 different lines: acafe society Home Baked and acafe society Home Preserves. The Home Baked line focuses on fragrances that are fresh from the kitchen. Bakery fragrances continue to be best performers and we have taken the best of the best bakery fragrances and put them in two container candles and melts that would be burned in a melt/tart burner in the kitchen to infuse fragrance into the home. Great bakery fragrances without the calories will be a best friend to any busy mom!" I reviewed Kathy Ireland’s “Crumb Cake Collection” candles a little over two years ago and although they were beautiful candles and smelled absolutely delicious… they burned horribly and because of that, I couldn’t give these candles a favorable review. It was a bummer because I loved the scents. Well, unbeknownst to me… Chef Andre himself read my review about a year later and contacted me. He wanted to make it right and asked if he could send me replacement candles. He really wanted my experience to be positive. It always amazes me when these big guys read our reviews. I guess I'm of the mindset that these big companies don't even know about Candlefind. They're so big, why would they care? So when it happens, it humbles me. It’s such a compliment and it reaffirms everything we do here. I happily accepted and Mr. Andre sent a variety of candles for me to try but the ones I really wanted to re-review were those yummy bakery scents. My favs!! One happy point I want to make - they redesigned all their bakery candles into smaller jars! The bigger 18oz candles I reviewed previously were not burning right and that‘s pretty consistent with all the feedback I was getting from other candles lovers who read my review. Knowing they redesigned this line of candles intrigued me and I was excited to try this brand again. Kathy Ireland candles can be found at Walgreen’s Drugstores… very convenient if you want to personally smell each candle before purchasing. The only downside, not every Walgreen’s carries every scent. Or, you can purchase Kathy Ireland candles through Hanna's Candles website. Another pleasing aspect to this candle line - they’re very reasonably priced.

What did my candles look like? These are really cute candles. The jar is tall and skinny with a screw-on lid with lots of big holes in it. They remind me of parmesan shakers you see in Italian restaurants. So, once this candles is finished, you could totally clean it out and use it for any type of shaker you want. That’s pretty recyclable.   The label on the face of the candle it pretty big and has a picture of Kathy Ireland and Chef Andre. It has the scent name along with a real recipe on how to actually make this dessert (that‘s pretty cool). The label is not permanent and can be removed… even better!!!! These candles have one wick.

What do my candles smell like? Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Scent description: “Fresh-baked oatmeal raisin cookies with creamy vanilla icing.” Yum!! I normally don’t care for oatmeal scents… the ones I’ve tried always smell harsh, almost synthetic… they’re never bakery enough for me if that makes sense. This scent however smells perfect… it’s warm and inviting and more on the sweet side which I like. It really does smell like cookies baking in the oven. I lit this puppy up, closed the door to my little bathroom and came back to the exact aroma I remembered… a warm bakery oatmeal. Loved it!! And best part, this candle burned perfectly. No drowning wick, nice flame, clean burn… A+!!!!! YES!!!!!!!!  My one and only complaint (if you can even consider this one) - I wish it would have been stronger. I enjoyed this candle enough that I would have loved saturation. But, for the size candle, it did it’s job and quite well.

Vanilla Cream Pound Cake Scent description: “Homemade essence of vanilla, butter, and fresh cream baked to a golden brown” If you love bakery vanilla scents… I highly recommend this candle. This is one delicious vanilla and just as I remembered. It’s not bitter or synthetic at all… it’s warm and velvety, just like a vanilla (in my book) should be. This candle burned perfectly, from beginning to end. No wasted wax and a clean burn, YES!! Scent strength… on a scale of 1 to 10, I would give it a 4.  I would have loved an 8 or higher but whatever… I liked this scent enough that I would purchase it again. I’ll just make sure I burn them in smaller rooms.

How did my candles burn? Both my candles burned very well. I am super happy. No wasted wax, clean burn and I rarely had to trim my wicks.

Closing to my review: What a pleasant experience round 2 turned out to be. And thank you Chef Andre for giving me the opportunity to try your candles again. I really-really enjoyed them. I'm in Walgreens all the time and am always passing those candles by "wistfully" but would never buy any. Now I will. So Candlefinders… if you’re ever curious about this line of candles and you have a Walgreens around you, definitely go check them out and sniff a few. They smell delicious and the price is always right. Till next time…. Christina signing off! Happy Candle shopping! Visit Kathy Ireland’s Home by Hanna’s Candles