According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, as the nights grow longer and colder and we approach Winter, which is ruled by the Water element, we need to keep balance by adding more Fire to our daily lives. So it seems fitting that the holidays of late autumn and early winter are characterized by candlelight—glowing pumpkins, menorahs, advent wreaths, trees strung with little lightbulbs. During the summer, I usually head out for a hike in the mountains when I get home from work, but now that it’s pitch black by 6:15, you’ll find me unwinding in a hot bath, with some candles burning on the windowsill. 

But, like all products, it turns out we need to pay more attention to where our candles come from and where the paraffin gasses and chemicals go to when they burn. You can find all the details here, in Simran Sethi‘s latest LifeCycle installment. Apparently, a burning a few paraffin candles in your apartment can make the indoor air quality worse than that of Los Angeles.

Local beeswax candles are plain and simple, but with texture and personality. Next best is our local friends Lumia, made from organic soy-based wax instead of offgassing petroleum-based paraffin. Both make perfect holiday gifts for any friends who may need some Fire in their lives.