Why can't I smell my candle when it's lit?

What you see: the candle smells fine unlit but barely scents the room while burning.

Why it happens: run the checklist in order — (1) not cured yet: soy and coconut need 1–2 weeks for the fragrance to fully bind; testing early always underrates the candle. (2) Wick too small: an undersized wick can't build a hot enough melt pool to vaporize fragrance — the most common cause with a correct fragrance load. (3) Fragrance added too hot: above the wax's add-temperature range, volatile top notes evaporate before they bind. (4) Under-stirred: fragrance that isn't fully mixed distributes unevenly. (5) Room too big or drafty: one 8 oz candle won't scent a great room; that's physics, not failure.

The fix: cure fully first and retest — half of all "weak throw" complaints disappear after a proper cure. Then check wick size with a real test burn.

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