Bathing is more than cleaning your body. It’s therapy. You bathe to de-stress and rejuvenate. Bathing can become a ritual and an experience. When I feel particularly stressed I splurge on bath products–oils, soaps, candles–and I soak. It never fails to do the trick.

If you want to create a relaxing experience when you bathe, choice of candles is important. Candlelight is easy on the eyes, and aromatherapy candles are another great way to get the benefit of flower essences. Remember, when those essences hit the receptors in your brain, there’s a definite response. Chemical reaction = relaxation response.

There’s nothing vaguely enticing about a cheap candle sputtering and smoking. After all, you don’t want to have to jump out of the tub to turn the smoke alarms off, do you?

So with that said, I definitely understand why Claus Porto candles made Oprah’s list of favorite things. First of all, they’re soy candles–no sputtering and smoking. Secondly, they burn for up to 70 hours. You’ll definitely get a lot of mileage out of them. But best of all, they come in so many wonderful fragrances. I’m partial to the pear/sandalwood.

The added bonus is the etched glass design. They’re all one-of-a-kind art deco designs discovered in a Portuguese printing house. When the candles finally burn out, I’m sure you’ll find a second-life use for the beautifully etched glass jars.