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These Otherland Candles Will Transport You to the ‘90s Faster Than Butterfly Clips and ‘Clueless’

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Forget the DeLorean—all you need is one whiff of Otherland Candles from the Carefree '90s Collection, and you’ll be transported back in time faster than anything Doc Brown could dream up. The trio of pastel-colored candles—which were initially offered for a limited time back in January 2020—feature breezy, floral scents inspired by the decade's biggest trends.

Founder Abigail Cook Stone deems it her “daydreamy tribute to growing up in the '90s,” and and it's wild how quickly they'll remind you of layering on Lip Smackers and body glitter before jumping in your mom's car to head to the mall. Or rushing home to catch Clarissa Explains It All and wishing your BFF could just climb through the window to hang out, too.

Curious about the scents? Here's the full 411 on the retro collection, so you can choose the one that's right for you. (Though, who are we kidding? Spring for the three-pack and experience it all. You save $19 that way.)

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1. Dreamlight

Otherland

There’s Dreamlight, a mix of wild freesia, plumeria and tangerine, that’s strangely reminiscent of after-school trips to the mall, where you inevitably scoured Claire’s and Bath and Body Works and sipped an Orange Julius while debating whether Jonathan Taylor Thomas or Leonardo DiCaprio was hotter (though both took up residence on your locker wall, obvi).

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2. Glosspop

Otherland

If you grew up wearing Teen Spirit (Romantic Rose, naturally) and your Lip Smackers roll-on gloss was always on point, you'll want to go with Glosspop. This peachy-pastel candle is a blend of “strawberry gloss, hard candy and frosted rose,” which sounds like the olfactory equivalent of gummy bears dissolved into sweet tea, but we promise it isn’t too sweet-smelling. It’s really more of a rosy scent, with a hint of fresh strawberry—like a sophisticated take on, well, Teen Spirit.

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3. Blue Jean Baby

Otherland

OK, sweet isn’t really your thing. Maybe in high school, your dad was more likely to greet you with a “Hello, make anyone cry today?” a la Julia Stiles’s father in 10 Things I Hate About You. Or maybe you just prefer a muskier scent. Whatever the case, if you want to bring on a wave of nostalgia without an overtly floral candle, go for Blue Jean Baby. It combines notes of freshly washed denim, mimosa and white musk that fill a room with a smell that’s every bit as refreshing and pure as that scene when Heath Ledger performed the soccer-practice-stopping serenade of every high school girl’s dreams. You know the one.

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candace davison bio

VP of editorial content

  • Oversees home, food and commerce articles
  • Author of two cookbooks and has contributed recipes to three others
  • Named one of 2023's Outstanding Young Alumni at the University of South Florida, where she studied mass communications and business