The 6 “R”s: What’s Your Candle Persona?

Candles have been around for thousands of years and continue to play an important role in the lives of people around the world. The reasons for burning candles, however, vary widely between individuals and cultures. Many people find themselves simply drawn to candles, but have never thought to put to words exactly why they enjoy lighting and burning these popular objects.

We’ve narrowed down the various occasions one might light a candle into six clear categories that, interestingly enough, all begin with the letter “R”! What candle persona type do you find yourself identifying with?

Ritual

Do you light a candle at dinnertime or for every important occasion? If candles end up making their way to the majority of your special events, then you likely fall into the category of ritualistic candle burners. Tall, centrepiece candles are great choices for these sorts of occasions.

Reflection

If you find yourself wanting to light a candle but not shut off your mind to the realities of daily life, then you’re more likely a “reflection” candle burner. With the candle’s flame acting as a metaphor for the soul, lighting a candle can help unite your mind and body as you reflect on what’s been troubling you.

Romance

If candles often end up accompanying flower petals around your bath or bed, romance is in the air for you! A variety of candle shapes and sizes will be perfect accompaniments to some soft music and dim lighting when looking to “set the mood.”

Relaxation

Another popular reason for candles around a bathtub is relaxation. If you need to alleviate the stresses of your day, lighting a candle and sinking into warm bubbles (or a cozy chair and blanket) might be just what you need.

Ritz

We admit, turning this reason into an “R” word was a bit of a stretch, but we still think that “ritz” does well to sum up the purely aesthetic reasons one might buy a candle. If you find yourself using candles as home décor more than actually burning them, then you likely appreciate their form more than their function and use them as art objects to “put on the ritz” in your everyday life.

Removing Odours

Burning a candle can help to remove odours from a kitchen or bathroom. Well, it’s actually the blowing out of the flame that is most effective at removing the odor, as opposed to using a scented candle to simply cover up a smell. If candles are used for a mostly practical purpose in your own home, this probably best describes your reasons for burning them.

Fun and Easy Ways to Enjoy Every Moment of Easter

Looking to mix things up this Easter in the most enjoyable, stress-free way possible? We’ve got some fun and incredibly easy ideas that make use of the skills and ingredients you probably already have!

Bunny Cake

Making a festive Easter cake couldn’t be easier!

1. Simply bake your favourite cake from scratch or from a mix (we love the rainbow chip kind for Easter), making two small, round cakes rather than one large rectangular one.
2. Once the cakes are baked and have cooled the fun begins! Remove one cake from its pan and slice out two arcs from opposite sides (these will become the ears and the leftover piece will be the bowtie).
3. Remove the other cake from its pan and arrange all four pieces on a long baking sheet as in the photo.
4. Decorate with your friends and family!

Decoration Ideas:
• Black licorice is perfect for the bunny’s whiskers
• Mix red and yellow food colouring for the ears, and red and blue for the bowtie
• Add your favourite Easter candies to fill in the bunny’s face and decorate his bowtie

Serve, eat and enjoy!

Devilled Eggs

Though the idea of devilled eggs tends to conjure up visions of a 1950s picnic, these tiny treats continue to be popular appetizers and party treats for a reason: They’re delicious. And, best of all, the flavour combinations truly are endless once you get a few basics out of the way.

The Basics:
1. Hard boil your eggs (however many you’d like, keeping in mind that each egg ends up in two hors d’œuvres)
2. Let the eggs cool fully by immersing them in cold water, replacing the water as it warms
3. Carefully peel the eggs and slice them in half
4. Scoop out the yolks into a medium bowl (they should pop out quite easily)
5. Mix the yolks with mayonnaise and yellow mustard until you’ve reached a desired consistency, adding salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
6. Spoon the yolk mixture back into the holes left in the egg halves (or, if you have cake decorating tools, squeeze through an icer)
7. Sprinkle with paprika for decoration (careful: it’s got some heat!)

Fun Filling Additions:
• Substitute spicy or Dijon mustard for the standard yellow variety
• Finely chopped bell peppers (any colour) or celery for the crunch factor
• Finely chopped sundried tomatoes or bits of ham or bacon for salt and texture
• Finely chopped green onions or jalapeños for added heat

Garnish Ideas:
• Substitute smoked paprika for the regular kind for more complex flavour
• Shaved, curled rind of a cucumber
• Thin pepperoncini rings
• Chopped chives or green onions
• Fresh basil, tarragon or dill
• Whole grilled shrimp

Guacamole Eggs

Is the regular old mayo and mustard filling just not doing it for you anymore? Try out this refreshing mix instead!

1. Follow the original instructions through step 4, stopping before adding mayo and mustard.
2. Add ripe avocado to the eggs (as much as you want, depending on how many eggs you’re making).
3. Also add:

a. Finely chopped tomatoes (not too liquidy).
b. VERY finely chopped red onion (not very much) – optional.
c. Fresh cilantro (just a little, saving the rest for garnish).
d. Lime juice, salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste).

4. Scoop the yolk and avocado mixture back into the eggs, topping with more fresh cilantro.

Homemade Easter Egg Dye Recipe

No Easter celebration is complete without coloured eggs. If you don’t have the time (or desire) to run out to the store to get an Easter egg dyeing kit, you’re in luck. It’s quite easy to make your own colours using everyday ingredients already at home.

What you’ll need:
• Hard-boiled eggs
• ½ cup boiling water
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• Food dye

What to do:
1. First things first: make sure those eggs are hard boiled, or you could end up with a mess on your hands!
2. Cool the hard-boiled eggs by running them under cold water
3. As the hard-boiled eggs cool off, mix up some colour ideas by using various combinations of food dye (you’ll need approx. 20 total drops for every ½ cup water and 1 tsp vinegar combination)
4. Add the vinegar to boiling water then add your selected food dye colour combination
5. Dip your eggs, leaving them in the boiled water for approx. 5 mins (leave in longer to darken the colour)
6. Dip as many eggs and colours as you’d like, making sure you let them cool fully before handling them with bare hands!

Don’t have food dye? You can use crayons, instead:
1. Hard boil your eggs as normal, but add a few tbsp. of vinegar to the water
2. Let the hard-boiled eggs cool approx. 10 mins
3. Using a towel (as the eggs should still be warm), hold the eggs and draw on them using crayons
4. The warm egg should melt the wax enough to let the colours run a bit, creating unique watercolour-esque designs