To think you don't throw away birthday cake candles?

[catsonthebed]

Was at my SILs at the weekend celebrating a birthday. When I went to help clear up, I saw that all the candles from the birthday cake were in the bin. When I rescued them, thinking they'd been thrown away accidentally, she said she always bins them. Apparently they're 'gross' after they've been in a cake and 'who on earth cba to wash things like that?'.

Is this really a thing? I've had the same candles for years, still use some of the holders from my childhood. They get lit for a few seconds and then blown out, a handful of times every year.

YABU: Eurgh, reusing candles, that's so gross, I've got a whole life to live and it holds no time for rinsing tiny plastic candle holders, you loser

YANBU: Obviously you reuse the things, this is just another example of a profligate and wasteful world gone MAD

Why is it grim to reuse candles and the holders? The candles hardly burn down each time they are lit and no one sees the cake before the candles are lit anyway. The holders can be washed and reused for years.

Similarly, why on earth would you get new birthday banners etc each time? That seems so wasteful.

We don’t have numbered candles, if they’re 3 they have 3 candles etc.

I’d reuse them if they looked ok, but no way would I pick them out of the bin! They can easily and cheaply be bought, and I wouldn’t want to eat cake that had bin candles.

Why wouldn’t you want new items every time? They cost like 99p. It’s a new birthday to celebrate, so a new theme and a new look.

How boring to have the same every time, especially for a child.

I reuse ours until they’re little stumps 🤣

YANBU. I have a little box of candles and the children always go through it for the next persons cake.

So wasteful to throw away when they just need a quick wipe down.

I use them as firelighters to start the barbecue as generally they don't last well enough for another birthday cake.

Why wouldn’t you want new items every time? They cost like 99p. It’s a new birthday to celebrate, so a new theme and a new look.

How boring to have the same every time, especially for a child.

It shows such a lack of care.

Gosh no I always reuse them. I mean I wash the candle holders but reuse candles for ages.

Everyone in my house has been way too old for xx number of candles for a long while, so they just get half a dozen in the cake/cookie.

A while ago I went wild and bought a new set of candles. But they will last a while. I don;t find they are that short tbh – the ones I bought are about 56cm long and will be usable about 3-4 times.

<Reads thread> wow I am really surprised that people chuck them. "In the hope that you will remember to use them"?? surely you just stash them in the birthday candles and decorations box (yassss @NoelEdmondsHairGel )? I really don't understand what the issue is. I am also against hanging on to tat but something you will reuse in a while is not tat.

Do the people who chuck birthday candles also throw away the garden furniture each year? or the camping equipment? Or the cheap umbrella they will use once every six months? Or the Christmas decorations or the leftover wrapping paper?

@Mooselander the same every time? well yes, it's just some red and yellow candles? tbh I put them on and light them all at the same time so it's not as tho the cake plus half burned candles is on show.

My DS recently turned 18. I'm not sure what use I'll have for the numbers one and eight going forward unless I somehow make it to 81 maybe 😂
But I would definitely lose them before that.

Because there's no point spending money each time when you have perfectly usable candles already?

Not a single person has ever commented about the size of the candles or noticed that we used the yellow and green candles in February and then the greens again in March...

You've just decided to be wasteful and trying to make other feel bad about not falling into the consumerism trap!

They probably do throw away Christmas paper and left over cards though.

I reuse them - people don't even see they have been reused as they are lit by the time anyone sees them. I only throw them once they have burnt right down.

I have a tin with them all in and the holders and various toppers, so they aren't cluttering the cutlery drawer.

I haven't bought new ones for years!

Yep. I throw away all decorations and wrapping paper, gift bags etc.

I like new 🤷‍♀️

Nobody would be so rude to point it out, but they would notice.

And decorations costs pennies.

Are you talking about un wrapping a gift and then using the same paper to wrap up anther gift?

I don’t think the person receiving the cake and the candles think it shows a lack of care. They’re excited to be having cake (that someone has made/chosen for them), happy to be around people celebrating their birthday and happy to be blowing out candles.

Imagine someone who was presented with a cake, being carried in, people singing etc. and then they get the hump because they aren’t brand new candles 😂

Well, as long as you don't ever complain about the cost of living or anything that's your choice I suppose.

Just seems such a wasteful attitude.a d I'm not sure anyone would know that the "happy birthday" banner was new from Tesco, or came from the box upstairs in the cupboard? Nor would it take away from anything??

No..I mean like left over on the roll or the last 3 cars in a pack of 10 or whatever.

Never heard of re using them.
If I saw someone saving them I'd think they had some peculiar sentamentality about them.

Or needed them urgently for another cake and there was a problem with availability. Or cost.
But I had no idea people routinely re used them.
Every day's a school day on here.

We reuse candles, in fact we have been handed down the big number candles from family with older children so I've hardly ever needed to buy them! Once they burn down so don't look like the number they go in my tub of candle wax that I was going to melt down into a new candle, I may never get round to that.

We save them. But we often throw a dolly birthday party (daughter is 6). And I stick them in a cupcake.... Makes her happy!!!

Sometimes I remember to save and reuse them, sometimes I don’t. It’s not something I’ve given more than a couple of seconds thought to until this thread.

Ikr?

Oh my god mother, yes you made the cake, yes, you sorted the party food and the invitations and the people here....but really? The candles we used for Brothers birthday cake last month?

Don't you care??????

Do people buy different wrapping paper for every birthday? 😂 like not use a roll until it’s finished.