Illume is a company that believes in getting the most from every candle they craft. They use clean-burning wicks made of cotton and their wax is either soy or paraffin-based, blended with essential oils. The term "clean burning" means that the candle won't leave soot on nearby surfaces or emit carcinogens into the air, and generally soy wax burns cleaner than paraffin.

The Illume Velas de Casa is no exception to their high standards. It has clean-burning soy wax and a very high fragrance load to fill up your whole house in a matter of minutes. It arrived in a bright, summery-yellow box with a description of the inspiration behind the Velas de Casa line of candles, stating that the scents were inspired by the fragrances, flavors and colors of the Hispanic culture.

The golden orange wax of the Flor del Sol sits in a brown frosted glass container with an elegant design that reminds me of ancient Mexican or Spanish art. On the description it reads that the scent is of melon, peach and bergamot but I found it to be much closer to a Sun Flower--the translation of Flor del Sol. Definitely more flowery than fruity. Although I was expecting a more fruity scent, as I don't particularly care for floral ones, this is a great scent for the Summer and Spring to bring a little of the outside into your home.

It weighs 7.4oz and says it has a burn time of 50 hours. I have had mine burned for at least 12 hours total and it isn't more than 1/3 of the way gone, so 50 hours seems like a true estimate. The clean scent is great for relaxing, or for pepping up your day when things are going slow. Sometimes it is nice to turn off the electronics and bright lights, sit by a candle and read a great book or talk to someone dear to you. The Velas de Casa, "home candle", is perfect for just that.

I couldn't stop lighting this candle from the day I got it. I really like how I can continue to smell the scent even after a few hours. I never 'got used to it' like what can happen with air fresheners--you plug them in and you can smell them for a little while but then you get so used to them you can't smell it anymore. You can ALWAYS smell the Flor del Sol.

My boyfriend has a more sensitive nose than I do, and said that the fragrance may be a little too strong, so if you have a sensitive sniffer then you may want to keep that in mind. The candle smells great even when not burnt, so having it on a candle warmer may allow for a softer diffusion of the scent.

I've continued to really enjoy this scent all through summer, and coming into Fall. The glass jar that it comes in is still one of the prettiest that I have seen, and the scent has remained strong.

My only word of warning to others is please don't let ashes/burned wick drop into the beautiful orange wax! My cat jumped up on the table where this was burning (bad cat!) and I blew it out really quickly because his fluffy tail was way too close to it for comfort, and a bunch of the burnt wick dropped into the wax. I was able to pick out most of it, but I'm still bummed!