The Top Line: BUY. Personally, we are really liking the scents available at Siblings and we will likely subscribe. We tried No01 (loved it) and sniffed the bag of the No04 (smells like winter holidays). These refillable candles cost more than drugstore candles like Mrs. Meyers, but the scent is really quite nice. Pillar candles like Aroma Naturals are going to be even more earth friendly, but we do like the variety that Siblings offers. Plus we have so many empty candle jars.

The Breakdown:

• Cost & Products: $22.00 for one bag of a candle wax and $18.70 for a subscription (which is admittedly very flexible)

• How ‘Clean’ Is This? Pretty clean. The wax is made of coconut blend wax. Essential oils and a lead-free cotton wick is included. Note for those sensitive: there is fragrance, but it is free of phthalates, parabens, and paraffin.

• Packaging: Standard shipping box, cushioned with recycled/recyclable paper. Wax comes in a plant-based bag.

• Purchasing & Shipping: Free for orders over $40, and a $5 flat fee for others below that.

• Good to know: 1) Wax is poured and shipped from Los Angeles.

  2) The bag is 60% compostable and is best composted at home but can also be composted in an industrial setting. Alternatively, Siblings will take your bag back and take care of it for you!

• What’s Your Impact? No more unnecessary glass vessels! Use your favorite from an old candle (or get a new, forever ves from Siblings and reuse, but we’re sure you have at least one candle jar around!).

The Experience

Context: We love candles and incense for both the aroma and the ambiance. We’ve wondered why scented, natural pillar candles were hard to find (reviewed one of our pillar candle finds here). This was our experience with SIblings:

• The bag was easy to stand up in the microwave for 2min30seconds.

• The whole apartment was filled with the aroma of the candle — no need to light it the first day!

• Takes 2 hours to harden up (which is ok since the scent lingers).

• Scent did not linger in the microwave, we promise. We have nuked our coffee and leftovers in there and definitely no candle aroma with our morning brew and breakfast.

• We tried Scent No01 first — and it is really, really reminiscent of the Diptyque Baies candle. If you remember the days BC (before covid), the scent of Club Monaco stores would be perfumed with this candle.

The Cost

We compared Siblings No01 to a few other candles, from ones that you can find in a drugstore like Mrs. Meyers to Chesapeake Bay, Boy Smells Petal, the Aroma Naturals Candles and of course, the Diptyque Baies Candle (we couldn’t resist). We assumed average burn time of 10 hours per week x 52 weeks.

Money Report: Definitely not the cheapest option, even with the subscription. However, Siblings is a bit greener than Mrs. Meyers and offers additional variety that Aroma does not.

The Good:

✔ Scent is wonderful - we are excited to try No04

✔ Easier to melt wax and pour into container than we thought

✔ Can warm up the wax on the stovetop in hot water without a microwave

✔ Natural coconut based wax with no phthalates, parabens or paraffin

The Bad:

✗ Middle of the range in terms of cost

✗ Unlike pillar candles, there is more work/still a bit more packaging, however recycled it is

Our Recommendation: Mixed BUY. Personally, we are really liking the scents available at Siblings. We tried No01 and sniffed the bag of the No04. These refillable candles cost more than drugstore candles like Mrs. Meyers, but the scent is really quite nice. Pillar candles like Aroma Naturals are going to be even more earth friendly, but we do like the variety that Siblings offers. Plus we have so many empty candle jars.

We're on a mission to reduce our personal carbon footprint with small, hopefully easy, changes in our home to fight against climate change. This means we're looking for products that may be all natural, ideally zero waste, reusable or compostable -- while still being affordable!