A burning candle can make a cozy addition to your home; it can bring a touch of romantic lighting and fill your space with your favorite fragrance. And while it's arguably the simplest piece of décor to add to a room, it does need a little care of its own from time to time—and that starts with trimming the wick, which ensures the cleanest, longest, and most fragrant burn from each of your candles.

Always trim before you light.

Your candle's wick should be a-quarter-of-an-inch long before you light it. This will help to prolong the life of your candle and allow for the cleanest burn possible. If you don't trim your wick, you run the risk of tunneling, which happens when your wick is too long and the flame gets too hot, causing excess wax to burn. And when there is too much melted wax? Your candle—whether it's a jarred iteration or a column or taper—simply won't burn properly, regardless of its wick type.

This is even more important if your candles are fragranced.

If you're burning a scented candle, you may find that it needs more frequent attention to maintain a consistent level of fragrance output, which is known as its throw. Letting the wicks get too long can really affect the fragrance and scent throw. Without trimming, you will get a 'bloom' on top of the wick which causes soot to fall back into the wax. Pay close attention to your wicks to prevent this.