Wednesday, September 30, 2020

Ebb & Flow: September 2020

 The highs and lows of the month.


Perfume:
Solstice Scents Foxcroft and Foxcroft Intense

Perfume Oil:
Arcana Wildcraft Filthy Viking (just got my second 15ml in the mail!)

Body Lotion:
Blood Moon Botanica Olive and Tallow

Body Oil:
Blood Moon Botanica Black Poplar Oil

Skincare:
Forest and Fjord Winter Moon Serum

Deodorant:
Wildroots Body Care Activated Charcoal Deodorant

Soap:
Andy Taur Solar Engineer

Conditioner:
FuturePrimitive Stone the Crows

Candle:
Bath and Body Works Comfort (Vanilla and Patchouli) in the bedroom and Harvest Gathering in the living room.

Wax:
The Bathing Garden Sleepy 2.0 (peppermint and blue sugar)

Eating:
Bananas, meat/cheese/cracker trays, chocolate.

Drinking:
Coffee with cream, water, Bubbly Mango sparkling water, bed time teas.

Watching:
Gardener's World on Amazon

Reading:
All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot, about to start the second in the series. Makes for warm fuzzies and fits the "our pets are the best of us" prompt on the reading challenge. I have teared up a few times but I have also laughed out loud too.

Listening:
Tony Elman on Pandora and Soothing Relaxation on Youtube.

Awaiting:
A few fall experiences in October: pumpkins, spooky movies, a couple farm visits. Also looking forward to weekends tending the garden. 

Dreading:
Writing report cards. 

Hit:
Sweet Dream Sleepy Oak CBD oil for bedtime aches and cramping.

Miss:
The cute Madden wide strap sandals I bought. I LOVED them! They busted after wearing them only a few months. So bummed. 

Low:
Some work struggles. The thought of my sister and my future niece moving to another country at the end of next month. A co-worker's heartbreak over losing her beloved pup. Not getting time to destress from the work day.

High:
Having a job. Being able to ride a bike for a few miles. Being able to kayak and swim and be active. Having a husband who makes me coffee every morning. Having daughters that make me laugh and view the world with hope. Snuggles from Toddles. Books waiting to be read on my shelf. Small magics.

How has your September been? Are you decorating? Is the weather turning? Are you sleeping well?

Tuesday, September 22, 2020

Wylde Ivy: Fall Perfumes



I found myself yearning for a few more dulcet autumnal perfumes to grace myself with as the weather cooled and the moody afternoon rains began in earnest. How fortuitous was it then that a timely newsletter from Wylde Ivy announced several new fall perfumes? I scrolled through the scents and narrowed down my choices to a full bottle of Dark November and a sampler pack of the Solstice Faire scents. If there is one thing I can count on when I order from Ashlee, it will be beautifully blended sweet musky scents that wear like ethereal vanilla candy floss.

Dark November- Notes: Smoked vanilla pods, dried tobacco leaves, apple peels, pink peppercorns, dry grass, black currants, spiced woods, baked ginger, caramelized sugar, and clove. $30

I chose Dark November blindly based on notes alone. The only note I was unsure of was the black currant since it tends to go very sharp and tart on my skin with an almost bitter, slightly uric edge. Thankfully the other sweet and snuggly notes quickly move in to lessen the power of the black currant. Dark November does open with spritely top notes of tart black currants and the brightness of those pink peppercorns. My nose gets a soft impression of a bakery at first with some yeasty and dry tones just underneath. I have not figured out if this is the baked ginger or the dry grass yet but it is there for a lingering moment. Once Dark November moves into the warm and sweet heart, very mild spices emerge along with the tobacco and vanilla. This is where the caramelized sugar sings. Bit by bit, slender ruby peels of apples twirl and glide into this cozy heart. Rustic apples, tobacco, spice and sugary musk all brew up a potion fit for anointing scarves, sweaters and breeze tousled hair. Now that I am paying minute attention to the scent I think it is the baked ginger that contributed to the yeasty bakery edge to the opening, because I sense a touch of it here still haunting the perimeter of the scent. Dark November dries down into the vanilla sugar musk I identify with Wylde Ivy so strongly. 

The Solstice Faire collection of samples is available in this beautifully packaged gift set with a tin, scent note cards and sprayer vials for $33. They all honestly sounded right up my alley so I wanted to sample them to perhaps pick one for full sized enjoyment. There are several here so I am going to strive for a down and dirty concise review of how they play out on my skin.


Treasure!


