Last hand-painted sets from Hester’s workshop • 318 left in total • Going fast
Hester's Flameless Christmas Candles
Hester's Flameless Christmas Candles
Dispatched within 1–2 days
90-day money-back guarantee
Free UK delivery with tracking
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Hester's Flameless Christmas Candles
Poured and painted by hand in a little workshop in Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria
A candle in the window again, without ever worrying whether you blew it out.
Flameless candles from the last run Hester Ainsworth made for her husband’s window, after his care home banned real ones. A flame that moves like a real wick, a body that stays cool all evening. Choose her snowman family of three or a pair of glowing pinecones cast from the pine he planted.
Final run · 318 sets left in total“Nobody lights a candle to see by. You light it so the room feels like somebody’s home.” — Hester
Made by hand in Kirkby Stephen
For half a century, the night of the first snow went the same way in the Ainsworth house: Ewart came in from the garden and went from window to window with a box of matches, and Hester painted the family Christmas card, a snowman family at a window. Then, in November 2023, Ewart slipped on the icy back step and moved into a care home in Penrith. The card on the door said no candles, no naked flames.
So Hester made him candles that couldn’t burn: her snowmen around three candles with a flame that moves, and a pair of pinecones cast from the Scots pine he planted the spring they married. The staff checked them twice and allowed them. Within a month half the corridor wanted a set.
Ewart passed away in February 2025. Hester spent the next year at her workbench, most mornings before sunrise, pouring and painting the last 318 sets. Her hands can’t hold a brush any more, and the house sells before the first snow. When these are gone, there are no more.
Hester Ainsworth
Watercolourist · Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria
Choose your set
Snowman Family (Set of 3)
Three white candles of different heights, each hand-painted with Hester’s snowman family, scarves, little red birds and all. Lined up on a windowsill or mantel they stand like a little family. Each takes 3 AAA batteries.
Pinecone Pair (Set of 2)
Two glowing pinecones cast from cones off Ewart’s Scots pine, tips brushed bronze, with a small flame on top. Switch on at dusk and they turn themselves off six hours later. Each takes 2 AA batteries.
Same price for either set. Many people order one of each: the snowmen for the window, the pinecones for the bedside table.
What arrives at your door
- Snowman Family:3 flameless candles (7.6 cm wide; 10, 12.7 and 15 cm tall) with moving flame and an on/off switch underneath.
- Pinecone Pair:2 flameless pinecone candles (9 cm wide, 12 cm tall), each with an ON / TIMER / OFF switch underneath.
- Packed by handEvery set is checked and boxed at the workbench before it’s dispatched.
- Batteries are not includedSnowman set: 9 × AAA (3 per candle). Pinecone pair: 4 × AA (2 per pinecone). Have them ready so you can switch them on the day they arrive.
How to use them
- Open the battery cover on the bottom and put in the batteries (AAA for the snowman candles, AA for the pinecones).
- Set them where a real candle never belonged: next to the curtain, on the bedside table, on the bookshelf, on a sill the cat walks along.
- Switch them on with the switch underneath. On the pinecones, choose TIMER and they will stay on for six hours and turn themselves off.
- Turn off the lamps and give the flame a minute. Then put your finger on it. That’s the whole point.
Six things that make these different
A flame that moves
It leans and flickers like a wick in a draught, not a bulb that glows the same flat orange all night.
The finger test
Touch the flame after hours of glowing. Cool. No wax, no soot, nothing to blow out before bed.
Her snowman family
The design from the Ainsworths’ family Christmas card, painted by hand onto each candle. Not a stock picture.
Ewart’s pinecones
Cast from cones off the Scots pine he planted in 1974, the bronze on the tips brushed on by hand.
Safe where candles aren’t
Flats, rented homes, care homes, bedrooms, homes with pets or grandchildren: anywhere an open flame is a rule or a worry.
A last run, not a product line
318 sets in total, snowmen and pinecones together. No restock, no factory copy, no second batch.
