Little Ember Massage Candles Set
This is an archived review. Jimmyjane no longer makes the Little Embers set.
This week shall be the week of JimmyJane, I think. It was pretty awesome because I got not 1 but 2 JimmyJane products in a short period a while back. Enter double excitement over my first JimmyJane products! Onto the good stuff, shall we?
The Little Ember Candle set is a great introduction to what seems to be some new products from JimmyJane. Unlike the Afterglow candles, which are 5 ounces each and come in familiar scents like Pink Lotus, the Ember candles are 12 ounces and feature a pairing of scents to create an overall ambiance. Jimmy Jane describes the candles as “a base note that leads the way, plus a charismatic top note to set the tone.” Sounds pretty neat to me. Of course, you guessed that the larger size means a larger price tag; Ember candles are almost twice the price of an Afterglow candle and, if you’re not sure that you’ll love it, that can be money better spent elsewhere. That is where this set comes in so handy. You can experience some of the scents in miniature form and for a significantly lower price than a full sized candle. It’s a no brainer really.
Decision made, I assume most people would be pleasantly surprised by the packaging. I know it’s something other people have mentioned before but Jimmyjane’s attention to detail is something which really puts them heads and shoulders above the competition and what makes them a luxury brand. The Little Ember set comes in a white-topped box with the Jimmyjane name and logo in silver on top. On the top front, coming onto the front is a pink-ish red square which says the product name. A similar rectangle is printed on the bottom sides of the box (which is otherwise black) which can be seen through two rectangular cutouts which make pulling off the top a cinch. The candle scents are also listed on the bottom back of the box lid but aren’t in the way. I actually missed that at first. The simple design and colours are definitely a hit, very sophisticated.
Inside the box you see the candles as well as a white rubber band and a black book of matches, both branded with the Jimmyjane logo. In this kit are three .7oz candles in each scent: GINGER + DATE, TRUFFLE + GARDENIA, LYCHEE + LAPSANG. It is arranged so each candle is in a corner with the empty corner making room for the matches and band. It’s impressively impressive, and, at this point, I would expect no less from Jimmyjane.
Each candle is roughly cube-shaped (1.5″ deep and wide, a little over 1″ tall) and sits in what appears to be a white ceramic holder. Each container is wrapped in a translucent plastic sticker branded with the logo. This keeps the candles sealed before purchase, and I appreciated this because mine were shipped. Although some of the wax may have shifted to the side of the container, it couldn’t escape, so no product was lost.
And with the soft, soy-based wax, melting and shifting is pretty common. Soft wax is par for the course when it comes to massage candles; I imagine this is because it allows them to melt as lower temperatures. You can dip your finger in the candle, make a dent, and rub a bit on as lotion, but if it’s a nice pool of massage oil, lighting is in order. Of course, this is as easy as peeling off the sticker and lighting up one of the included matches.
Because the candles are mini, it doesn’t take long for them to melt to a usable pool of oil – a few minutes at most. Jimmyjane says you can get 4 hours of burning time out of these and it seems a stretch for the size and it definitely doesn’t take into account that these candles are actually, y’know, for using. The instructions also say to blow them out before pouring, never a bad idea. In my experience, the candle holders never became very hot but the provided band is for slipping around the candle to shield your fingers from any heat.
I would also recommend waiting to use the oil. For whatever reason, the Little Ember candles seem to get unreasonable hot; perhaps because of the size. The first time we used them, it was too hot to pour on his skin directly and hurt my hand a bit. Other than that, the oil is quite slick and makes for a good massage. I’ve never had a massage candle about which I can complain; however. Little Embers do nothing terribly wrong in my book. I might like a slightly better method for application because the oil never failed to drip down the side of the containers onto my furniture. The scent is also quite strong. We started with Truffle + Gardenia, which I quite enjoyed, and the scent stuck around the room for at least a day and a half.
This leaves me to discuss the scents available in the Little Ember Massage Candles Set. They’re quite interesting combinations, and, I must admit, I was completely unfamiliar with most of the components. I don’t know what lychee or lapsang even are, I’ve never smelled a date and I never knew a black truffle is a root. The scent descriptions on Jimmyjane’s site give some insight but don’t really prepare you for the reality of the scents:
TRUFFLE + GARDENIA: The dirty decadence of Black Truffle grounds the airy notes of White Gardenia. This pair of aphrodisiac scents swings between the earthly and the ethereal.
GINGER + DATE: The crispness of fresh Ginger is warmed by the burnt sugar hint of sun-drenched Date. This pair of aphrodisiac scents entices with its rich notes and warm embrace.
LYCHEE + LAPSANG: Tangy Lychee fruit mingles with the smoldering indulgence of Lapsang Souchong tea. This pair of aphrodisiac scents suggests intrigue, where the familiar meets the exotic.
Tackling this one by one, Truffle (which is apparently a root) and Gardenia is my favourite, hands down. It’s floral, of course, but a sophisticated floral and not perfumey in the least. The candle has just a bit of spice which balances this out perfectly. I can see where the scent description is going.
Although I knew ginger smells a bit spicy, I wasn’t prepared for just how spicy it would be. Also, the scents do vary a bit from just smelling the candle to burning and using it. I found this scent to be much too strong in the candle but, in use, it became bearable (although enjoyable would be a stretch). Ginger is noticeable but I can’t smell anything like burnt sugar; instead, it seems like the other ingredient is herbal.
Finally, lychee and lapsang are a scent that basically evokes what I think old Oriental ladies would smell like. It’s herbal, soapy, woodsy, pinesol-y and tea-like and doesn’t venture anywhere near pleasant. It’s a bold move, perhaps a move that should be left undone.
With that said, Jimmyjane definitely got one of these scents right and my nose is not all noses so who’s to say that my experience isn’t limited? I would still recommend the Little Ember Massage Candles Set to anyone who wants to get a feel for these candles and I did Ienjoy them for their massage properties. Because of the presentation, this set might even make a nice present, if you’re comfortable gifting someone massage candles.