The Sugar Witch- Notes: A rich warm autumn sweet cream with a whisper of spiced maple and autumn leaves. Marshmallow, cream sweetened with vanilla and muscovado sugar, tonka beans, caramelized maple, and a shot of bourbon.
Sugar Witch is enchanting. She opens with a splash of maple sweetened creamy bourbon that smells like my favorite soft maple candies or the whisky and cream sauce I made a few times to drizzle over pecan pies. As she moves into the heart the cream becomes thicker and sweeter much like sweetened condensed milk. The tonka beans reveal their dusky vanilla flavors while the maple sugar continues to float about the concoction. Sugar Witch is an excellent study in creamy maple delights. 

The Candle Maker- Notes: Warm vanilla, melted amber, carved pumpkins and hay bales, smoldering embers, whole cloves, crushed allspice, and smoked tonka beans. 
Charred pumpkins and singed hay and baked breads all fly from the sprayer like bats out of a dark hole. This one doesn't have the characteristic sweetness I associate with Wydle Ivy and its departure is wild and moody. The embers and smoke are a touch acrid and damp as if a fall fog is creeping in around the carved and lit pumpkins that surround a nocturnal bonfire. The water vapor  smothers the impish flames, sending up ghostly smoke. This is ghoulish and unique, a mixture of atmosphere, smoke and unsweet pumpkin flesh that dries down into a creamy vanilla amber with a hint of ember. The drydown is my favorite part.

The Tea Blender- Notes: Tea leaves of black, green, and red, dried apples and pears, raw sugar, fresh amber resin, vanilla beans, a whisper of spice, and blonde wood.
Iced green tea infused with sugar and fruits, an herbal brew to revive the senses. This smells just like something from Celestial Seasonings, maybe iced raspberry zinger or a lemony green tea. The pears and apples and citrus merge effortlessly with the blend of teas. Nuances of bittersweet sepia tannins flow through the perfume. It dries down into subtle fruity musk and sweet woody musk. 


The Palm Reader- Notes: Black tea, dried bergamot, white sandalwood, incense smoke, autumn spice, caramelized sugar, and dried September apples.
Bergamot tea leaves sweep into the opening, curling and brittle, bright and slightly bitter against the crystalline autumn sun. Dry green branches, piquant bergamot and peppery tones persist into the heart. It almost smells of green bell peppers to my nose at odd times. The bitterness eventually fades into dark tea leaves that hold a breath of dried apples within. 

The Wood Carver- Notes: Cedar and oud wood spiked with clove, peppercorn, and smoked vetiver with a finish of amber resin, aged bourbon and vanilla, and a touch of sweet wood.
Lush peppercorn and sharp cedar open The Wood Carver with a chilled blast. It quickly sweetens and warms under the influence of smoky oud paired with spicy cloves. It is a lovely woodsy perfume that speaks of arid climes and tender smoky sweetness.

Solstice Faire- Notes: Ginger infused fruits, apple wood bonfires, golden hay bales, blonde sandalwood, smoked sugars, crimson tipped leaves, and spiced pumpkins. 
After smelling the ginger here I am confirmed in my thinking that this is the note contributing to the dry baked goods in Dark November. I get a whiff of that dry ginger note in the opening of Solstice Faire but there is also a creaminess present, perhaps the pumpkins and sandalwood. This is a golden aroma: fluttering leaves, slices of pumpkin pie, hayrides, and tender gilded sunsets viewed through the haze of woodsmoke and grasping branches. This is a dry (hay) and creamy (pumpkins and sandalwood) scent of musings with eyes half lidded in the autumn afternoon.


A few free samples rode along with my order and I was thrilled to see them!

Briar + Vanilla- Notes: Raw vanilla, charred amber, dried brambles warmed in the sun, white cedarwood bows, dried oakmoss dusted with crushed tonka beans, a touch of woodsmoke on frost nipped air mingled with a sugar musk.
Bracing cedar and earthen oakmoss fall into the opening to land gently upon a bed of vanilla woods and sugar frosted twigs. This a is stunning vanilla woods that morphs and sways from the sweet to delicately smoky and back again. It is gauzy and plush, brushed in soft textures.

Fireborn- Notes: Black cocoa powder, crushed tonka beans, ambrette seeds, roasted coffee, dewy vanilla beans, crystallized amber, dried orange peel, with a hint of woodsmoke.
Finely milled cocoa sifted with blonde coffee greets the nose upon spraying. This is a mild scent, nothing overpowering or artificial about it. After a few minutes a brightness pulls through and this must be the citrus and ambrette. The mild chocolate  and brun remnants of the coffee keep the scent snug and quiet, but the citrus acts like a small glowing ember amid the dark comfort. Fireborn is a unique gourmand among my collection. I rarely enjoy chocolate scents but this one is pleasant. 


