Bath and Body Works White Barn Garden Greenery Three Wick Spring Candle Review

At the time of this review, this candle is only available for purchase on the Bath and Body Works website.  I sincerely hope that they move this one into stores soon because online only puts you into the "having to pay for shipping" trap which depending on how large your order is, it can add a dollar or two to the price of each item that you purchase.

I purchased this candle on the Bath and Body Works website for $14.50.  A bit pricey for a B&BW candle if you ask me.  The regular price on these candles is $24.50 which I would NEVER pay because they are so iffy when it comes to burn performance and the amount of scent release that they have.  Some are great.  Some are middle of the road.  Most are... not so much.

The packing for shipping was surprisingly very good with this order.  I always comment on how this company hires gremlins and two year old children to package their items for shipping.  Of course I'm joking when I say that but their packing for shipping is usually awful resulting in broken candles during transit.  This time wasn't the case.  Everything was wrapped well and survived the trip.

So let's talk about the container on this candle.  I think it is gorgeous.  It's obviously very botanical because of the name, Garden Greenery.  The black background really sets off the plants that are pictured which include different types of basil in various growth stages and garden mint.  The label goes all the way around the candle and is very well done.

The lid is black and is embossed with "White Barn" across the top.

Of course it has the plastic ring on the inside of the lid that I've always suspected is to keep the scent in and to keep the candle from drying out when it isn't being used.

I didn't pay much attention to this candle's scent notes when I purchased it because by looking at the label and the name, it's obviously supposed to at least partially smell like basil and mint in combination with complementing scents.

Now, I always tell you what the listed scent notes are, because they are listed.  I try to smell the candle without looking at the listed notes because I think the listed scent notes can have influence on what you smell instead of what is really there.  They can influence your brain by telling it what you are supposed to smell.  Hopefully that makes sense.

The scent notes on this candle are pretty simple.

• sweet apricot
• fresh basil
• bright mint leaves
• essential oils

I'm a bit perplexed why "essential oils" is listed and what exactly does that mean?  I thought these Bath and Body Works candles were scented with essential oils.  What kind of essential oils are they referring to?  Call me crazy but that sounds like an open door to me.

On cold smell, this candle really reminds me of a nice, fresh and summery fruit salad.  I do sometimes use basil or mint in my fruit salads.  If you haven't tried it, I highly recommend it because it takes a fruit salad to another level.  Especially the mint.

I get a mix of a peachy smell with basil.  I'm not picking anything else up on cold at all.  Just juicy ripe, maybe slightly perfectly overripe peach and basil.  BUT, I will always remind you that a candle can smell completely different once you light it and it pools out than it does when you smell it cold.

The wicks looks good and meaty on this candle which is good because sometimes Bath and Body Works candles will get puny wicks that will cause the candle wicks to randomly extinguish themselves.  Hopefully these wicks are substantial enough to not do that.  

The first burn for this candle happened on the usual bookcase in the crazy long hallway in my house.  The candle got to full pool with no issues at around the 90 minute mark.  The hallway became lightly and pleasantly scented with the botanical smell that this candle was releasing.

On the second burn, I brought this candle into the office.  Again, it had no problem getting into a full pool in a timely manner.  It didn't take long for me to notice the scent after the candle was lit and if I walked out of the room, when I came back in, the scent was there and it was really nice.

Third burn was on the other bookcase in the hallway.  Again, same as the first two.  It didn't take long for the candle to get to full pool and start to release the scent.  The scent hung out in the general area where the candle was burning but it did go a bit into the kitchen because the kitchen door is only a few feet away from that bookcase.

Fourth burn, Houston, we have a problem.  The wax on this candle gets nasty about 3/4 of the way through.  It has no effect on the scent, scent release or the burn itself, but it sure isn't pretty at all.  If something like this bothers you then this might just be a deal breaker.  That wax started out white and now looks like there is black and white marble in it.  It is probably because of the smoke that I'll tell you about here in just a sec.

The scent release on the Bath and Body Works Garden Greenery three wick candle is adequate.  It will fill a room rather quickly with no problem.  There was no struggle in any of the burns that I did on this candle.

I do have to add one very important negative about this candle though.  If you blow it out instead of using the lid to extinguish it, it smokes like CRAZY.  Candle smoke over time can lead to discoloration of walls and other things in your house because they become covered in a sooty coating.  It won't happen with the occasional candle that does this but repeated use of smoky candles gets REALLY messy. 

So what is the scent when this candle is burning?  I get the basil first.  It's close to what real, freshly chopped genovese basil smells like, but without that sharpness.  The peach smell that has now transformed into apricot cuts that sharpness.  My guess is that's the reason why they chose the apricot scent for this candle.  It does that job nicely because I'm sure that the sharpness of basil would be a bit unpleasant for some people.  I do get a slight minty undertone in this candle but it's almost like an afterthought.  The mint is a great compliment undertone to this candle and rounds it out quite nicely.

As far as the listed essential oils, I have nothing there.  It makes me wonder if they just added it to the list to have a fourth listed scent note to make the candle sound more interesting scent wise.    

My Final Thoughts and Will I Buy This Candle Again?

I like this one.  It performed well with no wick or burn problems other than the icky looking wax toward the end and the smoke if it is blown out instead of extinguished with the lid.  It got to full wax pool in a timely manner and I think, at least for me, the scent release was just right.

Full blown raw basil can be a hit to the nose if you aren't used to it.  I like the addition of the apricot to calm that loud basil scent down.  The sweetness of the apricot with the mint undertone is a nice combination for the "after taste" on this candle.  Nothing is loud or overpowering.  It is a light scent that is very noticeable but not "bam in your face" when you walk into wherever the candle is burning.

Scent release (or throw) wise, I think this candle is perfect.  Not too much but just enough.  This is a scent that will be great for summer in the kitchen.  It will scent a room but don't expect it to scent an entire house.  Open concept floor plans may cause the candle to struggle with throw but other than that, I can't think of anything else that would prevent this candle from delivering a good performance.

As far as purchasing this candle again, yes.  I would purchase this one again.  I really do like it.  Bath and Body Works did a good job with this one from the label to the scent balance and strength to the wicks.  If only they did something to stop that sooty smoke when it is blown out that I'm pretty sure causes the wax ick.  But, it's a decent one in my opinion, but a good one at less than the $14.50 sale price tag.  This candle is not worth $14.50.  I'd wait for a deeper sale or a sale where you can drop a coupon on top of it.  It is NO where near worth the original $24.50 price tag.  In my opinion, the original price on these candles is laughable and ridiculous because none of them give a $24.50 performance.  At least none of them that I have had over the years.  Just a little food for thought there.

If you want to check this candle out on the website, you can find it here.

Do you have this candle?  If so, share your impressions about your experience with it in the comments below.