Upon lighting the candle, I could smell the scent as soon as I took off the lid! The lit candle, once it had got going had a strong throw that I could smell even from upstairs. This vanilla cupcake candle was very sweet smelling but after half a day burning away, I found it to be a little sickly. I will use it again though as it isn't an unpleasant smell at all, just maybe a little too strong for me. It is a large jar and I do like the new design lid as it looks much better quality than it did. This candle would make a wonderful gift.