Blog POP! Christmas Wishes: Jackpot Candles Giveaway 12/20

***I received the following product in hopes I would share my honest opinion with my readers. Regardless, all thoughts are my own, and all images are copyright Momma Told Me Blog 2015.

Momma Told Me: Don't judge the cereal by it's prize.

How do you make a product people already love and use stand out as a brand in a sea of equally colorful and engaging products? Why, you put something equally exciting, a bonus we'll call it, inside the product to delight consumers long after the point of purchase. Kellogg's was the first to do this, in 1945, when the inserted a pin back button, promotional item, into the boxes of their Pep cereal. Of course the creator of Cracker Jack, a German immigrant named Fritz, was truly the first to incentivize product consumption with this method in 1912. Regardless, today's consumers are just as thrilled to enjoy products which promise the immediate satisfaction of a trusted brand and product with the delayed reward of a hidden incentive. And so the industry, of candles with jewelry inside, has become quite popular in recent years.

It's not a little known secret that there are many brands using wax to he trinkets and jewelry as motivation to buy their products. But not all that is original or 'first' is the best at what it does. I especially love it when a new craze or trend is saturated in the marketplace, represented by multiple sellers and brands. Not only does this breed competition, which is good for prices, but creativity, which means forward movement on concepts. For yeas now I have bought candles with jewelry inside as gifts for family members for birthdays and holidays.

In the beginning I heard about how exciting the experience was, how high quality the candles were, and how gorgeous the jewelry was- however, the 'jewelry' pieces were rings, and most often did not fit the actual recipient.

Jackpot Candles has fixed that problem by offering a range of different jewelry surprises in their wax based products, from rings and necklaces to even earrings. This way you can feel most confident your recipient will be able to wear the piece found inside their gift. Even more exciting is the opportunity to order select fragrances and products in certain jewelry sizes- these products will come with a simple numeric 'size' sticker on the bottom, so you can gift the ones you love something that is guaranteed to fit. Of course the item inside will still be a surprise! This is especially great when you want to gift to multiple people- it's easy to keep track of who is supposed to get what!

Jackpot Candles have  not only taken some of the improbabilities out of ordering mystery candle gifts, they have dedicated their brand to 100% soy, hand poured, quality products made exclusively in the USA. Many similar operations have moved overseas, so I am happy to continue to support a USA based business.

Every December I head online and order 2-3 pieces of mystery candle gifts in my cousin's size. I first gave her a jewelry candle gift 3 years ago for Christmas and she still has not stopped raving about how she loves them the most. Her only complaint? She is impatient and seldom wants to wait for a candle to burn half-way down to discover her gift inside. Jackpot Candles' wax tarts are the perfect solution, and a great gift for a flame free home. Be sure to check out the wax tart selections for recipients with pets and kids afoot!

Earlier this year I had the chance to explore the range of vivid fragrances in the Jackpot Candles collection and fell in love with the playful juicy Watermelon tart fragrance and the rich, fresh baked, Blueberry Muffin aroma. Now that the holidays are here I am enjoying the refreshing peppermint infused fragrance of their Jack Frost variety. I'll admit, I tend to be impatient, but the anticipation of the 16oz candle burning made me feel a little like a kid again! It truly is just like Christmas morning! Jackpot candle jewelry is assured to value between $15-$5000. While I did not find a $5000 trinket in any of my pieces, I did enjoy the tracking code on each piece, where I could easily look up the appraised value, and composition of, my piece online.

In all, Jackpot Candles is one of the more affordable brands offering this jewelry in wax gift trend, and I've found the quality of the products, and variety of fragrances, at the top of my list. I would love to see them expand into a candle-of-the-month plan, or even soap and fragrance beads, but the brand is fairly new and still growing. Lastly, something that seems to be sorely missing in this genre of gifts is an unscented line of wax candles with jewelry inside- I know several people with fragrance allergies who would love the ambiance and experience of a Jackpot Candle but cannot enjoy them quite yet. If you are not scent challenged, however, I highly suggest picking up a few of these gorgeous candle gifts while they have your desired sizing in stock before the true holiday shopping madness sets in!

What Daughter Says: With unique, sized, jewelry in a quality soy wax candle product, there's not disappointment from start to finish.

One Momma Told Me reader will win a Jackpot Candles prize pack including a Candle and Tart Pack in the fragrances of their choice. Continue hopping along to all of the wonderful Blog POP! Christmas Wishes giveaways on the complete LINKY, below.

Ditch The Rings, Experience A New Breed of @GemstoneCandles, Giveaway 3/5

Momma Told Me: Diamonds are a girl's best friend.

It's not much of a surprise, as a child of the 90's I often fancied myself Jasmine from Aladdin, combing through mountains of treasure, diving through gemstones as big as my hand. While it's all fine and colorful Disney, such a reality would probably be quite uncomfortable and hardly romantic with the musky smell of an underground cave hidden thousands of years. None-the-less, I have always seem far more enamored with loose stones than those that sit atop gold bands and sparkle from the inlay of pendants. After all, the saying isn't "Diamond rings are a girl's best friend," It's simply 'diamonds,' those little clear stones that catch the light and shimmer so magically.

I still remember a few years back when soy candle companies decided they could bolster their appeal by placing jewelry inside them. It was a radical new concept that brought a childlike whimsy to the act of burning a simple candle, and women clamored for them; manufacturers could not keep up with the demand. But there was one, undeniable downfall, the odds that you would uncover a ring that was to your size, let alone your taste, was highly unlikely. Then Precious Gem Candles arrived, with the same high quality soy candles, in premium fragrances, and reusable glass jars, but with a new twist. 1 in 1000 candles would have a genuine diamond inside, and the rest would reveal a precious stone valued between $20-$5000. With tempting fragrances like Ginger Crumb Cake and Tahitian Vanilla, the only downfall I can find is the lack of presence of an unscented candle for the allergy prone.

Much like their competitors, in the Precious Gem Candle category, these fine quality soy candled need only melt a few inches down to reveal a little capsule which houses it's surprise. Unlike other brands, that place their products in zippered bags within foil, the gemstones are safely enclosed in a keepsake container that keeps your gem clean and ready to display. With up to 80 burning hours per 12oz candle, you'll only have to wait about 8 to reach the 'reveal point' and uncover your gem. In my Island Breeze candle I found a pendant cut teal gemstone that radiates shades of green and blue, depending on the light. My candle seemed to want to burn away from the actual capsule, so I was mindful to check back and rotate the flame, to allow even burning, every few hours.

If you're not the sort who dreams of keeping a mountain of gemstones on the nightstand, Precious Gem Candles has several uses for the gem stones you uncover. From Set-Your-Gemstone rings and pendants, to beautiful glass lockets, your favorite stones will never go to waste (which is more than I can say for the bowl full of 'too small' rings I've accumulated.) Many of the Precious Gem fragrances are very strong, and feature exotic notes, and are available in standard glass pillars, body massage, and melting tarts. And there is currently free shipping on ALL candles, which helps offset the cost of some of the 'other' brands.

What Daughter Says: Don't collect jewelry, collect Precious Gems that will never go out of style!

One Momma Told Me reader will win a Precious Gem Candle of choice!