A real candle vs. Hester’s
| Real candle | Hester’s candles | |
|---|---|---|
| Next to a curtain | A risk every evening | No flame, nothing to catch |
| Falling asleep with it on | Never a good idea | Pinecones turn off by themselves after 6 hours |
| Cats, dogs, grandchildren | Tails, paws, small hands | Nothing hot to touch or tip |
| Wax & soot | On the sill and the ceiling | None |
| Allowed in care homes & many rentals | Often banned | No open flame |
| The look | A flame that moves | A flame that moves |
From someone who has seen what candles do
“In thirty-one years I went to more candle fires than I can count, and December was always the worst month. A lot of them start in bedrooms, with people who fell asleep. That’s why care homes ban naked flames and why plenty of tenancy agreements do too. Something like hers gives people the part they actually want from a candle, without the part that got me out of bed at two in the morning.”
— Derek Bowman, 31 years with Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service
Perfect for
The Ainsworth guarantee
Every order is dispatched within 1–2 working days and comes with a 90-day money-back guarantee. “If it doesn’t make your window feel like somebody’s home, send it back,” Hester says. “Nobody has yet.”
Good to know
Are batteries included?
No. The snowman candles take 3 AAA each (9 for the set), the pinecones 2 AA each (4 for the pair).
Is the flame really cool?
Yes. It is a light, not a fire. You can touch it after hours of glowing.
Can I use them outdoors?
They are made for indoor use. An inside windowsill is perfect; keep them out of rain and frost.
How do I store them after the holidays?
Take the batteries out, wipe them with a dry cloth and keep them in their box until the first snow next year.
Product details
| Snowman Family | 3 flameless candles, 7.6 cm wide; 10, 12.7 and 15 cm tall; moving flame; on/off switch underneath |
| Pinecone Pair | 2 flameless pinecone candles, approx. 9 cm wide × 12 cm tall; ON / TIMER / OFF switch; 6-hour timer |
| Power | Snowman: 3 × AAA per candle · Pinecone: 2 × AA per pinecone · batteries not included |
| Use | Indoors · no open flame, no heat |
| Made by | Hester Ainsworth, Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria |
| Availability | Final run: 318 sets in total, no restock |
| Shipping | Dispatched within 1–2 working days |
| Guarantee | 90-day money-back guarantee |
The Last Run
The Last Run
A note from Kirkby Stephen:
For half a century Ewart Ainsworth put a candle in every window on the night of the first snow, and his wife Hester painted the family Christmas card. When he moved into a care home where candles weren’t allowed, she poured him three flameless candles with a moving flame and painted her snowman family onto them by hand, and pinecones cast from the Scots pine he planted in 1974. Ewart passed away in February 2025. The 318 sets she poured and painted in her little workshop in the year after are the last. Her hands can’t hold a brush any more, and the cottage sells before the first snow.
Free UK Delivery
Free UK Delivery
Free delivery across the UK
- Dispatched within 1–2 working days
- Delivery time: 7–14 working days
- Every set is checked and packed by hand
- Snowman Family: 3 candles (10, 12.7 and 15 cm tall) · Pinecone Pair: 2 pinecones (12 cm tall, 6-hour timer)
- Batteries not included (Snowman: 9 × AAA · Pinecones: 4 × AA)
- 90-day money-back guarantee — just email info@cedarandtinco.com
Frequently Asked Questions
Got a question? Here's how to reach us.
Got a question? Here's how to reach us.
My daughter Philippa and I personally answer every single email — as fast as we possibly can. Whether you have a question about your order or just want to tell us where your candles ended up, we're here.
You can reach us:
- Mon – Fri: 9am – 5pm (UK time)
- Saturday: 10am – 3pm (UK time)
Email: info@cedarandtinco.com
Can I return my order if I don't like it?
Can I return my order if I don't like it?
Of course. We stand behind everything on Cedar & Tin Co. 100%. If you're not happy, neither are we. Just drop us an email within 90 days and we'll make it right — no hassle, no headaches.
How are your products made?
How are your products made?
Every single product on Cedar & Tin is 100% handmade — crafted by hand, using only premium quality materials. We're proud to carry on a tradition of craftsmanship that has been passed down through generations.