Forest, but make it louder: my take on Boy Smells XXMas Tree Holiday Magnum

If saccharine holiday candles make your teeth ache, this one is the antidote. The Boy Smells XXMas Tree Holiday Magnum Candle doesn’t whisper pine, it hauls you into it. Think crushed needles under boots, sticky fingers from broken sap blisters, and that knife-edge chill you only get on a dusk walk when the wind changes and the sky goes metallic.

Pine is risky. It can go shower-gel bright or cleaning-spray sharp, and once it tips that way your living room smells like a locker room. This reads different. The balance is resin-first with an airy snap that nods to sea spray. Not aquatic in the mall-fragrance sense, more like a bracing gust cutting through balsam and fir. The result is crisp, green and awake, not cozy-marshmallow. If your December mood board is midnight-forest rather than fireplace-and-fudge, you’re squarely in the target.

About that size. At roughly 765g, the magnum is serious wax for $94. It’s the kind of scale that makes sense if you want one candle to command an open-plan space through the season. Bigger jars often throw better, but they also punish sloppy burn habits, so trim the wick and resist marathon burns. Pine and resin notes tend to perform early and boldly, so expect immediate presence rather than a slow bloom.

Personal bias check. I grew up near wind-whipped evergreens and I chase that green sting each winter. On my skin, pine perfumes skew too stern, but in a room I crave that balsamic hum. This hits that nerve with just enough icy lift to keep it from feeling heavy. No potpourri, no cinnamon bludgeon, no bakery cosplay.

Is it for everyone? No. If your holiday ritual is gourmand city, XXMas Tree will steamroll your gingerbread. But if you want your space to smell like you cracked a window in a dark forest and invited the night in, it’s refreshingly feral. The name is cheeky, the intent is clear, and the vibe is unapologetically green. In a market drowning in vanilla froth, that feels like a small rebellion.