Men of the world rejoice!! At long last our national nightmare is over.

No longer must we men burn through candles that reek of femininity.

No longer must we men inhale the aroma of melting wax that doesn’t immediately remind us of our Y-chromosomes.

No longer must we men suffer through the injustice of olfactory oppression by chick candles.

That’s right, My Faithful Readers, it has finally happened.

The crazy cats at the Yankee Candle Company have created the line of manly-scented candles that no one asked for.

The press release describes the new, limited edition “Man Candles Collection” as:

…a line of scents inspired by and created uniquely for men. With four new down-to-earth fragrances, now all rooms in the home can have an attractive scent, even the basement, garage, man cave or an entire bachelor pad.

A line of scents inspired by and created uniquely for men, huh?!

Well I’m sure they didn’t adhere strictly to a bunch of outdated gender roles and stereotypes when cooking these buggers up, right?!

Nah…there’s no way they’d do something that asinine in 2012. We’ve come too far as a society. We’re too enlightened. No way that can happen nowadays.

So let’s take a peek at the four scents:

First Down™ — This combination of orange, patchouli, vetiver and leather is as exciting as game day.

Riding Mower™ — Hot sun. Cool breeze. And the intensely summery scent of freshly cut grass.

2 x 4™ — The warm, unmistakable scent of freshly planed wood and sawdust evokes a sense of confidence and quality.

Man Town™ — Escape to the man cave with this masculine blend of spices, woods and musk.

Ohferfuckssake.

Did they determine they couldn’t quite put the right scents together to create “Beer Fart™” or “Week-Old Pizza™” or “Too Much Hair Gel and Axe Bodyspray™”…because each of those seems more like a legit scent inspired by men than these four incredibly generic, ridiculously stereotypical “guy things.”

We’re men, so we get the scent of a football, grass, and sawdust in First Down, Riding Mower, and 2 x 4, respectively.

Then there’s Man Town which sounds like the nickname I’d expect Tom Jones to give to the bedroom on his yacht.

Based on the description is would seem that it probably smells sorta like his bedroom too.

If you’re interested—and I’m hoping you’re not—you can buy the candles online at the official Yankee Candle store or at all fine Yankee Candle retailers nationwide.

Personally, I don’t think this is going to generate a whole lot of new business, because I don’t know many single dudes—that’s who I’m assuming they’re targeting with this—who go out and buy candles anyway. They generally let their aforementioned basement, garage, man cave or an entire bachelor pad reek of unwashed socks and spoiled milk.

I don’t have any official numbers, but I’m going to go ahead and just toss out 94% as the percentage of candles in the world that are purchased by women.

I’ll say that roughly 5% are purchased by dudes who are panicking trying to find something for a co-worker/grandmother/aunt/mother/sister/cousin/girlfriend/wife at the last minute.

The final one percent is purchased by dudes who are actually interested in buying scented candles and that one percent is probably pretty locked into some existing scent like Mulberry or French Vanilla or Spring Rain.

So unfortunately, no, I won’t be rushing out to buy “old football,” “yard work,” “old saw mill,” or “gay night club” candles for my house anytime soon.

Swing and a miss, Yankee Candle.

Swing and a miss.

The majority of very scented candles use fragrance oils, which means the intention is to scent the air of a space. However, you can also have highly scented candles that use essential oils. This type of candle has numerous therapeutic utilizes as aromatherapy candles. If you research the various aromatherapy scents, you will discover 1 that will have the healing properties you require, no matter whether you just need to loosen up, remedy an illness or assist soothe your spirit. Highly scented candles are widely available, but if there is a certain scent that you want you can have your candles custom created.

Despite the fact that beeswax candles are supposed to be the very best candles, soy candles come in a close second. In addition, beeswax candles are seldom scented whereas very scented soy candles will hold the scent until the candle is entirely burned out. Like beeswax candles, these highly scented candles are cleaner when burning and do not give off black soot as do paraffin candles. Soy candles are produced of all natural ingredients and do not include any petroleum by-merchandise, such as oil.

Hugely scented candles give off the scent even when they are not lit. For this purpose, many individuals have extremely scented soy candles simply for the decorative impact they supply. Whether you pick pillar, taper or votive soy candles, you can pick from a wide variety of scents and combination of scents. If you are not positive no matter whether the scented candles use fragrance oils or crucial oils, a fast appear at the name of the scent will give you the answer. Names such as hot fudge sundae or cinnamon pie are likely to be fragrance oils. Important oils come from plants and bear the name of the plant, such as eucalyptus, marjoram, chamomile, or ginger, for instance.

