bliss lemon+sage body butter

Today we're going to check out a product which, though not exactly new, is from up and coming brand, Bliss. Bliss Spa was the creation of Marcia Kilgore, and while success didn't happen over night, it did come very quickly for this talented entrepreneur.

In the late '80s while studying at Columbia University, Kilgore started out giving facials to friends out of her apartment. As her skill grew, so did her clientele and in 1991 she opened up a one room office. Two years later she opened a three-roomed spa, and by 1996, with demand exceeding her space, she opened the first Bliss Spa in SoHo, New York.

With an emphasis on high quality skin care and services, and offering a pretentious-free environment, Bliss Spa was a hit. In 1999 it was acquired by LVMH, expanded internationally, and then acquired by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. Now with spas in ten US states and around the globe, Bliss Spa is truly a success!

But, what about its products? The products that were given out on JetBlue overnight flights and that are also amenities in Starwood Hotels? Well, I got my hot little hands on Bliss Lemon+Sage Body Butter (purchased at my local Sephora, and also available at Ulta), and it's scent is fantastic...it's just not lemon-y what-so-ever!

Bliss Lemon+Sage Body Butter (paraben free) is a gorgeously vibrant lime scent which has added depth from its herbaceously-green sage dynamics. It's a compelling fragrance that is both light and fresh; warm and earthy, and while the lotion itself is moisturizing, the scent is dry.

It's very interesting indeed, and makes me intrigued by their other scents! Which one is your favorite?

Have you tried this scent? Do you love it, do you hate it? Make sure to leave a comment below!

A (brief) review of Yankee Candle Man Candles

Isn't it great when a plan comes to fruition?  I bet the marketing department at Yankee Candle is having a congratulatory party as we speak.  Why?  Because everyone is all a-buzz about Yankee's recently launched Limited Edition Man Candle range.  NPR had a segment on Morning Edition and even Jimmy Fallon mentioned the range on his show ('Mandles', I believe he called them).

So, what's all the fuss about?  I contacted Yankee Candle for some hot-off-the-production-line samples, but I was told Yankee does not provide samples.  Instead, they recommended I buy votives.  Ok, no problem!

The first chance I had, I drove across town to my 'local' Yankee shop.  There they were: pride of place in the center of the store.  I grabbed one variant after another: Riding Mower, 2x4, First Down, Man Town, Fireside.  Wait, what?  Fireside?!  They snuck that one in there - Fireside is a variant in Yankee's base range and is available all year.  Cheeky what's-its!

I sniffed to my hearts content in the store.  The overpowering scent of cut grass stung my nose with Riding Mower; cedarwood infiltrated the senses with 2x4; Man Town had distinct hints of marine reminiscent of men's cologne; First Down ... hmm.  Well, First Down supposedly smells of leather, but I can't remember what notes graced my nose, only that my husband thought it smelled 'gross' (a trained nose he is not).  No biggie, though, I got the votives to test at home, right?

Wrong.  I feverishly looked around their display, but there were no Man Candle votives to be found!  I asked the sales assistants about it and guess what - they informed me that Yankee wasn't launching any votive Man Candles, only jar candles and Car Jars.  No votives, which meant no evaluation and no review!  I couldn't believe it - had I been misinformed ...or intentionally misguided to get me in the store?!

Back home and terribly frustrated, I emailed Yankee to express my disappointment; supposedly my case is now with the supervisor and the PR department has been informed as well, but that was days ago and I had a deadline to meet!

So, there you go, my brief review of Yankee Candle's Limited Edition Man Candles, which (unsurprisingly) were launched just in time for Father's Day!  And, as Jimmy Fallon sagely said, "Just what a guy needs - a manly candle that smells like weekend chores."

Manic for The Body Shop's Chocomania

I am well aware that it is May, but I would like to turn the clocks back to February 2012, and the launch of a new product - Chocomania from The Body Shop.  I know, I have definitely slacked in getting this product reviewed here.  I ask your forgiveness, especially because the shop assistant informed me that Chocomania is a limited edition, only on shelves for a little while longer!