Twilight Paradise- Notes: Fresh cracked coconut, crisp bergamot leaves, blue heliotrope, vanilla orchids soaked in coconut milk, night blooming jasmine petals, pink citron dust, and fresh cut sugarcane with a hint of sweet musk. 
This is a sultry and sweet tropical scent. It smells like a stroll through an upscale seaside spa in south Florida. The coconut is bright and juicy, not sunscreen, not bakery, but legit coconut. The florals only serve to highlight the coconut flesh and the citron adds a sunny zing that brings to mind tropical drinks with slices of citrus tucked into the rim. Gorgeous scent.

Annona- Notes: Sweet, slow simmered apples, mulled berries, cardamom and cinnamon, oak and peppercorn, golden wheat fields and fresh cream, caramelized raw sugar, and a hint of creamy pumpkin.
Annona is just what I want in a festive fall perfume. Spiced apples and caramel sweetness all stewed with jewel toned berries and accompanied by corn husk dolls. It is slightly reminiscent of some of my beloved fall candles and wax tarts but that does not deter me one bit. I love apple cinnamon scents and I actually have not tried one in perfume form that I love as much as I do this one. I think this might be my next full size.

I enjoyed wearing these varied scents and will be looking to perhaps sample some of the Halloween releases too from Wylde Ivy. Do you have any favorites from Ashlee for this time of year? I will be giving away some samples along with some wax and books here soon. Keep an eye out. 

Monday, September 21, 2020

Melting Basket 154

 



Rosegirls- Pumpkin Chai Carbs
Rosegirls- Apple Pumpkin Crunch Donuts
Bohemienne Life- Palo Santo
Dessa's Homespun Scents- Palo Santo
Dessa's Homespun Scents- Red Hot Cinnamon Sticks
Blended With Love- Smoke Signals (amber, pipe smoke, vanilla creme)
Beezy- Mac Apple
Ten Digit Creations- Palo Santo/Vanilla Tobacco
Ten Digit Creations- Black Vanilla/Palo Santo/Wood Spice
Ten Digit Creations- Fireball Marshmallows
Ten Digit Creations- Bourbon Tobacco/Patchouli/Vintage Vanilla
Ten Digit Creations- Marshmallow Sugar Cookie
Ten Digit Creations- Caramel Apple/Marshmallows By The Fire/Sandalwood Marshmallow
Candles From The Keeping Room- Autumn Leaves type
Candles From The Keeping Room- Pumpkin Patchouli
Candles From The Keeping Room- Autumn in the Park

Some things that have been making me feel calm or have brought my snippets of joy:
- Reading All Creatures Great and Small
- Watching Gardener's World on Amazon
- Candles all over the place
- Afternoon thunderstorms
- Planting the raised beds (carrots, scallions, winter squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, okra, beets, radishes, blackeyed peas)
- Barefoot walking in backyard
- Orders placed at The Bathing Garden, Dessa's Homespun Scents, Candles From the Keeping Room
- Ella Fitzgerald on vinyl
- Sugar Kiss cantaloupe
- Hearing Savanna daydream out loud about possibly going to college in upstate New York
- Watching Scarlette make new friends who treat each other well
- Hearing Adam laugh with his brother
- Smelling yummy perfumes from my collection

How are you finding calm moments? Can you feel fall drifting in?

Friday, September 4, 2020

Vapid Wax: It's Showtime!

 This wax tart was sent free from Vapid Wax for reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own.


A great smelling wax tart from Vapid is going on sale today through the 7th at Polish Pickup. The theme is All Hallow's Eve and Jenn created this fabulous Beetlejuice inspired scent.


Showtime!- Notes: A Betelguese pulls himself out of his dirt covered grave, there's a warm inviting scent of cranberries, orange cloves, mandarines, bergamot and spices. $6

This bright and cheerful tart does have a zing of citrus and the energy of the wild man himself. I can picture is mold framed face and frantic hair already. The fruits are tempered by the soil that falls from his flannel covered shoulders and the cemetery at his feet. A slight suggestion of greenery hovers nearby, perhaps the memory of the dead tree at his tombstone? Or is it the lush countryside that lies right outside the attic window? Either way this is a unique blend of earth and fruits and subtle clove. I am excited to melt it and even more excited to put the sandworm pin on my tote bag. 


My sister has dressed up like a sexy Beetlejuice a couple times for Halloween and she always looks stunning. I would love to dress up like the old portly guy myself. I bet it would be fun. 

This tart will be on sale until the 7th and will be in a limited run. Grab one while you can if you like unique blends.