Candeling

Candles got me through this winter...

Ok, that statement is a bit bolder than I needed it to be but I certainly enjoyed some of the ones I have since December.

One of my favourites has been the Cire Trudon Mademoiselle de La Valliere (here in newstate)

And here she is going for the last bit:

This 'Mademoiselle' has been a soft &soothing bunch of flowers that were also 'boyfriend approved'. Not every man is keen on a constant waft of girly superflowers, and I'm not always into the so-called masculine scents of tabac or pinewoods. This was the perfect compromise.

It burned quite well and equally: Ofcourse, I listened to the instructions of the saleswoman to press the wax gently when it has cooled down enough (but not hard yet).

I already have a Cire Trudon follower up: a more zesty, greener and travel-fantasy enabling Abd el Kader, probably their most famous one. 

I have burned it a couple of times, and the keynotes embody that hopeful idea that is connected to the beginning of spring.

And I added a new brand, albeit slightly sensual or dermis-pampering: the Oskia Rose de Mai massage (oil) candle:

Placed in holder that has a teapot-esque spout it offers the opportunity to 'recycle' the warmed wax as a massage oil.

I honestly was not too charmed about the quality of the warm wax substance: It might be fun for 'sensual' moments, but as a skincare product it lacked good absorption and it felt wax-like on skin.

The scent was rather lovely, a purer and soft rose that lingers quietly in the house.

Cire Trudon is getting more popular, hence available at more (r)etailers. In Holland at Skin Cosmetics (in the store) and cloudninestore.nl. In the rest of the world at Farfetch.com,  Barneys.com, liberty.co.uk, Ausliebezumduft.com, L'eclaireur.com and others too and prices start at €60. That is expensive, but the candles are large and will last for a longer period. Moreover, afterwards you will have a beautiful handblown glass that will be gorgeous for storing smaller things in a decorative manner.

Oskia Rose de Mai Massage candle is available on their own site at oskiaskincare.com, but also on Zuneta.com (20% discount with code SPRING on everything!) & cultbeauty.com.

Cozy Candles

I would like to feature a small section of scented candles today. Actually, I always say I keep it small and I see my post featuring a lot. So I'm gonna do that once more. ;-)

Scent is one of the more underrated, but more poignant elements of attractiveness. We think that people select each other primarily based on looks, but the idea is that we can detect a 'mate' within 20 seconds of smelling this.

People who are actively are internetdating probably know this: he looks so good online and he's perfect on paper. And then offline you notice that the person is as perfect as appeared to be, but still...That's probably his chemistry (or personal scent) is not matched to yours.

So homely scents, what does this have to do with the dating spectrum? Ok, I disgressed on that topic but scents have different properties that can either help you to

1. calm
2. entice
3. makes you remember a wonderful memory
4. mmm, creme brulee
5. flower-power!
6. "is Marvin Gray on the playlist?" setting
7. let you buy more more more (shops)
8. etc etc

Let's recap some:

1. Cire Trudon Mademoiselle

a regal candle

I struck upon the easier availability of the candle when writing my earlier article being curious about it. I described Mademoiselle de la Valliere as a happy scent, but scent-preference is remarkly personal with one exception to vanilla, as it reminds people to mother's milk and that is one of the most comforting elements in a person's life (and one of the first). I personally love a happy composition of flowers and before I went sniffing the candle I suspected to like this candle based on the notes:
Top note : bergamot, orange blossom, galbanum / middle : tuberose, jasmin, ylang / base : musk, rockrose, benzoin resin

The freshness of orange blossom and bergamot and the sexy heart of tuberose, jasmin and Ylang Ylang are seperately already favourites, so in a blend they could sparkle. I say COULD as with perfume you never know how they will warm up to you, or when one scent-element is there that is totally not your thing the whole composition could be "meh".

I love this one. It is not as sexy as I suspected as the musk is quite withdrawn. Perhaps the fresher topnotes of bergamot and orange blossom tone it sultriness a bit. However, it has a sensual element only in a fresher and floral way. When not burning, you can smell it too on a distant of 5 meters. When burning, the scent dissapears to my nose after 15 minutes, but when I change rooms and return it's flower sensuality blossoms again. One thing I have to add is that it's a slightly chemical composition, the bouquet of flowers. I will return upon this when I'll discuss Neom.

Compared to Diptique it is of a similar pricerange with more creative and exhilarating blends that I love to sample more in the next year.

2. Diptyque Ambre Oud Xmas 12 edition

The famous one

Diptique is one of those cult-candles that are easier to find these days. Still not too easy and absolutely not inexpensive either for € 59.90 for the larger candle. I gotten the mini version because I have various candles as the time being.

I found this a sexier candle when you like that muskier and broodier atmosphere. Personally, I am not a Oud fan but in combination of amber it makes it more sensual. I consider amber the headnote and I can somewhat detect some of the spices, most of all the saffran and ginger and some pepper, but my untrained nose cannot really detect the canelle or absint.

The glass absolutely matches the Xmas spirit but is still cute and quite art-deco enough to keep after Christmas. The fragance itself is not in your face Xmassy and that's what I like about it. You can link it to Xmas but it's not those pine & spruce trees candles. However, if you like those Diptyque will have the Sapin Dore for you.

