Does luxury have a scent? Well, yes and no, or it just depends on who’s making it. When thinking about the difference between Diptyque Paris and NEST New York, I feel that they both approach similar goals in different ways.
The difference between Diptyque and NEST is the way that they go about helping their customers experience the art of life through scented candles. They each stimulate their customers in different ways.
Let’s explore the differences between these companies and what you may want to consider when buying their scented candles.
Diptyque Paris
Diptyque started out as a bazaar boutique located at 34 Boulevard Saint-Germain in a corner store in Paris. Founded by three creative friends, Christiane Montadre-Gautrot, Yves Coueslant, and Desmond Knox-Leet, in 1961, they sold unusual finds in what was also considered a concept store.
Their original shop and even today’s fragrances are inspired by all of their interests, theater, painting, textiles, gardening, and more. Glassware, planters, incense burners, simply stepping into their store sparked creativity.
Even today they offer home decor products, skincare options, and body fragrances in addition to their diffusers and scented candles. Since 1963, when their candles first launched with only three fragrances, Diptyque Paris has taken risks to combine uncommon ingredients to create one of a kind scents for their candles.
The company was purchased by a London-based investment firm in 2005, but their products are still made in France. And they continue to create scents that reflect the art of living.
NEST New York
Unlike Diptyque, NEST New York was launched by one person, Laura Slatkin, in 2008 with twelve scents in New York City. This company may not have as long a history as Diptyque Paris, but it has become a favorite amongst its customers.
NEST New York is a company that takes pleasure in formulating scents known to uplift your frame of mind. Slatkin describes her candle scents as, “artful, sophisticated, and approachable.” Unlike Diptyque Paris, Laura Slatkin, NEST’s founder is still the owner of the company.
In addition to scented candles, NEST offers diffusers, room and linen sprays, eau de parfum, which was launched in 2013 and fragranced lifestyle body care products, like hand soaps and hand lotions, launched in 2019.
NEST wants to fill your home with beauty, luxury, and sophistication through use of color, texture, and fragrance.
Diptyque vs NEST: Brand to Brand Comparison
Now let’s further explore how these brands differ from one another and what you can expect from every aspect of their scented candles.
Packaging Expectations
Diptyque Paris is known for its minimal yet sophisticated packaging. They use oversized juxtaposed letters to describe each candle, which creates a visual puzzle that mimics the olfactory delight that awaits inside.
They typically use solid, monochromatic coloring on their packages, but they do incorporate use of multiple colors in their staging. In keeping with their concept store roots, Diptyque uses fresh floral bouquets, trippy multi-colored retro patterns and vibrant natural foliage elements as backdrops to their product photography instead of adding those elements to the candle packaging.
On the other hand, NEST houses their scented candles in wildly colorful and patterned boxes with their understated logo in the center. These patterns are a visual feast all on their own.
Ingredients & Process
On a foundation of sustainable and ethical sourcing, Diptyque makes their candles using a premium wax blend and raw fragrance materials in small batches by hand. Hand-pouring is still a tradition at this company. They even hold cotton wicks in place by hand throughout the eight-stage candle-making process, which lasts two full days. They take lots of precautions to ensure that the candles burn slowly and evenly.
NEST New York uses a proprietary premium wax blend. Since it’s a trade secret, they do not share many additional details about candle ingredients. It seems as though paraffin might be one component of their wax formula as well as mostly synthetic fragrances, which they describe as more potent and lasting longer than natural fragrances while being equally safe and less unpredictable.
They use three different types of cotton wicks: all-natural cotton, cotton with a paper core, and a cotton and paper weave. They employ chemists and perfumists to ensure proper fragrance dispersal and burn time.
The company has stated that they’re a 100% cruelty-free brand that does not test any of their products on animals.
Fragrance Families
While there is some overlap in fragrance families, each company groups their scented candle fragrances a bit differently. NEST New York has six groupings, Diptyque Paris has five.
Both have floral and fruity categories. But NEST also has fresh and gourmand categories, and they group woody and spicy together while Diptyque has a separate category for each. Herbal is Diptyque’s fifth and final fragrance category.
Fragrance Family by Brand
| Diptyque Paris | NEST New York |
| floral fruity herbal spicy woody | citrus floral fresh fruity gourmand woody/spicy |
Here is one of each company’s most popular fragrance in the woody scent profile:
| NEST Moroccan Amber Scented Classic Candle | Diptyque Figuier (Fig Tree) Classic Scented Candle | |
| Weight | 2 oz (57 g) | 2.4 oz (70 g) |
| Wax type | proprietary wax blend | vegetable and paraffin wax blend |
| Wick type | cotton | 100% cotton |
| Scent Family | woody/spicy | woody |
| Fragrance | Moroccan amber, sweet patchouli, heliotrope, and bergamot and subtle eucalyptus | woody trees and fruity fig in a warm breeze along the shore |
Candle Details & Pricing Comparison
Similar to their packaging, each company approaches candle holders and wax colors in the same way. Diptyque candle wax is usually white or off-white with seasonal exceptions. Whereas NEST candle wax is typically the same color as its candle holder.
Diptyque’s candle classic candle holders are clear glass with understated labeling. Their colored glass holders had labeling that’s a shade or two lighter or darker, which still makes it minimal, not decorative like NEST’s as you can see in the candle above.
NEST makes three main candle sizes, so I will list comparable Diptyque candle sizes side by side.The prices listed are approximate and may vary by vendor.
Pricing & Candle Details Comparison Chart
| NEST New York | Diptyque | |
| Size 1 | 2 oz (57 g) // $17 // 20-28 hour burn time | 2.5 oz (70g) // $38 // 20-hour burn time |
| Size 2 | 8.1 oz (230 g) //$44 // 50-60 hour burn time | 6.5 oz (190g) // $68 // 60-hour burn time |
| Size 3 | 21.2 oz (600g) // $70 // 75-100 hour burn time | 21.2 oz (600 g) // $195 // 75-hour burn time |
There is a noticeable price difference between the two brands but keep in mind that Diptyque candles are made by hand over multiple days in a multi-step process using natural ingredients.
NEST candles do not share much about their process but they do mention using largely synthetic fragrances. So in this comparison it is clear that artisan products come at a higher price point, as they probably should.
Which Company Should You Choose?
Of course there is no way for me to know which of these companies would be the best fit for you, but here are some ideas for you to consider as you decide.
Use Diptyque candles if:
- You want an artisan candle with a long burn time
- You want to know exactly what ingredients are used in your candles
- You are looking for creative candle scents that help you engage life
Use NEST candles if:
- You are less concerned with product ingredients
- You are looking for a more decorative candle holder
- You want potent, luxe fragrances
Both of these companies offer luxurious and artful scented candles in their own way. So when choosing between the two you have to step back and consider the bigger picture. What are their practices? Do you want a candle holder that blends in or stands out? Does the pricing coincide with approximate burn time?
It all depends on what’s most important to you!
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