You’ve spent countless hours mastering the art of making candles and are now wanting to share your creations with paying customers; but while it may be tempting to rush ahead and start selling straight away, you first need to figure out how to label your product.
Candle Labels are vital for a number of reasons - not only do they ensure that it’s easy to identify what the candle is, but they’re also an essential marketing tool to help appeal to new customers. Keep reading to find out our top tips for designing custom candle labels, and discover new ideas for materials and print processes.
1 - Remember your label material
It’s important to know what material you’re working with before you begin to design your label, as it can have a considerable impact on what’s possible. For example, using a silver polypropylene with our digital press means you can produce stunning metallic labels with intricate details, which simply isn't possible with other materials. That means it’s good to go for a finely detailed label, with specific areas chosen to be metallic.
Alternatively, antique paper has a fine grain texture running through the material, which works best with minimalist designs which complement the natural texture. You may just want to stick with standard paper, in which case you can simply imagine the label as a 'blank canvas'.
Your choice of label material should be informed by your product. Glass jars work really well with clear material to achieve a 'no label look' whereas tins are often great with metallic labels that complement the container. Papers tend to work well with either a glass or a tin, but the size and shape can also influence the overall look and feel.
2 - Explore a colour scheme
The use of colour on a candle label helps a customer to quickly identify it amongst multiple varieties, plus helps to indicate its scent. For example, light blue is often a colour of choice for candles which incorporate salt, or the colour pink when flower scents are used. Avoid bright and harsh colours in most situations, as consumers won’t associate these colours with a relaxing or calming experience.
While it can be tempting to start mixing colours to help differentiate from competitors, make sure that you’ve got an alternative strong piece of branding if you're going this route, so as to avoid confusing potential customers.
3 - Include essential information
One key question to ask yourself when designing your custom candle label is if a total stranger would be able to understand your product. If not, then you’re missing essential pieces of information. With candles, make sure to include information about the ingredients and scent, burn time, the product range it is part of, plus essential safety information.
While it may sound like a lot to include on a label, a good design will be able to effectively manage space to best incorporate all these details. It’s also why colours are so important, because they help to highlight the most important aspects of the label, and provide visual clarity. If there’s still too much to fit onto the label, consider adding a secondary label for the base of the candle for ingredients or safety information.
Bonus - Add some extra sparkle
Go one step further with your candle labels by adding an extra touch of sparkle with foil overprinting. Available in a wide variety of stunning metallic colours, including gold, silver and copper, foil printing helps to add an extra dimension and degree of sophistication to your labels, and is perfect for emphasising the quality of your product. To best suit a minimalist design, simply switch a standard logo or text element to foil.
While custom candle labels can often look simple, they’re by no means easy to achieve and a whole range of important decisions must be made in order to achieve a look that best suits your product and brand.
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