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Ah, the smells of NYC: The lilacs in Central Park, the aroma when a coffee shop door swings open and that post-thunderstorm perfume. And the stenches of NYC: Hot garbage, manhole steam reek and the whiff of hot dog water. Some of these would make great candles but others … not so much.
For an April Fools' Day gag, Literie has created two new perfectly putrid candles to celebrate the occasion. The first, called Manhole Steam, promises the aroma of damp concrete. The second, Dirty Water Dog, is fragranced with notes kosher beef and sauerkraut.
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Don't worry. These April Fool's candles aren't real. When you visit the website to order the gag items, you'll be redirected to choose one of the company's actual candles, like 28th Street Flower Market, Brunch in the West Village or Hot Roasted Nut Cart.
Proceeds of those sales will benefit NY Cares, which addresses issues like hunger, homelessness, educational inequity and the environment. Since New York City inspired the entire brand, Literie's founder said it only made sense of them to support NY Cares.
"Literie has grown so much since our start in March 2021, so for our second anniversary I wanted to revisit our original April Fool’s Day 'Summer in the Subway' candle stunt that really helped the brand launch," Literie founder Erica Werber said in a statement. "We chose the ubiquitous manhole steam and hotdog carts for this year's prank candle scents because like our Hot Roasted Nut Cart scent, they’re something instantly recognizable to all New Yorkers."
Since scent is the most closely linked sense to memory, Literie focuses on creating candles "that allow you to reminisce no matter where you are."
So send the link to your favorite New Yorker and tell them you got them a candle to remind them of iconic NYC stenches. At that moment they're truly repulsed, go ahead and let them in on the joke. Happy April Fools' Day!