Feeling very repressed because of my self-imposed and until now unofficial beauty no-buy, I decided I could at least cheer myself up with some new candles, especially after I have significantly diminished our house supply. In all honesty, I'm not a huge candle burner - a small tumbler/jar usually lasts me for about a month, and that's when I'm feeling very into candle burning. But, I've found some good deals and couldn't resist picking up a couple... or more like three couples.
I first went into Bath and Body Works; I really quite like their candles, actually. They look pretty, come in a very wide variety of scents that changes seasonally, have interesting fragrances and burn for a really long time. Their small 4 oz. tumblers are currently on 2 for $10 (they're normally $9.50 each, which is why I wait for specials) so I picked two from the Beautiful Blossoms collection and two from the Tropical range.
Lilac Blossom is a blend of, why yes, lilac blossom, muguet (lilly of the valley), heliotrope and violets. I love the scent of lilac; in Poland, it blossoms in May, and the bushes are planted everywhere: in parks, between apartment buildings, in gardens, backyards, along fences... My parents also have about three plants to the back of their garden, just at the little gate to the forest. The candle is very much true to the actual blossom, fresh, sweet and heady, and I can detect the muguet as well. If you like spring flowers, I think you're going to love this one.
Flower Shop blends lilac, pink freesia, hyacinth and cooling greens - I've been absolutely obsessed with hyacinth lately! Compared to Lilac Blossom, this is much greener, less heavy, more aquatic - for some reason I actually thought about wild roses the first time I sniffed it. I get a lot of freesia from it, but it's not as peppery as the real deal, maybe freshened by the hyacinth? Lovely, and if you're not into florals, I still recommend you sniff this one.
I'd say 90% of the time, I'm not a huge fan of tropical scents; I like my Pina Coladas and Daiquiris as cocktails, not candles, thank you very much. I did however pick up
Tiki Beach, a blend of toasted coconut, vanilla musk, purple orchids and sugared berries. This is quite a refreshing scent for something that seems so sweet from the description; it's maybe even a bit masculine...? I do get quite a lot of sharp musk, mellowed by the sweetness of coconut and vanilla. Something for fans of clean (laundry detergent) fragrances.
Lastly,
Aloha Vanilla is a blend of mango, vanilla absolute, creamy coconut and lotus flower. This is fun: the sour juiciness of fruit juxtaposed with the fatty richness of vanilla and coconut (what can I say, I really like vanilla and coconut, especially for the summer). This one is less musky than Tiki Beach, more along the lines of lime and coconut reinterpretation. Perfect for fans of sweet fruity scents.
I also grabbed two packs of tealights from Yankee Candle; I've never tried their candles before, but a new store opened in Bellevue Square a couple weeks ago (they actually spelt it Belleview the first time we received a leaflet in the mail... teehee), plus they are on sale now for $5 each (normally $10). Sun and Sand blends sweet orange flower, citrus, lavender and musk - and it's a lemony laundry/soap scent to me, whereas Tahitian Tiare Flowers (gardenias) smells very much like Monoi oil, quite sexy for a room smell, really.
Oh, and in case you're interested, this is my favorite tea light holder - it's from Ikea and a friend painted it for me when we were still in middle school. I've managed not to break or lose it all these years!
I think in general I'm more partial to Bath and Body Works candles rather than Yankee candles; I just think the latter are worse compositions and terribly overpriced for, well, a glass jar full of scented wax.
Have you bought any new spring candles lately? What are your favorite brands and fragrances?
In the blogosphere, Cherries in the Snow seems to be well loved by nearly all beauty addicts, and I can definitely see why; the cool pinked cherry can look flattering on all skintones, and the formula is just dreamy: smooth, creamy and surprisingly long lasting - in fact, it outlasts my Chanel and YSL lipsticks! It might appear a bit overwhelming straight out of the tube, but as with most bold and pigmented lipsticks, it can be worked into the lips for a light stain which is not nearly as intense as opaque application.
I quite like that the tube has a clear top through which you can see the shade (that's especially important if you store your lipsticks upright in a drawer - I don't, but I can still appreciate the design...), and that the bottom sticker matches the color of the lipstick and clearly states the name of the shade AND the finish. So smart, yet so simple!
Admittedly, I didn't really need that shade - both Inglot no. 58 slim gel lipstick and Milani Berry Rich lipstick are fairly similar... but not the same, heh? Different enough to justify having all three in my eyes. #confessions of a blue-based red/fuschia lipstick addict
As always here, the sheer stain lip swatch on bare lips is on the top, opaque application on the bottom - straight out of the bullet, no lip liner.
I decided to also show a more toothy swatch - see how white it makes my teeth look? That's make-up magic in action right there for ya.
And this is a full face shot in natural daylight. I think I took the photos maybe 3-4 hours from the time of application, so it's a bit faded; impressive how evenly it wore, right?
All in all, I do recommend this shade and formula a lot; the price-quality-availability ratio is hard to beat in this case. Have you tried Revlon Cherries in the Snow? What is your favorite Revlon lipstick shade and formula?
