I fell in love with candles as a teenager before I ever knew of Paganism. I was given my first candle set for Christmas in 2000 by my brother's in-laws when we went to Florida to visit for the holidays. He must have told them I liked purple. The candle was purple and came with a wooden shade box that had purple-shaded windows that looked like it was covered with purple tissue paper (which, obviously, it wasn't, but it looked cool). When I got back home to Colorado and unpacked it from my travel case, I burned that candle incessantly. I liked lighting it as I went to bed and lay there in the dark watching the light dance through the shade box (of course, I would blow it out when I felt that I could go to sleep).
That following Valentine's Day, my mother gave me a Gardenia-scented votive with a votive holder that comprised of a glass round-bottom cup made to look like the glass was cracked that sat in a metal holder.
Yes, I was effectively hooked. To this day, I can't go through a mall without going through the Yankee Candle Company and smelling all the candles. It's hard to leave a WalMart without snagging another 7-Day container candle (hey, they're only $5!). I love scouring through thrift stores to see what kinds of candle holders they possess (I gleefully came home once from a thrift store I did some volunteering at last year with a bird cage-style votive holder that has a rose on it for like $3 -- that one sits on my altar as my Brighid candle-holder that I like to use for my Flamekeeping shifts).
I absolutely adore candles so, naturally, they are something I include in my rituals. Yeah, I know. Big shock there. I can't actually think of any Pagan I know who doesn't use candles.
Candle magick is one of the things that I want to become more adept at in several ways. I've used candle magick several times, whether it's to dispel negativity, to bring prosperity, healing, etc. At some point, hopefully soon, I want to get into candle making. I'd like to learn to make candles that have herbs and essential oils incorporated into the wax. I've even thought of doing that as an Etsy business, but we'll see. One step at a time.I love the ways that candles can be incorporated into Paganism. Really, the only limit to the use of candles is the limit that our imaginations provide. Rituals, candle magick, using them in cleansing our houses/apartments, using them in the bathroom while we take a ritual bath, using them for meditation, even using them as a simple, witchy decoration around the house, the list goes on and on. It's amazing how integral to our lives candles can be.
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