12 best candles: Shop celebrities’ favorite scents
If you’ve ever been curious how your favorite celebrity’s home smells, these candles will give you an A-list-worthy abode.
While many stars have shouted out their favorite fragrances over the years, they’re also known for scenting their spaces with chic candles — sometimes even ones they’ve created themselves. (Gwyneth Paltrow’s vagina-inspired votive, anyone?)
And when it comes to the ones celebs love to light up, they range from fresh floral fragrances like Jo Malone London’s Orange Blossom (beloved by Kate Middleton) to smoky, leathery scents like Le Labo’s Santal 26 (which Jennifer Lopez buys in bulk).
Below, discover (and shop!) some of the sweetest-smelling candles on the market, according to celebrities like Meghan Markle, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé.
Jo Malone Orange Blossom Candle
Want your place to smell like a palace? This fragrance, which blends clementine flower, white lilac and orriswood, is Kate Middleton’s go-to. According to Vogue, it’s the candle she chose to light (and scent) her way down the aisle at her Westminster Abbey wedding to Prince William in 2011.
Fellow Brit Poppy Delevingne described her home to Vogue as “overflowing with Jo Malone London candles” and similarly used Orange Blossom, which she says still gives her “butterflies,” to scent her own nuptials.
Diptyque Baies (Berries) Candle
If you’re more into Meghan Markle’s aesthetic, why not pick up this bestselling blend of blackcurrant berries and rose, which — you guessed it — scented the Duchess of Sussex’s wedding to Prince Harry in 2018, according to Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand’s book “Finding Freedom.”
Markle’s something of a Diptyque superfan, as the brand’s Figuier and Tubéreuse votives have also popped up in the backgrounds of her old Instagram posts and video appearances — and she’s far from alone.
LeBron James loves Baies as well, while John Mayer’s obsessed with Feu de Bois, which he prefers to hilariously mispronounce as “foh da boys.” Victoria Beckham made Figuier Vert the signature scent for her brand’s Dover Street flagship store, telling the Strategist, “Everyone who walks in always talks about the amazing smell of the store, and that’s just because of the candle.”
And Beyoncé once raved about the company’s “warm and sweet” Opopanax Candle, telling InStyle, “I have a lot of Diptyque candles around the house. Even when I’m away, I have someone burn them. I like having the scent in my pillows.”
Le Labo Santal 26 Candle
Stars like Jennifer Lopez, Blake Lively and Taylor Swift simply can’t get enough of this smoky, leathery classic. The “Jenny From the Block” singer is so obsessed with the amber blend that she purchases 50 Santal 26 candles each month — cutting back from the 100 to 200 she once ordered monthly.
“Gossip Girl” alum Lively let Marie Claire know these votives are her favorites because shoppers can personalize the labels, so “they make good gifts.”
Perhaps she gave one to pal Taylor Swift; after one of the pop star’s “secret sessions” in London, a fan revealed she had Santal 26 candles burning “everywhere” in her home.
Kylie Jenner loves Le Labo candles as well, though she’s partial to the Cade 26; “I love candles that smell like the holidays,” she told People.
Byredo Tree House
Speaking of Swift, if you’ve ever wondered where the candle wax she sings about in “New Year’s Day” comes from, it could be this woody votive.
In the “Anti-Hero” singer’s “73 Questions” interview with Vogue, the cedar-and-sandalwood candle can be spotted perched atop a tray in her living room — and she even name-drops it at the end of the segment.
Jennifer Aniston is another Byredo babe, although she opts for Burning Rose. “I have several of these all over my home — and my movie trailers,” the “Friends” star told People.
Kendall Jenner, meanwhile, keeps the brand’s Bibliothèque Candle nearby. “When I know I need a ‘me’ day, I’ll take a long, hot bath with my favorite Byredo candle burning,” the “Kardashians” star wrote on her now-defunct website, per Us Weekly.
Flamingo Estate Three Sisters Candle Set
Flamingo Estate’s garden is anything but garden-variety. The sprawling LA-based estate is beloved by everyone from Martha Stewart to Gwyneth Paltrow. (And as if that weren’t buzzy enough, it even once sent its bees to the homes of stars like Julianne Moore and LeBron James to create limited-edition honey.)
