McKenzie’s Fireside S’mores

Some memories smell like woodsmoke, coffee, and a marshmallow left over the fire just a little too long.

Almost everyone knows a campfire is not complete without one famous treat: s’mores.

A marshmallow held over an open flame. Chocolate waiting nearby. Graham crackers ready to catch the warm, gooey center. It is simple, a little messy, and somehow part of what camping is supposed to feel like.

Growing up, camping was something our family enjoyed together, and my sister McKenzie had her own way of making marshmallows.

She liked to burn them.

Not lightly toasted. Not perfectly golden brown. Burned.

Sometimes she would let one catch fire until there was barely anything left. Sometimes she would decide she no longer wanted to eat it. And sometimes the poor marshmallow never had a chance at all because it fell straight into the campfire before it ever reached the chocolate and graham crackers.

So this candle is also a small tribute to all of those marshmallows that never made it into a finished s’more.

Frog Island

Some of these memories go back to our grandmother’s property in Sonora, California. She had a small island on the property that she named Frog Island.

As kids, we spent countless hours and summers playing there. Later, it became a place where we could camp with the Scouts. I never photographed it professionally; those were my younger days, long before I decided to pick up a camera. But the memories are still there.

My son joined the Boy Scouts when he was younger, and campfires became part of another generation of our family. The boys would make s’mores while the troop leaders enjoyed their coffee around the fire.

That is one of the reasons Jim’s First Cup and McKenzie’s Fireside S’mores feel like they belong beside each other: coffee for the adults, s’mores around the fire, and probably at least one marshmallow being burned beyond saving.

Camping for the Photograph

Camping later became part of my photography life too.

There have been photo sessions where getting the image we wanted meant hiking five miles or more, reaching a particular location, camping overnight, and waiting for the right time of day and the right light.

When you share that kind of trip with clients and friends, the campsite becomes part of the experience. After the hike, after the photographs, and after the gear is put down, sitting around a fire and making s’mores becomes a celebration of the day.

Those are often the moments nobody planned—but the ones everyone remembers.

From Camping to Glamping

McKenzie did have a son, although traditional tent camping was never a huge part of their routine. These days, McKenzie and my nephew are more likely to enjoy a little glamping.

That idea helped bring another piece into this fragrance: cabins, warm fires, woods, coffee, and something sweet roasting over the flames.

It connects naturally with the cozy cabin memories behind Quiet Cabin and the warmth of Ember Chalet.

A S’mores Scent for More Than One Season

When we started creating McKenzie’s Fireside S’mores, we knew we did not want it to be only a holiday candle.

The holidays are fun, but they arrive for a short time and then disappear for another year. These memories do not belong to only one day or one season.

Campfires happen in the fall, winter, spring, and summer. Cabin weekends can happen all year. And family memories do not have an expiration date.

So we wanted this fragrance to carry more than sweetness. Toasted marshmallow and chocolate bring the familiar s’mores feeling, while warm woods and fireside smoke give it the campsite around the dessert.

It is the smell of the fire, the trees around you, the coffee in someone’s hand, and that marshmallow getting just a little too close to the flame.

For the Marshmallows That Never Made It

This candle is for McKenzie.

For Frog Island and the summers we spent there.

For my son and his years in Scouts.

For the troop leaders enjoying their coffee while the boys made s’mores around the fire.

For McKenzie and my nephew enjoying their version of camping—even when that means a little more glamping than roughing it.

For every client who hiked five miles or more, camped overnight, or went farther than expected to get the photograph they imagined.

And, of course, for every poor marshmallow that never made it onto the graham cracker and chocolate.

Whether you light the candle or warm the wax melt, we hope McKenzie’s Fireside S’mores brings a little piece of that campfire experience into your home.

Because the holidays may only come once a year, but a good memory can stay with you all year long.

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Bring the Campfire Home

Choose a 9.3 oz jar, 2.7 oz sampler tin, or 2.7 oz wax melt.

Shop McKenzie’s Fireside S’mores →

Every Candle Has a Story.™
This one smells a little like a marshmallow McKenzie left over the fire too long.