Which incense makes a good Hanukkah gift for an adult?

For an adult who celebrates Hanukkah, give the Looshi Forest Edit: a day in the forest in three scents, with Vivacity for the bright morning hillside, Rewild for the rain-soaked woods and Calm for the warm gold of dusk. To give something on all eight nights, choose the Complete Set and hand over one of its eight boxes each night.

This gift guide is for someone buying for a partner, a friend, a host or a parent who celebrates. If the parent is your dad, there's a guide to a good gift for dad and which Looshi scents are woody. Looshi makes artisanal incense, rolled by hand by women artisans in Bangalore with real ingredients, in grounding scents from across the world. It's for anyone, of any faith or none, and it's never incense for one religion.

The Forest Edit is the pick for one adult

The Forest Edit is the pick for one adult because it puts a fresh scent, an earthy one and a warm one in a single gift, so it suits most tastes. For a gift, Looshi points people to the Forest Edit first: its three best scents in one set.

Vivacity is fresh and awake: lavender, petitgrain and cedar, clean herbs and dry wood, like a morning walk on a cedar trail. Rewild is earthy and quiet: vetiver, musk and redwood, wet earth and old trees after rain. Calm is warm and enveloping: labdanum, vanilla and amber, a dim room at the end of the day.

Each scent comes as a box of 20 hand rolled sticks, to light one at a time in any order.

For eight nights, the Complete Set gives one box a night

The Complete Set covers all eight nights because it holds every scent, one box of each, and there are eight scents, so each night gets a box of its own.

Wrap the boxes one by one and hand over a box each evening. The Complete Set holds Rewild, Calm and Vivacity from the Forest Edit, plus five more, each a box of 20 hand rolled sticks.

Which set suits what they love

The best match is the scent closest to what they already like, so start from the smell they reach for in a candle or a perfume.

If they love	Try	Why
Warm, enveloping scents	Calm	Labdanum, vanilla and amber, a dim room at the end of the day
Earthy, quiet scents	Rewild	Vetiver, musk and redwood, like a deep forest just after rain
Fresh, herbal scents	Vivacity	Lavender, petitgrain and cedar, a dry cedar trail in the morning
Trying new things, but new to incense	Discovery Set	Four scents you choose, two sticks each: eight sticks for eight nights
A gift basket	The Forest Edit with a Ring Of Serenity	Three scents and a hand-thrown ceramic ring to hold them

If they lean warm, there's a whole guide to which incense to give someone who likes warm or woody scents.

For a friend or a host, the Discovery Set

The Discovery Set suits a friend or a host because you choose four of the eight scents for them, with two sticks of each, so they can try several without a full box of any.

With two sticks of each, they can light every scent twice, and the eight sticks make one for each night. The Discovery Set is also the set to start with for someone new to incense, and you pick the four on the Discovery Set page.

For a dinner host, which incense makes a good host gift covers what to bring someone who's hosting. For someone you work with, there's a guide to a good gift for a coworker.

Make it a Hanukkah gift basket with a holder and a plate

A Hanukkah gift basket needs a set, a holder and a plate, because a holder keeps the stick secure but a draught can carry ash past it, so the plate goes underneath.

The Ring Of Serenity is a hand-thrown ceramic ring in Dune or Terra Bronze, and the Wave Of Senses is a long ceramic tray with a wave pressed in; which one is a matter of taste. Both holders are food-grade ceramic and safe under a burning stick.

Set the holder on a small plate or heatproof dish, since a draught can carry ash past it, and tuck in a note: burn it in an open, well-ventilated room, in a corner, with the stick secure.

To compare the gift sets side by side, browse the bundles.

Frequently asked questions

What are some appropriate Hanukkah gifts?

Looshi's Forest Edit is a good Hanukkah gift for an adult, because it holds three scents in one set, one fresh, one earthy and one warm, so it suits most tastes. Vivacity smells like a morning walk on a cedar trail, Rewild like a forest after rain and Calm like a dim room at the end of the day.

How can you give a gift on each of the eight nights?

Give the Complete Set and hand over one box a night: it holds eight boxes of 20 hand rolled sticks, one for every scent, so each box can be wrapped on its own. For a smaller gift, the Discovery Set's eight sticks give one stick a night.

What is a good Hanukkah gift for a friend?

The Discovery Set is a good Hanukkah gift for a friend, because you pick four of Looshi's eight scents and they get two sticks of each. It's small enough to bring to a party, and it lets someone new to incense find the scent they like before a full box.

What goes in an incense gift basket?

An incense gift basket needs a set of sticks, a ceramic holder and a small plate or heatproof dish to set it on. Pair the Forest Edit with a Ring Of Serenity, and add a card saying to burn it in an open, well-ventilated room with the stick held secure.

What if they don't love the scent?

You can swap it for a different scent or have a full refund within 30 days of your purchase if they don't love their Looshi experience. That makes a set a safe gift even when you aren't sure of their taste, since a scent that misses can be exchanged for one that suits them.