ATLANTA - Maybe you'd burn candles for a dinner party, or during power outages or possibly as decorations during the holidays. A couple of standard, white, scentless candles from a discount store was all anyone had or needed.

        Candles' traditional uses, however, have had little to do with the sales explosion over the past half-decade, as candle collecting developed into a genuine hobby that generated $2.3 billion in sales in 2000, up from about $1 billion just four years earlier.

        People like Atlanta's Rebecca Levine - 96 percent of all candle buyers are women - have dozens of candles in all shapes, colors and textures flickering in their homes every day, sending out strong aromas that many say create a relaxing mood.

        “It touches two senses - you get the visuals of the candle burning and it scents the air,” said Ms. Levine, who had just bought grapefruit rosemary and mint ginger candles at Illuminations, a candle specialty store. “A sensual interaction will take you out of one world and into another.”

        Several chain stores selling nothing but candles and accessories have popped up in malls and shopping centers around the country.

        “Our parents bought candles and then waited to dust them,” said Kathy LaVanier at Candle-lite, the nation's third-largest candle manufacturer. “Now we use them up, particularly if we want to smell the fragrance. Some fragrances take us back to things we remember as kids; sometimes it just makes the house smell wonderful and fresh.”

        Some say candles make the perfect gift - they're low-fat, nonalcoholic and good any time.

        The variety of candles has expanded as the market has grown. There are candles for bathing, praying, thinking, cooking, entertaining, dining or cleaning. They come in thousands of scents with names like spice drops, lemon meringue pie, honeydew, pink grapefruit and Thai market.

        “People enjoy being at home, and candles are something that can add relaxation and can make the place sensual if you're going to have a romantic evening,” said Jeff Sams, the manager of Candlebar, a specialty candle store in Atlanta.

        The most expensive and elaborate candles sell for about $40, and that's before the cost of a candlestick or holder. Lower-end candles sell at grocery and chain stores for less than a dollar.

        Then there are specialty candles, like those collected by Shirley Holmes of Vero Beach, Fla. Ms. Holmes picks up multicolored candles shaped like hippos anytime she travels, but most of them will never be ignited - these candles are to be seen, not burned.

        “They're too nice to light. So far I haven't lit any, but they say it lasts 100 hours,” Ms. Holmes said.

        Seasonal candles, especially for holidays in fall and winter, are always best sellers. The fashionable ones now will scare up any front porch on Halloween.

        Candle accessories are also available - aroma lamps that work like scented air fresheners, CDs with relaxing music to be played while taking a candlelit bath and bowls that candles can float in.

        Candles need to be kept away from pets, children and combustible cartons, said Valerie Cooper, executive director of the National Candle Association. They should never be left unattended.

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