3. Cochine Saigon Frangipani & Neroli

Scent-travelling Allure

I ordered two of their candles, and found this one containing the best fragance value. The glass consist of a beautiful mirroing silver with the tag of the brand on it, in paper. My candle is slightly stained after burning and I smudged its label a bit. That's the bit of the downside of labelling your candles with a paper tag.

Described as a scent evoking the image of "soft white sands, brushed with the shade of Frangipani trees swaying gently in the warm ocean breeze. Smooth, honeyed tones of Frangipani are combined with the delicate freshness of Neroli to create an uplifting summery fragrance".

The fragance has a summery or more of a tropical note, but I often reach for summer perfumes during winter as well for getting a whiff of the feeling of when-it-still-was-warm-and-sunny. Personally, the sensuality of the Frangipani makes it a tropical floral composition that has a certain warmness of 'dewiness' that makes it excellent during wintertime too.

Also matched by lotions and handwash, so you can prolong the experience of your favourite scent in different ways.
Zuneta is having a gwp of a free Vanille & Tabac travel candle when you buy £45 or more


4. Rituals Sweet Sunrise

Dutch Delight

I am quite proud this Dutch brand made it so big in other countries. Their products are really wonderful and the design of the packaging is also attractive.

Similar to Cochine Saigon, they have 5 different scent categories and scentual experiences that has been divided throughout their products. So, if you really like the Sweet Sunshine shower gel you might pair it up with a scented candle in the same range.

Rituals Sweet Sunshine Candle in matching orange colours

I picked Sweet Sunrise as I love Sweet Orange as a energiser, indeed, during sweet sunrises. I cannot really detect the cedar in it, but it has a slight spicy undertone. Overal, it's a zesty candle with that sweeter citrusy note that Sweet Orange evokes.

It's less complicated as a scent than Cire Trudon, Diptyque or Cochine Saigon but sometimes a couple of simple ingredients do the job, especially for perking up

Their price is affordable for only 14.94 for a candle (and this one was 10 on sale).

5. Neom Refresh

The Organic and Hollistic Scentifier

It's my lovingly used-up candle and it shows. I absolutely was crazy about Neom this summer (see one review here) and I tried a variety of their candles. My favourite has been Happy, but Refresh is a gorgeous morning candle that perks up the room without too much complicated ingredients in an honestly organic mode.

I said that my only drawback about Cire Trudon was the slightly chemical note towards this. Probably my nose has been spoiled or used to these organic and holistic candles. If you feel unsure about the sort of air a candle would be releasing toxins by burning, you can be more certain about burning Neom, The use vegetable wax and pure essential oils rather than synthetic fragrances so they burn without releasing harmful pollutants, toxins or soot. They claim to have holistic properties, which is not a field I specify in, but I feel happy about burning something that does not pollute the air.

If you want to try these out, I have a discount code of 20% off when you buy directly from their site: BS20.

Chrismas Presents 'research' (read: new lovelies)

After this semi-preachy talk about appreciating the well-functioning products in your beauty-robe, I bought  some new products.

My excuse besides being a beauty-a-holic was "research for Christmas Shopping for my friends and family" ;P. (write that one down)

1. Burberry Eyeshadow Palette in 06 Plum Pink

I was already itching to buy the single eyeshadow in Dark Sable that was released this fall, untill I saw the incredibly accurate swatches over here, here and here. I was convinced that I needed a full-on palette this time.

Totally buttery silky, like you can expect from Burberry Beauty. I have been playing with them this weekend and totally love them.

I will not review them as it has been done so perfectly at the earlier mentioned blogs, just to say I love the harmony of the colours combined and it's one of those better pink/purples/mauve blends that actually does not look like I've been crying or having a night-of-partying.

2. Cire Trudon candle in Mademoiselle de la Valliere

Yay, I was so happy to found a Dutch adress that basically sells all of the candles that I bought the one I was most attracted to at the time being. It smells really happy and actually quite like spring with all it's flowers (more precise ingredients here)

Mlle de La Valliere burning beautifully

For this one I will do a review soon. I probably combine a post with more candles so to get a clearer idea of having a beautiful fragance in your home or as a present for your loved ones.

3. Sampling Argentum Apothecary La Lotion Infinie cream

I've read about them in some Glossy magazines, one of them the latest ElleUK December edition. Their website gives you the opportunity for a free sample, and the ones not living in the UK only have to pay for shipping (about $3).

I liked the sample, but I have to say that I disagree with the claim that it's really suitable for sensitive skins: It has a high fragance level, being quite masculine or like those 1990s unisex Calvin Klein One's. However, I loved it's effect: I only tried the sample but it has a fluffy and matte consistency which really makes the skin looks better after a couple of days.

I will sample another sachet during spring to how my skin likes it when it's not too sensitive, because the full jar will set you back a whopping £147.00 and that's quite the cash.

Sample them here.

4. Inner Me Beautify Me

Inner beauty...or the supplements are often the things that make my skin go calmer when flaring up.

 

Ingredients such as MSM, Silica, Marine Collagens and Vitamin C are perfect to calm and perk up skins. I was especially thrilled about their MSM as I used it before and it helped calming my pre-winter sensitive skin. Their box is so cute and they have this days-of-the-week system that can help you reminding to take them regularly. 

Only downside is that they're not so cheap for a supply of 28 pills for only 2 weeks for 18 euro. I think I will buy separate MSM supplements with a higher degree of MSM for the next time, but with the Omega 3 and the Collagen Supplement I feel it has been helping my skin.

Find them here on the original site.