Coast Candle Co have partnered up with us in creating a ‘memory’ candle designed by people living with dementia around the theme of memories. The candle is available online to help raise money for Alzheimer Scotland.
The power of smell is amazing. It can transport us back in time, unlocking long-forgotten memories and associations. Whether it's the comforting scent of a loved one's perfume, the nostalgic smell of a childhood home, or the invigorating aroma of nature, the power of smell and reminiscence is unmistakable.
Karen Black, Dementia Advisor for Alzheimer Scotland, South Highlands was part of this project and shares her thoughts:
"A while ago, I was approached by Janis from Coast Candle Co in Nairn. This local enterprise makes a range of luxury scented candles, capturing aromas that evoke childhood memories. Janis wondered whether this could be a beneficial experience for people living with dementia because the group of brain areas that processes smell also processes emotion, learning and memory.
Scent therapy, also known as olfactory stimulation, has received growing interest in dementia care as it can be a powerful way to reminisce and make connections. It can trigger memories of past experiences and positive emotions – so I was keen to get involved and find out how it could benefit those we support.
We decided to hold a series of ‘candle workshops’ in our Inverness Dementia Resource Centre, with invitations sent to people living with dementia, their families and carers. Those who came along were encouraged to get involved in the whole process of candle-making. This began by scent sampling a variety of different fragrances - which triggered conversation about the memories they evoked.. Listening to everyone’s different thoughts on smells was interesting as all had different opinions and memories.
After a few of these sessions, we selected four scents that had inspired the most discussion and then mixed different combinations to create some blends. We decided on lemon verbena, rose, oakmoss, and vanilla. These conjured up the most powerful memories – with lemon reminding people of happy times, going to the shop for a quarter of sherbet lemons and opal fruits, presented in a white paper bag with the corners twisted to close it. The smell of rose took people back to their granny’s gardens and inspired memories of happy times spent with grandparents.
Oakmoss reminded people of leather, with one participant telling us about their grandad who had a shoe shop and how they’d loved spending time there with him. And vanilla is known to stimulate recall, with one participant being reminded of a lady who had earned the nickname ‘Vanilla’ because she smelt so strongly of it, they thought she must bathe in it.
We then had a final workshop which gave participants the opportunity to make their own candle using their chosen blend which they could then take away".
Feedback from the experience was overwhelmingly positive, with some participants saying:
"To be part of the journey from start to finish, it’s been brilliant."
"It’s been a community experience. Everyone was involved, everybody spoke and took part. It was lovely."
“[the smell] greets the nose like an old friend.”
These specially-crafted candles are now available to purchase through the Coast Candle Co website here, with 50% of any profit raised being very kindly donated to Alzheimer Scotland, South Highland.. We hope you enjoy them as much as the people who helped create them.