Here’s an article that appeared on the San Antonio Express News September 26th, 2013 that we want to share with you. Columnist Emily Spicer gives Bite-Lite Candles thumbs up!
-by Lifestyle Columnist Emily Spicer
Living in San Antonio, we all know the drill: Before you play, spray.
The sounds of mosquito repellents being applied all across the city have become almost the theme song to summer and early fall: the classic “Fshhhh … ” from the can and “psht, psht … ” of the spray bottle.
Now, I am one of those people — the super-sensitive paranoid person at an outdoor affair hanging around the perimeter, trying to be discreet when I scratch.
Mosquitoes love me. And by “love” I mean they swarm to me like so many college kids at an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet.
Lawn sprays? Nothing.
Citronella? Zilch.
Those little blue fans? They work on every part of the body facing and above the fan; everything else is fair game to mosquitoes.
The only thing I have found that reliably repels the nasty little suckers is noxious sprays — and therein lies the problem for a lover of perfumes and smelling wonderful, such as I.
Enter Bite-Lite Mosquito Repelling Candles. They claim to contain “natural, proprietary ‘Cloak & Scatter Technology’” from a blend of essential oils, including lemongrass and spearmint. Developers came up with the combo of oils after watching monkeys rub themselves with citrus to repel mosquitoes.
No, for reals, y’all. Check out the cute monkey video at https://bite-lite.com/monkey-story-video. (Now, I’m not sure that all rubbing was to “anoint themselves,” but you be the judge.)
Apparently, monkeys are pretty smart because the candles work.
On a few occasions right around twilight — prime mosquito time — I test drove them over a pre-dinner martini on the patio.
The first time, as instructed, I lit three candles (for two people) about 15-20 minutes before cocktail time, and tried to surround the space with candles. I used the Fluted Luminary Candle, Premium Soy Jar Candle, and the Premium Soy Candle Tin.
I could definitely smell them, and I should say that at first, the smell is actually a bit unpleasant: a rather thick, cloying odor of something citrusesque and minty. And I did get two bites on my left arm, which I supposed meant that I didn’t surround the space enough.
The next few times (also with pre-dinner martinis for two because it’s important in experiments to keep the conditions the same — I mean, it’s science!) I added a fourth candle in the form of a votive. This time, the smell was still unpleasant at first, but I got used to it. And while we did see a couple of mosquitoes buzzing around, they did not make bitey contact.
Verdict: This will be a product I buy, probably in the tin or jar. The votive melted down to soup after just a few minutes (luckily I had set it in something), so I would rather have the candle come with its own container.
Details: Fluted Luminary Candle ($19.99), Premium Soy Jar Candle ($14.99), Premium Soy Candle Tin ($6.99), Votive Candle 3 Pack ($6.99). Not sold in San Antonio stores, according to the website, but buy them online at https://bite-lite.com.
See the full article here: