Creating the most natural products possible is at the heart of the Aja Botanicals philosophy. Join us as we take a closer look at our scented candles and the natural ingredients they contain
Nature is first and foremost our muse. From its herbaceous scents to its smoky, woody notes, the natural world provides endless inspiration and transformative aromatic moments that have the power to uplift our spirits.
With a strong connection to the British countryside, our founder Tilly Wood’s love of all things natural is at the heart of Aja Botanicals. Evoking feelings of wellness, nature’s ability to transform our body and mind stems from our senses, connecting us to the earth around us. With Aja Botanicals, Tilly decided to focus on one of our most evocative senses: our sense of smell.
By harnessing the power of scent in our candles, we provide a way to bring a little of nature’s goodness inside the home. That’s why we’re forever finding ways to keep Aja Botanicals as natural as possible, from the waxes we use to the essential oils.
Our waxes
As the base for all our candle fragrances, our wax blend is key in creating our all-natural designs. While some brands prefer to use paraffin, our fragrances use vegetable wax in a bid towards a more environmentally friendly future. ‘Even though paraffin wax is a byproduct of the oil industry, we should be aiming to get rid of fossil fuels altogether,’ says Tilly.
Using a blend of soya and coconut wax, both of which are biodegradable, and a natural cotton wick for a consistent burn, our candles provide a slow, ultra-clean burn that helps to provide an intense aromatic experience.
Unlike paraffin, soya is a sustainably sourced, non-toxic wax created from the oil of soya beans. After harvest, the beans are cracked, de-hulled and rolled into flakes, resulting in an oil which is solid at room temperature and therefore the perfect ingredient for our all-natural scented candles.
Coconut trees, otherwise known as the ‘Three Generation Tree’ as it provides multi-generational families to make a living, is known for its excellent scent retention. The wax is produced by pressing the oil from the coconut flesh before going on to solidification.
Our candles also contain a very small amount of beeswax, which helps to harden the wax. Responsibly and sustainably sourced, all our waxes are procured by British Wax, a company committed to creating a better future. Not only do they self-generate solar energy for production, but they have introduced measures to dramatically reduce waste by reducing the amount of packaging they purchase. Aligning with allies who share our objective in creating natural products with minimal environmental impact is an integral part of our holistic approach.
Our fragrances
A desire to create more natural fragrances is the motivating force behind Aja Botanicals. Working with essential oils such as jasmine, neroli and sandalwood, we celebrate the energy and therapeutic qualities of the natural world. Advocating for a holistic approach to health, our fine fragrances harness the power of natural ingredients to not only produce a superior scent, but to go beyond this to support wellbeing and offer health benefits such as improved sleep quality and reduced levels of anxiety.
Unlike synthetic fragrances, which lack any aromatherapeutic advantages, essential oils have been used throughout history in health healing and emotional balancing. Each oil found in our candles therefore has its own therapeutic and aromatic properties. Visit our ingredients glossary page to learn more about the unique attributes of each of our essential oils.
‘I'm quite sensitive to very synthetic scents. I find them too overpowering,’ Tilly says. ‘My aim is to create a beautiful addition to your home that is very natural and uplifting, not cloying or invasive.’
A very small proportion of a synthetic ingredient can only be found when it works to enhance the natural scents of the fragrances or efficacy of the candle. For example, to create a rich, musky scent, perfumers might use a small amount of synthetic patchouli, as natural patchouli is a quite dense ingredient, so it doesn't burn very well. ‘Perfumery is an incredible art and you can achieve some amazing fragrances using synthetics,’ says Tilly. ‘But my objective with Aja Botanicals is to always keep things as pure as possible.’
This choice comes with its own set of challenges, as Tilly explains: ‘Working with natural fragrances is a bit like looking after children, they don’t always do what you want them to.’
Essential oils also can smell quite different year to year depending on the harvest conditions, so each fragrance needs vigorously re-testing before a new batch can be made. Take lavender, for example. ‘A synthetic lavender will smell exactly the same all the time: it's the perfect lavender smell. Whereas an essential oil of lavender will smell a certain way when you first sniff it and then it will dry down in a different way: it has a whole fragrance of its own, with a top, a middle and a base note,’ explains Tilly.
It is this surprising, evolving energy that makes natural fragrances so exciting. ‘I just love the energetic value that natural fragrances have’, she concludes. Even when it’s concentrated in an oil form, nature preserves its wildly vivid and fascinating character.
Our candle holders
Hand-blown in the vibrant city of Istanbul, our artisan glass candle vessels are designed to be refilled or repurposed for use time and time again. Refills will soon be available for our single and three-wick candle holders, while our votive-sized vessels can be repurposed as bud vases, mini-plant pots, desk or dressing table organisers, bathroom accessories – the sky is the limit, really. We hope you’ll keep and reuse your Aja Botanicals vessels forever, but should you wish to discard them for any reason, the glass vessels are fully recyclable.
Each Aja Botanicals scented candle comes in a choice of either black or white glass, with matching wax colour, to effortlessly blend in with any interior.
Explore the range
Our fine fragrance candles are currently available in four distinctive scents and three sizes – votive, single-wick and three-wick. From the warm and woody notes of Into The Mystic, to the nostalgically floral Hello, I Love You, the sweet, smoky Walk On The Wild Side and the herbaceous Dreams, there’s a size and scent to suit all settings.
Explore Candles