So, how many of you out there are chocolate lovers?  I would say, probably most.  How many of you would like to smell of chocolate?  That is a wholly different question, isn't it?  Purposefully launched around Valentine's Day The Body Shop was clearly hoping to sell this variant based on chocolate's association with love and cupid.  The Chocomania line definitely offered an alternative to the usual 'chocolates and flowers' gift option.  But, if you had been given this variant instead of real chocolate on the big V-Day, would your sweet tooth have been satisfied?  Let's find out.

Chocomania Body Scrub is a little intimidating when you unscrew the lid.  Looking back at you is a swirled mass of brown exfoliator, what The Body Shop describes as 'a brownie-souffle texture'.  They aren't exaggerating too much, but I have to admit that there was trepidation when I first opened it.  Then I smelled it.  All I have to say is: Betty Crocker Chocolate Frosting.  De-li-cious!  From this first sniff, it is obvious that The Body Shop did not go cheap when they designed this fragrance - there is barely a (if any at all) whiff of dry, horribly fake cocoa bean scent.  The gorgeous aroma made my trepidation disappear; all I wanted to do now was indulge in the product.

In use, the top notes are ridiculously gourmand - it is like being emerged in chocolate fudge cupcakes; cake, frosting and all!  These notes linger, but the fragrance is surprisingly complex.  As you scrub away, accents of clean and dry floral-green aromas lift the fragrance from its deep chocolate-y base.  It is a dynamic fragrance which allows you to indulge in its scentacular experience while meeting your needs of refreshing and cleansing through the in-use floral-green bouquets.

Out of the shower and dry, the fragrance on the skin is moisturizing and creamy, more akin to a shea butter scent than anything else ... but I'm not complaining.  See, while I wholeheartedly enjoyed the scent experience of this product, I'm not sure I want to walk around smelling like chocolate.  For that reason, this product gets a big thumbs up.

So, still thinking of something to get your mom for Mother's Day?  Not anymore - get to your nearest Body Shop and get her some Chocomania Body Scrub.  It is not the least expensive product, but with ingredients like Brazil nut oil, soy oil and sugar, and a scent that feels like your immersed in chocolate frosting, it's well worth it!

The Big Pony Collection for Women 4

In the last few posts we've introduced you to the new line of fragrances from Ralph Lauren - the Big Pony Collection for Women.  We've learned about the background to the range and also the marketing behind it.  What we haven't once mentioned are the ever-mysterious juice creators: the perfumers.


Big Pony 1, the 'sporty' variant, was the creation of Bruno Jovanovic at International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF).  Check him out - an attractive Frenchman who graduated from ISIPCA ; he now has about a decade of experience under his belt.


Big Pony 2, the 'sensual' variant, is from the nose of Honorine Blanc of Firmenich.  Her perfumery training took place at a school in Paris, France, but she now lives (and works) in New York.  Make sure to watch this clip of Honorine describing how she finds inspiration for her creations.


We go back to IFF for the creator of the 'free-spirited' variant Big Pony 3: Laurent Le Guernec.  Laurent is French, a graduate of ISIPCA, and has been creating fragrances at IFF since February 2002.


Last (but of course not least), Big Pony 4, the 'stylish' variant, is from perfumer Olivier Gillotin of Givaudan.  Like the aforementioned perfumers Olivier is French, but out of the three he has the most experience with about thirteen years of perfume formulation under his belt.  So, how does his fragrance compare?

4 opens with creamy, softly sweet-warm notes of amber and obscure, heightening citrus undertones.  These notes are quickly subdued by floral magnolia and green aromas.  The green is so strong - like broken branches and fresh, dark green milky leaves woven together.   The fragrance has an oriental, creamy, musk base that retains the intense green notes and brings a slight freshness to the warm fragrance.


This fragrance has three proprietary Givaudan molecules: cassyrein, cristallon and sylkolide.  Now, to confeses, way at the back of this fragrance, I get a slight whiff of bug spray - almost as if there is some citronella hiding deep within the scent layers.  I do wonder if it is one of these molecules.  When you test this fragrance for yourself, come back and let me know if you can smell the note, too.


Although more an autumn/winter fragrance than a spring/summer one, this one will most definitely be getting a place on my shelf.


Bravo, Olivier, bravo.


On a side note ... I'm impressed, though not at all surprised, that the Big Pony Collection for Women fragrances were developed at each of the top three fragrance houses in the world!

