SHIPPING + FAQS
 

What shipping carrier does Quiet Isle use?
All shipping is currently done via USPS Priority Mail (2-3 business days) or USPS Priority Mail International (6-10 business days). 

How long will it take to get my candle?
Normally, your order will ship in less than a week. In the event that we are experiencing high order volume, handling time (how long it takes to package and ship your candle) may increase. Handling time is typically between 1 and 2 business days though sometimes it can be longer. If the item is in stock it will ship right after it has been packaged. If it is out of stock, you may still purchase the item, but it will be considered a backorder.
 
What is a backorder?
If an item is listed as a backorder, you may still purchase the candle but it will not immediately ship. This is because new oils may need to be purchased, the candle will need to be poured, and finally, all candles sit for at least one week to allow them to cure or mature. Without this waiting period, many soy-blend candles have very little scent throw. If you do place a backorder, your candle should ship in 3 weeks or sooner.

I want to buy a candle that says PREORDER. When will I get it?
We allow customers to purchase preorders of new seasonal items. The release dates will usually coincide with the official change of season dates in the US, though we may ship seasonal items early if a rush is expected for a holiday (Christmas for example).
The exact date of release will always be on the candle's description page in a bold header. 

What are the benefits of preordering something?
The benefits of placing a preorder are two-fold.

1) You secure your place in line and guarantee that your item will ship right away on the release date, meaning it cannot be out of stock for you at launch.
2) The more customers that preorder an item, the more we will have in stock once the item launches. Let's say you like the candle you preordered and you want to buy one for a friend. The chances of the item staying in stock for longer go up when several customers preorder the item in advance. We adjust our production according to how many preorders we receive.

Some of your candles have scent notes like “blood” or “mold” and I’m hesitant to buy one. Are these intentionally bad-smelling “novelty” candles?
No, they are not! And here’s the thing—when it comes to perfuming, a lot of scents that seem like they would smell REALLY bad, in fact, add depth to a fragrance; as long as they’re balanced correctly. What does that mean? Let me explain.

One of the most common and sought-after ingredients in perfuming is musk. Musk (often referring to the musk species of deer) was originally secreted from a strange testicle-like sac on the musk variant of deer. It’s both powerful on its own, and it gives a depth to many other fragrance families that remains unmatched. Another example is the Civet. A cat-like animal which has a gland that secretes a paste. This paste has a dynamic scent and is known for use in perfuming. The Civet also famously ingests coffee cherries, partially digests them, and deficates them out. After which, people collect the pooped-out coffee beans and make the world’s most expensive coffee. These days, for ethical reasons, “dupes” (or imitations) of these animal-oil biproducts are often created in labs instead, but according to those who know, the imitations still can’t stand against the originals. These fragrances are still popular and desired for their intricacy.

Here at Quiet Isle, our “blood” scent is based on a copper fragrance oil—which is known to resemble the smell of blood. And our mold fragrance oil brings us back to the nostalgic and subtle scent of a slightly-damp basement growing up. We use these scents sparingly and never overdo them, but they add a level of complexity and mystery to a fragrance that is hard to beat.

Long story short, we will never make a candle that smells bad/gross/repugnant. If you buy a candle with some of these notes in it, you may or may not find it to be to your particular flavor, but we promise none of our candles will intentionally smell bad. In fact, many of our top repeat sellers are the ones with these slightly dubious-sounding notes.

Hey, sometimes my candle wick mushrooms. I’ve heard that’s a bad thing. Is it?
The simple answer is no, not really.

The long, technical answer requires understanding what mushrooming is. Mushrooming occurs for many reasons. The wick could be too large for the candle, the wick could be too long and needs to be trimmed, and certain waxes/wick types are prone to mushrooming inherently. Oftentimes every candle will mushroom eventually (like after it has been burning for more than 4 hours)

Here at Quiet Isle, we decided during our extensive testing to opt for the smallest wick size that creates a full “burn-pool” even if it results in minor mushrooming. The burn-pool is the lake of liquefied wax surrounding a candle’s flame. When a candle with a large enough wick burns for about 2 hours, the burn-pool should include the whole top of the candle and be 1/4” deep or so. Creating a full burn-pool is essential to releasing the base, mid, and top notes of a candle’s fragrance as opposed to just the top notes (when you sniff the candle while it’s cold, typically you’re smelling mostly top notes). To avoid mushrooming altogether means using a smaller wick, and since we use the smallest wick that creates a full burn-pool, the next size down will produce tunneling. Tunneling occurs when a wick produces a flame too small to create a full burn-pool, and therefore “tunnels” it’s way down the middle. This leaves much of your wax unburnt—which is a waste of your money, reduces how long the candle burns AND doesn’t release the entirety of the candle’s fragrance.

Phew, okay. So what does that all mean? It means that while we recognize mushrooming can occur with some of our candles, we intentionally chose a wick size that produces several more positive traits than the one negative. Minor mushrooming is benign. If it is bothersome or producing too much soot for your liking, we recommend blowing the candle out, trimming the wick to 1/4” and relighting. This should set back any mushrooming for another hour or two.

What if my item arrives damaged?
Any items found to be defective upon arrival (damaged or unable to burn) may be returned for a replacement in working order at no extra cost.

Do you plan to offer other products besides candles in the future?
Now that we have wick trimmers, we hope to add wick dippers and candle snuffers in the near future.