Otherland Candles Review Roundup + Overview
What is it that makes a candle great? What makes it stand apart from all of the other candles that are on the market?
This question has many different answers depending on the person you ask. But generally, the 3 most important aspects people look for are: the smell (including how well it throws), the look (packaging and jar), and the burn quality.
Otherland Candles is a new-ish brand that leans heavily into creating an attractive, sleek presentation for their products that rival other big luxury brands while aiming to cut costs by selling directly to the consumer.
In this post we are going to cover their candles a little more in depth including all the scents from their core collection as well as their seasonal lineups. We’ll also share some reviews from the candle community and hopefully, by the end of the post, you’ll be an expert on the brand 😉
Table of Contents
The Brains Behind Otherland Candles
The creativity in the presentation of these candles is really no surprise if you know a bit about it’s founder: Abigail Cook Stone.
Her previous job was to travel the world as an art buyer for Ralph Lauren. Yes, she was literally paid for having an eye for things that look beautiful.
She took that invaluable knowledge and experience, and transferred it into this brand.
The Complete Guide To The Otherland Candle Scents
Otherland Candles has a core lineup of five different candles which are available for purchase all year round. The candles included in this group have not changed since the inception of the brand and in the words of the company itself, are the essential home scents.
Aside from this core collection are the limited edition collections. These collections are usually seasonal and mix things up a bit, with more experimental scents for a particular season or theme.
Important Info On The Candles
Wax type: A soft coconut wax and soy wax blend
Burn Time: Approximately 55 hours with proper candle care (candle care tips)
Candle size: 8 ounces and 3.25″ tall
Value: These candles work out to around $4.50 an ounce putting them in a mid-luxury price range. For comparisons sake, traditional luxury candles such as Diptyque work out to around $10 an ounce, while more mass produced budget candles like Yankee Candle work out to around $2.40 for a similar size. As a side note, with most candle brands you will get better value if you go for the larger variations of candles within a brand.
Otherland Candle Buying Tips For Saving Money
So with these candles from Otherland, there isn’t a whole lot of different ways to save money. Usually candles that come in various sizes give you more candle per dollar if you go for their larger sizes. That doesn’t really work here as the candles only come in single sizes.
However, they do give you the option of buying 3 candles together for $89 (a savings of just over 17%) compared to the $108 these would come to separately.
There are also bundles of 6 candles which you can buy at once which costs a total of $170 when compared to the $216 these candles would have costed separately. While not everyone is willing to buy 6 of these candles at once, it will however net you a savings of over 21%.
Otherland Candle Customization, The Best Way To Gift
One idea that Otherland has nailed is their way of setting up your candles to buy for gifting. This kind of goes hand in hand with their excellent packaging (see below) in that each candle is already presented in a way that is essentially like opening a gift in itself.
Within the “Gift” section of the Otherland website, they guide you through a 4 step process that allows you to choose the number of candles you’d like to add, the scents, the matchbox – which can be tailored to the occasion, and finally the message which the receiver of the gift will be presented with upon opening the box.
While this is a relatively small touch, it’s these little details that really make things like this memorable.
The Otherland Core Collection Review + Rundown
So this is the collection that is available year round. For being only 5 candles, it has quite a range of scents that all go in their own directions, with something within for everyone.
Below you can find an excellent video by Youtuber ‘Drew Yauch‘ in which he shares his two cents on each of the candles from this collection.
Rattan
Sandalwood, golden amber, warm musk.
First up is Rattan. This is a scent that you can have around the house that is gonna please anyone that has the pleasure to be around it. This the first one that I had a chance to smell and it is still one of my absolute favorites.
Chandelier
Champagne, saffron, leather.
Chandelier is a great all-round scent. You can put this thing nearly anywhere and give your space a classy, fresh scent.
Daybed
Rosebud, peony blossom, pear water.
Daybed was the second candle that I had a chance to smell and I loved it so much that I included it on our best spring candles list from earlier in the year. Obviously it’s quite a floral scent and it won’t convince those that aren’t into florals to change their minds, but this one is absolutely beautiful!
Canopy
California fig, ivy greens, summer dew.
Canopy smells like a combination of ozonic notes tossed with some damp greeneries, a hint of fruitiness, and a warm – creamy base. I hope that paints an alright picture for you. It’s really good!
Kindling
Alaskan cedar, smokey embers, incense.
While Kindling is a scent from the Core Collection, there is no better time to burn it than right now. In fact, I was heavily debating including this scent instead of Cardamom Milk in our best candles for fall 2020 list(ideally I would have included them both). This candle is an excellent fall and winter scent which is powerful and throws a smoky, woodsy fragrance.
Otherland Manor House Weekend Collection Review + Rundown (Limited Edition)
Dappled Wood
Sandalwood, toasted walnut, sweet hay.
Dappled Wood | $36 | Otherland
Crisp Cornflower
Corn silk, golden husk, water lily.