Oprah praised this gift-ready candle trio from the brand on her 2021 “Favorite Things” list, writing, “I take pride in growing some pretty impressive tomatoes. There’s a tomato-scented candle in this kitchen-friendly trio, along with herbaceous rosemary and cleansing sage. For each one purchased, a tree is planted.”
Also among the fans of Flamingo Estate candles? Jenna Lyons — who told Page Six Style she has the Adriatic Muscatel Sage Candle — and Steph Shep, who collaborated with the brand on Steph Shep’s Spiraling Candle.
Kai Skylight Candle
Perhaps first catapulted into the spotlight by its inclusion on Oprah’s “Favorite Things” list, this tropical floral scent boasts a whole slew of celebrity fans including Sharon Stone, Naomi Watts, Anna Camp and Tommy Lee.
“The Kai candle fills my home with the most delicious scent. i just love it — it is fresh and delightful,” Stone once said, while Mötley Crue drummer Lee once told the company he “can’t stop burning these candles” after his concerts, as they “keep [him] calm after the storm on stage.”
And “Pitch Perfect” actress Camp said the scent always wins compliments: “I’ve gotten other candles from other places and used them while people are visiting and they don’t say a word,” she wrote in a blog for the brand. “But without fail, when I use a Kai candle, people immediately ask, “What is that gorgeous scent?'”
Tocca Cleopatra Candle
Kate Moss, Cindy Crawford, Halle Berry and Julianne Moore all reportedly adore this fresh and fruity Tocca candle inspired by ingredients from Cleopatra’s beauty rituals, including grapefruit and cucumber.
Looking to try another Tocca scent? The Stella Candle is a favorite of stars including Sarah Jessica Parker, Ellen DeGeneres, Taylor Swift, Zooey Deschanel and Emily Blunt, according to the brand.
Archipelago Botanicals Black Forest Candle
Rihanna’s management team told E! News the Bad Gal so loves these dark and woodsy candles — featuring notes of ebony wood, Douglas fir and blackcurrant — she required them in every dressing room during her Diamonds World Tour in 2013.
Nest Bamboo Classic Candle
Plenty of “Real Housewives” alums scent their homes with Nest candles. Bethenny Frankel once told us the brand is among her “year-round favorites.” Her former co-stars Tinsley Mortimer and Jill Zarin have also raved about the New York-based brand; Mortimer once told us she “can never have enough,” while Zarin raved, “I can promise you, no one re-gifts a Nest candle!”
Fellow reality stars Christine Quinn and former “Bachelorette” Hannah Brown have also name-checked the votives in Page Six Style interviews, with the latter saying in 2022, “I love the Nest New York candles because they are classic and have so many different scents.”
Lafco New York Beach House Candle
Courtney Love told the Strategist she “really [loves]” Lafco New York’s scents, all of which “are assigned to rooms.”
“It’s not the sexiest or most expensive of candles, but it’s dense with lilac and lasts forever,” she raved of Beach House, adding that she also likes the gardenia-forward Living Room and the champagne-inspired Penthouse.
Capri Blue Volcano Candle
Step inside the homes of Nicky Hilton, Lana Condor or JoJo Fletcher, and you’re sure to spot this striking blue votive burning brightly.
Hilton told E! News the fresh and fruity candle is her “go-to gift,” while Netflix star Condor named it as one of her favorite stocking stuffers, telling the same outlet, “You can’t go wrong.”
And former “Bachelorette” Fletcher told E! News, “This is one of my all-time favorite candles. We’ve ordered this many times and I don’t get sick of the smell. It’s amazing.”
Voluspa Mokara Candle
Selena Gomez raved about this fruity and floral Voluspa scent — as well as the same company’s Saijo Persimmon Candle— during an Into the Gloss interview, saying, “I want them to be lit every night, because it just feels so good — I’ll light them in the piano room where we always have jam sessions or even during the daytime when I’m doing my makeup.”
And Voluspa has tons of other famous fans, among them Halle Berry, Drew Barrymore, Jessica Simpson, Scarlett Johansson and Demi Moore.
The Kardashian-Jenners are obsessed with the brand as well; Kris, Khloé and Kim have all shouted out Voluspa on social media, and the latter went so far as to commission custom votives from the company for guests at her 2011 wedding to Kris Humphries.
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