Scented Candles
How readers positioned 8 scented candles products on the taste map.
By Andrew Burmon
1.
Dyptique Roses ($48) Claiming the strongest Upper position on the grid, the Diptyque Roses reads as the choice of someone old enough to know better than to wear their wealth loudly, but insufficiently discerning to have developed an actual point of view.
2.
MALIN+GOETZ ($68) Coded as the luxury baseline for those who confuse restraint with taste, the MALIN+GOETZ candle reads as the choice of the affluent consumer who has outsourced their aesthetic to a brand's minimalist branding department.
3.
D.S.
& Durga Big Sur After Rain ($75) Straddling the line between Old Money restraint and genuine discernment, the D.S.
& Durga candle reads as the choice of someone trying to signal cultivation through the obscurity of the brand rather than the obviousness of its cost.
4.
Burning Rose: Candle 240g ($95) Hovering almost exactly at the center with the highest consensus, the Burning Rose reads as the choice of someone who has decided that price itself is a sufficient substitute for meaning.
5.
Flamingo Estate Heirloom Tomato Candle ($57.60) Nearly centered but drifting slightly toward Bohemian, the Flamingo Estate candle reads as the choice of someone caught between genuine artisanal conviction and the suspicion that a tomato-scented room might be absurd.
6.
Boy Smells Hinoki Fantôme ($44) Positioned in the Nouveau Riche lower-right, the Boy Smells candle reads as the choice of someone who believes that selecting an unfamiliar wood note and paying moderately above market rate constitutes discovery.
7.
Replica Autumn Vibes ($72) Tilted toward Nouveau Riche despite its Maison Margiela prestige, the Replica candle reads as the choice of an aspirant who has mistaken a fashion house for a perfume house.
8.
Mrs.
Meyer's Clean Day Lavender ($22.31) Firmly located in Bohemian territory at the grid's lower edge, the Mrs.
Meyer's candle reads as the choice of someone who has decided that affordability and plant-derived ingredients are themselves forms of authenticity.
