You might have never thought about looking after your candle, but if you don't maintain it well you'll be swindling yourself. The fragrance won't be as strong and you won't use it all. You're also likely to not burn your candle properly, resulting in blackening on the walls or on your candle vessel.

A wick trimmer is useful and, once you have one, you won't know how you managed without one. However, nail clippers do a great job in their absence.

Your candle shouldn't flicker. If it is, it's probably because of airflow. Make sure that your candle is away from draughts, vents, or any strong air currents. Your room should be well ventilated though.

If you can’t light your candle wick because it’s too short, try to take a little bit of the wax away from around the candle. You could scrape this away, or soften up the surrounding wax using a blow drier or candle lighter. Be careful doing this because you’ll have the flame at different angles. Remove the wax around the wick using a cotton bud or tweezers, or by pouring. Then light the wick and it should burn down like it used to. Let it burn for at least 30 minutes to establish a pool of melted wax around it.

If you have paraffin wax or a poorly trimmed wick, soot will accumulate on your candle vessel or wall. Make sure to maintain your candle and this shouldn't happen.

If you don't burn a candle properly (so that the top layer is all molten), the wick will start to tunnel. As time continues, your wick will bury itself deep in the candle, wasting all the wax and scent that your candle has to offer.