Home fragrance follows a predictable cycle — spring is for florals, summer leans citrus, and by fall, we’re up to our eyeballs in spiced woods and questionable pumpkin blends. But every so often, a scent emerges that rewrites the rules.
Enter Midnight Cactus, the latest launch from Jon Bresler, founder of New York-based home fragrance brand LAFCO, which swaps petals for something more enigmatic: the prickly pear. Subtle, delicate, and slightly fruity, this mysterious muse sparked an entirely new olfactory direction.
Since buying a beach house on Fire Island, Jon had been replanting everything with native flora to support local wildlife. Among them was Opuntia humifusa, a rare variety of prickly pear. He was pleased to discover its "wonderful, slightly fruity and green aroma."
First impressions? Prickly pear, brightened by wild raspberry. Then come the rosebuds and the delicate cactus blossom — prickly pear’s floral side. Anchoring it all: desert musk, cedar, and golden amber, wrapped in a handblown glass vessel that’s as functional as it is beautiful. Like all LAFCO products, this slow-burning soy wax candle is crafted with pure ingredients, a 100% cotton wick, and natural essential oils — so no soot, no synthetic fillers, just clean fragrance.
"Once I picked the fruit and tasted it, I thought it was even more wonderful," shares the LAFCO founder. Somewhere between watermelon and pear, with a whisper of green herbaceousness, the scent "was one that I had never experienced," and a surefire way to one of the best candles.
The Prickly Pear’s magic lies in its duality: both fruit and blossom, a contradiction of toughness and delicacy. That complexity is what gives Midnight Cactus its edge.
Lose yourself in the lush sweetness and desert mystique — hours and hours of it. Or, to be exact, four months, as this essential oil-based diffuser is designed to release fragrance gradually and with intention. Ideal for making your living room smell good, or your bathroom, desk, bedroom — anywhere that calls for a steady dose of scent.
Available as both a candle and diffuser, the scent falls into what Jon calls “skin fragrance” — a term usually reserved for perfumes that sit close, subtle, and lived-in (think CK One).
Most spring scents are bright, floral, and declarative. Midnight Cactus is not. It’s moody and tactile, the twilight hour of home fragrance — best experienced up close, "surrounded by subtle natural aromas provided by our native earth," says Jon.
“To enhance the fruit’s softness, I added wild raspberry,” notes Jon, a nuance reflected in the collection’s blown glass vessels, tinged in pale lilac.
So yes, it’s a spring scent. But it feels like a departure. Midnight Cactus isn’t interested in nostalgia or florals-for-spring clichés. Instead, it treats space like skin — intimate, atmospheric, quietly transformative.
This season, the garden party's ending early. We’re headed for the desert.
Still can’t part with florals? Duchess Peony delivers a soft, sophisticated blend of peonies and roses, accented by sparkling cassis berries. It lasts up to nine months, making it a sound (and sweet-smelling) investment.
"It usually takes me at least a year to develop a fragrance and up to 10 rounds of modifications until it is perfect,” says Jon. It's a meticulous process that's well worth it, breeding best-selling scents like Seas & Dune — a warm, airy mix of lotus, seagrass, and amber.
For those who gravitate toward deep, smoky aromas, Leather, Frankincense, and Pine creates an enveloping warmth reminiscent of evenings spent fireside, drink in hand.
Prickly pear isn’t the easiest scent to find, but when you do, it’s worth the hunt. A few well-reviewed options on our radar:
If you know Dae for their haircare, expect the same nature-driven approach to fragrance. This scent is inspired by the Arizona desert, described as “carefree romance in full bloom,” with notes of prickly pear, mandarin, and magnolia.
A scent that mirrors the desert’s mystical atmosphere — layered and complex, much like the landscape itself. Expect cactus flower at the forefront, deepened by lavender, agave, bergamot, and incense.
Self-proclaimed candle snobs in this Amazon home scent's reviews rave about its unique mix of prickly pear, California white sage, neroli, and sea salt. Handmade with coconut wax and an unusual wood wick for a slow, steady burn.
Need a way to diffuse it? Aromatech’s scent diffuser bridges the gap between home fragrance and tech — an everyday luxury this shopping editor can’t live without.
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