In the days long before beautiful scented candles - like One Bond Street’s delightfully elegant Sterling Silver Roundel Candles - were invented, and used for their fragrant and decorative properties, candles were not only a practical but an integral part of every day life. Indeed, before electricity was brought into existence, candles provided one of the only means through which the shadows could be illuminated after sun set and they most certainly were not beautifully scented! Luckily for us, times have changed rather a lot since then and now, not only are we fortunate enough to benefit from electrical lighting almost everywhere we wander, we also get to enjoy exquisite scented candles - like One Bond Street’s Sterling Silver Roundel Candles - for their charming and heavenly aromas (and, of course, their alluring exteriors).
So, where did the scented candle come from? What do we know about the precursors of the scented candles we use and love today - including the exquisite Sterling Silver Roundel Candle, manufactured by One Bond Street? Unfortunately, this piece of information is not known for certain; something we do know, however, is that, during the Middle Ages, candles were often crafted from the fat of cows and sheep; the smell of which was so terrible that, perhaps unsurprisingly, several cities outlawed candle making for a considerable period of time! Thus, one could say, of course, that candles were, in fact, scented at this time - just not in the way anyone would want them to be!
From very early on, however, candle clocks were used in China, into which incense sticks were often inserted, in order to indicate a change in time. In India, people also began to manufacture candles out of boiled cinnamon which, as you can imagine, carried a marvellously sweet and pleasing scent. Naturally, these scented candles, were not quite the same as the scented candles we enjoy nowadays - like One Bond Street’s exclusive Sterling Silver Roundel Candles - they were far more rudimentary. However, we can certainly consider them precursors to the candles we have today.
It may seem shocking to a contemporary crowd but, during the 19th century, candles - whether scented in a similar manner to One Bond Street's luxurious Sterling Silver Roundel Candles or otherwise - almost entirely went out of fashion. This was largely because of the invention of the kerosene lamp and latterly, by the end of the 19th century, the invention of the light bulb, both of which negated the once integral need for candles.
Happily for us, however, candles made a tremendous come back throughout the 1980s and 1990s and scented candles - much like One Bond Street’s Sterling Silver Roundel Candle - became a world wide phenomenon! Indeed, they were seen at this time (and, of course, still are) as a wonderful way to create a soothing and tranquil environment, help people to relax and, naturally, make their homes smell utterly divine!
This was the time then, that scented candles as we know them - beautiful scented candles like One Bond Street’s Sterling Silver Roundel Candles - first became tremendously popular and were manufactured en masse. And thank goodness they did because: can you imagine a life without their charming aromas and appearances? A life without being able to come home, put your feet up and enjoy the charming scents of your favourite scented candles (whether Sterling Silver Roundel Candles or otherwise)?
Angie Mastroyiannis
Author