I am a girl with a deep, unwavering love for candles (and home fragrances, but candles in particular speak to me), and I just love to burn money! So in honor of the Halloween season, when so many goths feel most alive, I've put together this list. Whether you're looking for something brooding or dark and romantic, there's something here for you. In this case, I'm really prioritizing scent quality and, to some extent, appearance, because I'm a goth that loves beauty. Oh, and if perfume is your thing, check out this list. Happy smelling babes
The High Priestess Tarot Candle by 54 Celsius
54 Celsius makes a couple different tarot card candles, including The Fool (mint, citrus, basil), Death (tobacco flower, orange peel & leather), and The Moon (peony, violet leaf & oud), among others. But my favorite is undoubtedly High Priestess. It's got notes of pomegranate, red berries & patchouli, making for something that is the stuff of sweet earthy pleasures, very divine. I can always appreciate the abundance of pomegranate and all it symbolizes. The candle overall is very present and has a really nice projection when burning, enough to fill my living and dining room. It's made with soy wax and has a pretty nice burn with minimal tunneling, especially with proper care. Overall, a very enchanting and witchy option.
Agiasos by Naxos Apothecary
Now honestly, this candle is what inspired this entire list. When I was recently stopping by Naxos Apothecary on a fragrance crawl in New York, I was instantly like yeah, people need to know about this. And selfishly, it's because I think it's really cool and the perfect embodiment of me, a Greek goth. This candle is so hot, and I think it makes for a really nice transition into the holiday season, with notes including cinnamon, clove, orange peel, candied fruit, myrrh, and toffee. It's warm and sweet, strong on the candied fruit and cinnamon. It feels so cozy but dangerous and sensual at the same time. Nice burn as well, no tunneling, and it fills my entire house—a great throw.
Charcoal Rouge by Apotheke
I think Apotheke has some very lovely candles. They always burn nicely and have fairly nuanced scents. I particularly enjoy Charcoal Rouge for its earthy, dark romantic feeling, the embodiment of the song "Your Sweet 666" by H.I.M., if you ask me. Notes include elemi resin, smoke, red currant, damask rose, crushed geranium leaf, peony, burning birch, cedarwood, vetiver. And so you're left with a very nice woody rose fragrance that has some lightness to it thanks to the peony and geranium leaf. It's one of their nicest scents. If you aren't a rose person, I'd give this a try. It's a damask rose, which means it does tend to lean a bit spicier. I also quite love the oxblood wax, peak goth romance.
Poltergeist by Heretic
Now of course I had to include Heretic. Did you know they did candles, babes? Naturally Poltergeist was in order, especially as it's quite a lovely smoky, but like a green, almost herbal smoky. It's not quite as warm as campfire, but in some ways it reminds me of leaf burning on a crisp October day. Maybe that's just a Midwest thing? Well, in any case, it has notes of juniper, pine, wormwood, frankincense, champaca flower, birch tar, cade, cedar, labdanum, patchouli, vanilla, palo santo fruit. I get the cade and frankincense quite predominately. Overall very cool and sophisticated, high-end goth.
Black Flame by Blackbird Goods
Now of course this is somewhat of a homage to Hocus Pocus, and perhaps this is one of the more on-the-nose typical fall scents. It's warm and cozy, inviting. It has notes of orange peel, pumpkin and cinnamon bark, clove and vanilla base. And so it comes off as a sweet spice. For me, I very much get the cinnamon clove from it. I really enjoy quite a few candles from Blackbird Goods. I think they have really amazing scents and are such a clean burn, never any tunneling. They use a soy wax. This Halloween season they came out with some other really great seasonal candles, including Hill House (firewood and leather books), All Hallows Eve (blackberry, saffron, amber), and a bunch more.
Smoked Clove & Tabac by Capri Blue
I love a candle that I can reuse the vessel for, and this is one that certainly does the job. With notes of ginger, clove, geranium, and tobacco, this is one of those sweet tobacco scents that makes the night just a little more alluring. Transparently, I think Capri Blue isn't my favorite brand. I feel that they have some tunneling issues with their candles and can be a bit overpriced. But I justify the price of the gilded candles as I reuse the vessels for storage, notably for perfume samples. I love them for elevated cluttering around the house.
Beetroot by Loewe
Staying in the lovely vessel category, let's do something for the corporate goth. This one is far different from the rest. It's intensely aromatic, modeled as a homage to beets, the earthy grit with just a pinch of greenness to brighten it up. With a maroon glazed terracotta vessel, it's really quite special. So there's almost something that is a bit kitchen witch about this. Might I suggest this for channeling your inner demons?
Baies Noires by Diptyque
Is there anything chicer than an all-black vessel with black wax? I love the classic Baies candle from Diptyque. This is the same scent, just made in a haunting version, with notes of bouquet of roses sweetened with blackcurrant leaves. It's overwhelmingly black currant, sometimes bordering on muddled raspberry. It's something quite out of the norm for the fall season, but goth is a 24/7 lifestyle, so perhaps this can be transitioned throughout seasons. I'm a fan of the projection on this candle. I do find it to be stronger than some of Diptyque's other candles. Quite honestly, this is the embodiment of a Type O Negative song.
Sugar Coated (Pumpkin Spiced Cake) Candle by Glasshouse
This is perhaps the most signature typical Halloween candle on the list, but like the chic version of it. With notes like cinnamon, clove, maple, nutmeg, orange, pumpkin, spices, it's a warm spicy gourmand, truly the perfect embodiment of a pumpkin spiced cake. Like you've been spending the day baking to your heart's content. All of Glasshouse's candles are quite wonderful, and the vessels make for really lovely storage for bathroom necessities after you're done using them.
Cathedral Clove by P.F. Candle Co.
Now if you wanted something that's going to transition into the winter and holiday season, this is such a lovely option. It's very much a goth Catholic kind of candle. It certainly feels like the warmth and spice and dustiness of a church, in a good way. Its notes include pink pepper, elemi resin, mandarin zest, bergamot, clove bud, wormwood, pimento leaf, tuberose, smoked sandalwood, vanilla bean, amber, rhubarb root. I appreciate the red glass vessel, kind of hot, and a subtle nod to goth. It almost reminds me of part of a stained glass window.
Splurge Alert: Weeping Bust by Heretic
Now this is an unscented candle, but I'm including it because it's just...it's really fucking cool. A true decor piece. This 16-inch bust has wax that will melt from the eyes when burning, making for a weeping effect. It's so moody, and in all honesty I think it would look really cool styled on a stack of coffee table books and a beautiful vintage silver platter. I would personally burn it and keep it as a year-round decor piece. Majorly hot.
Fun Bits
Here are just some of my favorite little molded candles and accessories that I think could make for a fun space, from cute matchbooks to gilded candle ornaments
There you have it—my curated list of the best goth candles for creating atmospheric, moody vibes any time of year. Whether you're drawn to smoky, mysterious scents like Poltergeist, dark romantic vibes like Charcoal Rouge, or sweet gourmands like Black Flame, each of these candles brings something special to the table. Create your sanctuary, experiment with layering scents, and most importantly, enjoy the ritual. Happy smelling, babes.
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