Crisp Cornflower | $36 | Otherland
Mountain Lace
Elderflower fizz, anjou pear, apple blossom.
Mountain Lace | $36 | Otherland
Cardamom Milk
Frothy milk, cardamom, praline woods
Cardamom Milk | $36 | Otherland
Tapestry
Burnt maple, smoky oud, vetiver
Sun Suede
Salty saffron, pink peppercorn, white suede.
Past Collections
These collections were from past collections that are no longer available. Some fragrances could come back however, so keep an eye out here as we will keep this list updated with what is currently available.
Otherland Beach Club Collection Review + Rundown (Limited Edition)
Beach Club is a summer collection which was first released back in 2018. It has been an annual collection that has released with the same lineup 3 years running. Very unique scent combos in this one.
Matchpoint
Matchpoint | $36 Currently Unavailable | Otherland
Tennis ball, cut grass, cucumber.
Here is a review for Matchpoint from ‘Philly Candle Man‘
Freshwater Pearl
Freshwater Pearl | $36 Currently Unavailable | Otherland
Sea crystal, salt water, crushed shells.
Stone Fruit
Stone Fruit | $36 Currently Unavailable | Otherland
Beach plum, peach skin, brown sugar.
Otherland Gilded Collection Review + Rundown (Limited Edition)
The Gilded collection has been available a few times and with a different lineup between the different periods. The 2020 lineup has just been released and it includes all of the previous Gilded scents! You can find it on the Otherland website here
‘Philly Candle Man‘ does a nice overview of the lineup from 2018 in this video below.
Black Velvet
Alpine violet, iris woods, midnight jasmine.
Black Velvet | $36 | Otherland
Fallen Fir
Fir, musk, winter spice.
Old Fashioned
Plum brandy, worn leather, dried fruit.
Old Fashioned | $36 | Otherland
Silk Pajamas
Crystal ginger, bergamot zest, spiced yuzu.
Silk Pajamas | $36 | Otherland
Sacred Dusk
Crimson incense, palo santo, cypress bark.
Moonstruck
Sweet myrrh, white mahogany, smoked birch.
Otherland Carefree 90’s Collection Review + Rundown (Limited Edition)
Carefree 90’s was a new collection which came out in January 2020. It was an ode to the decade and arrived with 3 different fragrances to evoke nostalgia in the millennials who grew up in the time.
Bluejean Baby
Bluejean Baby | $36 Currently Unavailable | Otherland
Washed denim, white musk, mimosa flower.
Glosspop
Glosspop | $36 Currently Unavailable | Otherland
Strawberry gloss, hard candy, frosted rose.
Dreamlight
Dreamlight | $36 Currently Unavailable | Otherland
Wild freesia, plush plumeria, juicy tangerine.
Otherland Awakening Collection Review + Rundown (Limited Edition)
This collection was first released back in 2018. Youtuber ‘Tomasilienne‘ does a nice little unboxing video of this collection in the video below.
Ruby Root
Ruby Root | $36 Currently Unavailable | Otherland
Sugarbeets, grass, ginger.
Purple Petals
Purple Petals | $36 Currently Unavailable | Otherland
Lilacs, hyacinth, lychee.
Extra Hour
Extra Hour | $36 Currently Unavailable | Otherland
Shiso leaf , verbena, mint.
More Reviews From The Community
Below I’ve listed some other reviews on the brand that you may want to check out!
Manor House Weekend Collection: Cardamom Milk, Sun Suede, Tapestry Review – Blue Skies For Me Please
Core Collection: Rattan, Canopy, Kindling Review – Bit Of The Same
Manor House: Dappled Wood, Crisp Cornflower, Mountain Lace Review – Thrifty Pineapple
A Reddit thread discussing Otherland Candles
Manor House: Cardamom Milk Review – Isabelle Vita NYC
9 Scent Review: Rattan, Canopy, Kindling, Pearl, Sun Suede, Daybed, Fallen Fir, Black Velvet and Old Fashioned – ‘Kaila‘ on Youtube, video is below
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVrTSvgunOA
Spring Awakening Collection Review – ‘Philly Candle Man‘ on Youtube, video is below
Conclusion
Is direct to consumer branding the way to go when it comes to candles? Otherland seems to think so, and they feel that cutting out the middleman can help pass the savings on to the consumer while giving a more personalized experience along the way.
While it can be somewhat annoying not smelling a candle before buying it, the convenience of shopping from home with free shipping and free returns, in my opinion, makes up for it.
What are your thoughts on Otherland? Have you given them a try? Let us know in the comments below!
I’m looking for a candle that evokes bonfires or firewood that isn’t overly smoky or heavy. (More like smoldering embers or chimney smoke on a cold day outside from a distance rather than a ten alarm fire.j Could you recommend a candle that fits this description? Is Kindling very smoky? I’d appreciate any suggestions.
I love it so much!!