Here Comes Spring: Glade® Limited Edition Collection

I was taking my usual turn through the aisles of Target when this caught my eye:

Like a bee to a flower I flew over to the display in hungry scent-passion.  What were these colorful new air fresheners that my eyes were beholding?  They were none other than the recently launched Glade® Limited Edition Spring Collection!


The last time I evaluated a  Glade® candle here I was not too impressed (see The Ultimate Fall Scent Debate), so I have to say that I was quite skeptical about the quality of scent that these candles would emit.  Still, their packaging drew me in and and so I bought one of each, eagerly took them home and one by one set them up to smell.

I began with Magic Meadow and, honestly, if I was buying the candle based on the cold throw I can tell you now that I probably wouldn't have bothered.  The cold throw was light and barely discernible (if at all), but luckily the hot throw was better.  It had a very pleasant green-grass aroma that was intertwined with a floraly-rose-carnation scent.  It could have been a little bit stronger, but in general it does what it says on the box.  It's a pleasant meadow-y scent.

Second in line was Playful Paradise which was the least impressive of the three.  Both the cold and hot throw were very weak and the indistinct floral scent struggled to cover the waxy-base smell.  Don't waste your money on this one!

Finally Glade® redeemed themselves with the third variant, Polka Dot Petals.  The cold throw had a decent strength as well as an inoffensive gourmand, sweet-fruity-berry scent.  The fragrance further impressed in the hot throw keeping its decent level of strength and its flavorful gourmand sweet scent, although the scent became closer to Jolly Rancher Watermelon than berry.  Out of the three, I would recommend this variant due to its superior strength and scent.

The Glade® website shows that one more variant is available - Sherbert Sunrise, but alas, this one was not on the shelves at my Target and so it is left for you to discover on your own.  If you've picked one up, make sure to leave a comment below and let me know what you think of it ... and any of the others, too!

New Spring Candles from Bath & Body Works

We're off to the tropics today people!  I visited my local BBW recently and quickly became trapped inside forever, sniffing away at their hundreds (or what seemed like hundreds!) of re-launched and newly launched candles.  


There's Coco Lobo, Jungle Kiss, White Palm (which I am told is the best seller so far), Mango Beachwood ... and the list goes on and on !  You can check out the full product line here.  There was no way I was going to be able to evaluate all eighteen of the tropics candle line, so I settled on the one that I thought smelled the most interesting, even if it was a relaunch from last year: Tropical Spice.

When I was in the store I couldn't believe the cold throw the candle had!  Was it really a mix of coconut and vanilla and a huge slug of CINNAMON?  I had to get it home to check it out.  Once I did, though, and my nose cleared from smelling the many different variants in the store, I realized I was wrong!

My nose had been polluted by all of the other scents wafting around me!  Home and in a fragrantless environment, the cold throw showed its true colors.  Vanilla and cinnamon.  No coconut whatsoever, that must've been from another candle.  Talk about disappointing!  Five bucks says they've just taken one of their seasonal holiday scents and reconceptualized it (new wax color, new name, new label, old scent).  Oh well and ho-hum, life goes on!

I still pursued the smelling of the candle, even though I was disappointed by the uninteresting cold throw of vanilla, cinnamon and a tiny bit of sweet-bubble gum at the back (which keeps it from smelling Christmas-y).

There isn't too much to report on the hot throw.  It was a vanilla-cinnamon scent that struggled to over power the scent of wax when burned for over an hour.  Common and boring - I was so wrong when I picked it up in the store!  Such is life, I guess, good thing I was less disappointed with the other candle I bought.

Launched at the same time as the tropical line is BBW's more floral themed line of candles.  These variants include Lilac Blossom, Flower Shop, First Bloom, Spring and a few others.  I picked up Green Grass, which is a new launch this season.

The cold throw is a very green fragrance with hints of dry grass under a fresh watery cucumber with aspects of clean white floral.  Very pleasant indeed.  The hot throw is linear and scented the room with clean, bright cucumber and grassy-green scents.  This candle was definitely better formulated than the Tropical Spice, as was proven by its superior hot throw.

Assessment? Green Grass is definitely preferred to Tropical Spice, but if neither take your fancy, don't worry - there is no need to decide between these two!  There are still twenty-three other newly launched/re-launched candles to choose from!  Go get smelling!