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

So that’s not comparable at all to saving the used candles? Presumably they wouldn’t bin the remaining 17 unused in the box because they had used 3 candles, I think it would be unusual for someone to bin an unused roll of wrapping paper.

hahahaha the candles I bought are not half a metre long! I meant to type 6cm lol

If they noticed........ Who gives a shit? They still come back every birthday and still eat the cake and still enjoy our company.

I bin them now. When the kids were little I'd reuse them every meal after their birthday for a few dinners because 'blowing out the candle in the mashed potato' used to make them laugh

I'm not spending hours baking and decorating a beautiful cake just to stick little stubs of candles in it.

I wash the holders but the candles are usually little stubs by the time Happy Birthday has been sung, I’d feel bad for the person using them next time when they just go out?

I buy new each time. I honestly don't care enough to keep cake candles. Or remember where the leftover ones are.

I also wouldnt care at all if my sister in law or anyone else does it differently to me. It's a non issue.

Well, yes I think they WOULD bin the unused candles. As they seem to chuck all decorations away as well.
They bin gift bags too it seems...

I'm not. I'm talking about Christmas paper (aka tat!) that was more than I needed. I keep it in the loft with the Christmas decs. I am a bit shocked that a PP throws that all away,

This is what happens in our house, we reuse all kinds of random combinations - we've done Roman numerals if we don't have the exact number - V and a single candle for 6 - the DC think these things up.

I'm not surprised people throw these things away, my mum is horrified at keeping them 🙄. For me it's no big deal, I wash and keep them in a pot. I don't want the extra job of thinking about buying candles every birthday. They're only burnt a tiny bit and no-one notices or cares once they're re lit.

It never occurred to me to keep them, how interesting that I’m in the minority with this. I think I’d have been very confused if I saw you picking them out of the bin. I guess it’s not unhygienic if you wash them after they were in the cake, but I don’t know what I’d do with half burned down small candles.

Cannot believe people bin perfectly useable gift bags. Surely that's the great thing about them - easy to wrap a gift and then you can use the bag again.

Yeah I would, because I like new for every birthday/christmas.

This stuff costs pennies, I don’t want to use the same stuff every time. It’s boring.

It’s not about cost, it’s about waste. It certainly does not demonstrate a lack of care for the environment.

Do you really think kids care what colour the banners are?! Or is this more about how many likes your photos will get on social media?

Well if it helps these days they probably won't have gone to landfill, they will have gone to an incinerator where they've had a second chance to burn bright!

I'm half and half. I keep and wash the holders, but throw away the candles. Half used candles don't look nice on the cake, but no reason not to reuse the holders.

Of course they notice because it is about proportions. Used candles are too short

Birthday candles are tall and thin. They only last few a few minutes really. Once you've lit it, carried it in, sung happy birthday, the birthday person makes a wish and blows it out, they've melted about a third.

When I've seen a cake with reused candles I've assumed they forgot to buy some and found old ones rolling around in a drawer.

I don’t care about the environment. And it’s nothing to do with social media as I rarely post on there.

Yes - it becomes a family tradition!

It boggles my mind that someone would throw them away - at least donate them to a charity shop.

As for gift bags being boring- they are a cardboard bag - hardly reknown for their entertainment skills….

I used to keep them but they always looked a bit rubbish and I didn't want to reuse them next time round, so now I bin them. I've got enough clutter already without saving stuff I know I won't reuse.

My Dad's last birthday was 88.
We used one of the 8s for my son's 8th and 18th birthday. Still saving them along with the plastic train candle holders and other candle stubs and numbers which we use every year.

When the children were younger it would have taken them longer to blow out the candles so of course if there are just little stumps left then you aren't going to reuse them.

If the candles has been lit for the length of 'happy birthday ' then blown out quickly then they wouldn't have gone down much.

Us candle reusers aren't using them down to the last cm, we use our common sense and can tell they have plenty left, cleaned and as long as you pick candles of a similar length then no one even notices they have been used before.

Candles go out, holders are washed and reused.

I have never found much use for half burnt birthday cake candles. So you are going to keep them for a year and buy one new one? I have thrifty Scots blood but there is a limit. Next thing you could be reusing the dental floss.

I wonder if this like so much else in the uk divides largely along class lines ?
I'm solidly working class and I've never heard of it.

I try to avoid throwing anything away that could be used again, including candles. I don’t understand the mindset of anyone putting things into landfill if it can be avoided.