Ah, the sweet stench of 2021.
A novelty company based in England is currently marketing a candle that allegedly captures the “top smells” of 2021, a year which apparently smelled like Britney Spears and doctors’ offices.
The 2021 Scent Candle, as described by its manufacturers at Flaming Crap, features “four unusually fragrant layers” of scents, each inspired by an event, pop-culture phenomenon or trend from 2021. Among them, the candle’s aromas include:
- Berries and cream, a nod to one of 2021’s viral TIkTok trends (itself inspired by a Starburst commercial from 2007)
- Honeycomb, an aroma designed to invoke memories of Netflix’s hit show “Squid Game” — particularly the scene in which contestants are provided with honeycomb-like candy
- Fantasy, a celebrity fragrance released by Britney Spears in 2005, in honor of 2021’s #FreeBritney movement
- And the “sterile,” “clinical” smell of vaccines, to mark the second year of the global COVID-19 pandemic
“Whilst not your traditional complimentary scents, the layers burn down to take you through a subversive journey back through 2021,” reads a press release for the 2021 Scent Candle.
Flaming Crap, a company based in West Yorkshire, England, had previously released a “2020 Scent Candle” in 2020, also containing four layers inspired by the year’s events. Last year, however, the candle featured at least three odors arguably inspired by the pandemic (banana bread, hand sanitizer, and “woody musks,” to commemorate the rise in DIY projects amid lockdown), and another inspired by “Tiger King” star Joe Exotic (a smell described as “budget aftershave”).
The 2021 Scent Candle sells for £14.99 ($20 USD) at FlamingCrap.com.