Mar 4 • Candle Making
Botanical candles are not historic
Here is the real story of how botanicals and crystals ended up inside candles, based on the craft and retail history.
1. The New Age shop influence (1980s–1990s)
In the late 80s and 90s metaphysical or “New Age” shops started selling decorative intention candles as they were becoming a trend. Before this intention candles were plain and made from beeswax or tallow.
But this new trend they were usually:
plain coloured pillar candles
sometimes anointed with oils
occasionally rolled in herbs on the outside
The herbs were normally stuck to the outside with oil or wax, not buried inside the candle. Crystals were usually placed beside the candle during rituals.
2. Early decorative candle trends (1990s–2000s)
In the decorative candle world, makers began experimenting with:
gel candles with shells or beads inside
layered sand candles
embedded wax shapes
These were decorative craft candles, not spiritual tools. Gel candles especially became popular in the late 90s before safety concerns killed most of that trend.
3. The Etsy / Pinterest aesthetic shift (2012–2016)
This is when the modern botanical candle trend really started.
Around the early 2010s several things happened:
Etsy became a huge marketplace for handmade goods
Instagram and Pinterest made visual aesthetics more important than function
“witchy” branding and spiritual lifestyle products became popular
Makers began creating “intention candles” that looked magical for photos. To make them stand out they started adding:
dried flowers
herbs
glitter
crystals
gold leaf
These candles photographed beautifully and sold extremely well.
4. Instagram witches and “witch aesthetic” (2016–2020)
By about 2016–2018 the trend exploded because of:
Instagram “witch aesthetic”
crystal healing trends
manifestation culture
Etsy shops competing visually
The candles became visual ritual objects, often with crystals embedded and botanicals sprinkled on top.
Many buyers never burned them. They were:
altar decorations
gifts
shelf pieces
5. The safety issue
Once the trend spread, many new candle makers copied the look without understanding burn behaviour, which is where the problems started.
Objects in the melt pool can:
ignite
trap heat
block the wick
cause secondary flames
This is why most professional candle makers and insurers strongly discourage it.
Intention candles were historically used for centuries, but traditionally the candle itself was plain. In folk and spiritual practices herbs might be burned separately, placed around the candle, or lightly dressed on the outside with oil. Crystals were usually kept on the altar nearby. Embedding botanicals or crystals inside candles is actually a much more modern trend thanks to Etsy not history.
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Botanical candles are not historic
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