The first burn. How to make a candle last.

There is one rule of candle care that matters more than all the others, and almost no one is told it. The first time you light a candle, let it burn long enough for the melted wax to reach all the way to the edge before you put it out. An hour or two, depending on the size. That first pool sets the memory of the candle.

The reason is something makers call tunnelling. Wax has a memory. If you blow a candle out while it has only melted a small well in the centre, it will keep burning down that same narrow channel every time after, leaving a thick wall of wax around the edge that never gets used. You lose a third of the candle to a tunnel. Give it a full, even first burn and the pool reaches the edge each time instead, so the candle burns down level and uses all of itself.

A few smaller habits help too. Trim the cotton wick to about five millimetres before each burn, once the wax has set; a long wick flickers, smokes, and burns hot. Keep the candle away from draughts, which pull the flame sideways and make it burn unevenly. And rest it on a flat, heat-safe surface, one of our cast plaster dishes does this nicely. None of this is fussy. It is two minutes that doubles how long the object stays with you.

Our candles are poured from a soy and beeswax blend, which already burns cooler and slower than paraffin. Treat the first burn well and the rest takes care of itself. There is more in our care guide, and the whole collection of candles is made to be lived with, not saved.