If you want extremely scented aromatherapy candles, you need to have to pick candles with the plant names for the scents. Realizing a little about the healing properties of such very scented candles will also support you pick the right ones. The color has little to do with aromatherapy, but it is most likely that the color of the candle will be closely linked to the scent. Lavender is one particular oil that is recognized for its soothing and relaxing properties and most highly scented soy candles of this nature are some shade of purple or lilac. Similarly, soy candles highly scented in pine are most likely to be a shade of green.

Very scented candles can mask the odor of cooking or of pet odors. When you use soy candles to do this job for you, you also have a healthier property. By utilizing highly scented soy candles, you have the sweet scents in the air with out possessing to use any harsh spray chemical substances. Highly scented candles have numerous far more uses than just setting the scene for romance.

To know more about it, please go to: scentsy buddy

Fragrant Oils in Magical and Spiritual Work

by Keri Desherite

The power of scent, and the virtues of the oils of various plants, have been recognized by religious and magical practitioners since ancient times. Whether through the inducement of subtle and powerful sensory memory, or the direct stimulation of the body and nervous system through chemical reaction, scented oils can help to shift consciousness and enhance psycho-spiritual well-being.

The ancient Egyptians used a compound called kyphi (the name means “welcome to the gods”), which was said to induce hypnotic states. Priests in the City of the Sun, Heliopolis, burned resins in the morning, myrrh at noon and kyphi at sunset to the sun god Ra. Kyphi had more than religious uses, however. It could lull one to sleep, alleviate anxieties, increase dreaming, eliminate sorrow, treat asthma and act as a general antidote for toxins. (“Aromatherapy: A Complete Guide to the Healing Art” by Kathi Keville and Mindy Green). In the Book of Exodus, requirements for the Tabernacle include fragrant anointing oils and an altar devoted to burning incense (Exodus 30).

Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki discusses the psycho-spiritual impact of fragrance in her book “Highways of the Mind: The Art and History of Pathworking” as she describes how our brain and neural systems function while doing spiritual work. “The olfactory sense is the only one that connects immediately with the mid-brain, with no kind of transformer between the particles coming in and the actual organ of scent. Much has been written about the memory stimulation brought about by different smells. It is because of this direct contact with the hidden ‘Halls of the Gods’ that incense has always been of the greatest importance in magical work” (p. 41). Whether incense, scented candles, or scented oil, stimulation of the olfactory senses can have a powerful impact on any work involving the mind. The virtues extend to magical, psychic, and healing work, as well as psychological adjustments and intellectual pursuits.

What types of uses can fragrant oils been put to?

Anointing is a powerful ritual practice which conveys blessings on the recipient. Even in modern times, priests and sovereigns are anointed with sacred oil as part of their investiture. Magical practitioners frequently anoint themselves with sacred oil as part of self-blessing or purification prior to doing ritual work. Sandalwood, myrrh and frankincense are among the oils used for such rituals.

The connection between love and roses doesn’t end with flowers in a vase. Rose oil is used to heal and open the heart on the spiritual level, and is a primary component in many rituals for attracting love. Rose oil is used to anoint candles for love spells, or worn as a perfume to attract a lover or to induce a more romantic state of mind in the user.

How else can you use oils and incense to enhance your own spiritual well-being? The possibilities are almost endless. First, decide what effect you want to achieve. Do you want to feel more peaceful? Become more prosperous? Balance your chakras? Commune with angels or spirit guides? Successful ritual work begins with a clear, specific intention. Once you have your goal clearly in mind, consult several of the many books and websites which list correspondences and find out which oils are associated with your interest. In many cases there will be more than one listed. For example, mint, patchouli and pine are all associated with increased prosperity. Select the scent with the strongest positive associations for you, or experiment with blends.

Oils work best when coupled with visualization or ritual work. The scent stimulates the mind and spirit, and the mental focus and physical gestures reinforce the inherent virtues of the oils. After the ritual or visualization has been performed, anointing yourself with the fragrance, putting some on a diffuser, or using some in your bath can renew the energy raised and released in the ritual. Just as the smell of fresh-baked cookies can instantly transport you back to the emotions of childhood, a ritually-charged scent can trigger the effect over and over again.