Having any business makes you pay attention to details of what others are selling. Really small details. Like how a product is made, what goes into it, etc. Candles is no exception. There’s so many different types of candle blends out there, it’s near impossible for every company to have the exact same candle.
Because of the recent discovery of the benefits to soy candles, many have been seeking out natural or 100% soy candles. Unfortunately, a TRUE soy candle isn’t all that easy to find. Most you find are blends, natural or not, and there are very very few that are actually all natural like they claim to be. Because of this, I wanted to post a few facts about soy candles.
Fact 1 - Soy Candle doesn’t NOT mean Natural
If they say “all natural” and include fragrance oil, it’s not natural. Fragrance oil is man-made. Unless it’s made from Essential oils, the site is lying. It may not seem like a big deal to you, and actually I don’t care if it’s got fragrance oil. Having a highly scented candle is the best part. However, to state something that isn’t true bothers me.
Fact 2 - You can NOT make pillars from pure soy wax
If you see a site that says “100% soy” and sells pillars, it’s a lie. You can not make a pillar from pure soy wax - only blends. Maybe you don’t care if it’s a blend or not, and that’s fine. Again, it’s the dishonest part that bothers me the most. If they can’t be honest about the candle’s true ingredience, what type of a business are they running?
Fact 3 - Not all soy wax is pure
Just like we mentioned about the pillars, not all sites that say “natural soy candles” are made with all soy. Check their ingredient or FAQ if they have one to find out what’s REALLY in the candles. Some mention it’s made with “other botanical blends” or “palm wax” - which isn’t soy. It may not be a big deal to some, but being raised around soy bean fields it is to me. I don’t want to “kinda” support farmers, I want to fully support them with 100% soy wax.
Fact 4 - Soy Wax is more expensive
One thing to keep in mind when choosing a candle is that soy wax is more expensive. It is well worth the money, though. Most know they burn slower and cleaners, making them completely worth the extra cost.
Now that you have the facts, here is some information about Prairie Soy Candles:
- We use soy wax AND beeswax
We won’t lie to you - our candles are a blend. How much beeswax do we add? Less than 1%. That’s it. The rest is pure soy wax and not a blended wax. The only reason beeswax is added is to make the candle more solid and burn longer. Since beeswax also comes from farmers and other natural resources, we have no issues using a tiny bit of beeswax. However, you won’t see us saying our candles are “100% soy” - no, they are about 99%.
- We use frangrance oil
Nope, our candles are not “all natural”. The wax is, but the scent is not. Natural oils tend to not throw scent or be as strong as fragrance oils. Plus we are able to offer “fun” scents like Snickerdoodles, Apple Pie, Blueberry Muffin, Banana Nut Bread, and other blends. We DO offer unscented candles, which of course ARE all natural.
(See: Unscented Candles)
- We DON’T use dyes or additives
You won’t find any dyes or additives in our candles. Why? We don’t like dyes. They take away from the natural look of the candle, and dye has no real purpose other than making a mess. Pure soy wax doesn’t color well either, which is another way to tell a candle is make from a blend and not pure soy. Instead of dyes, we try our best to find as many diferent colored jars as possible. It’s not always easy, but we’ve been able to find a few here and there!
(See: Colored Votive Holders)
Don’t be fooled! The next time you choose a candle, be sure to really look around to make sure you know what you are getting. Dishonest advertising could be a sign to other dishonest business practices!
