Plumping Lip Oils

Posted on July 23, 2025 by Henna

May 3
Everything is a lip oil right now, and everything is plumping. These are in par with the super spicy lip plumpers from about 20 years ago – and they stopped being popular because people started getting lip filler, but maybe it’s a sign of the times when lip filler seems like too much of an expense and it’s easier to try a plumping gloss. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Whether you get the drugstore option of the L’Oreal Paris Plump Ambition or the more expensive Charlotte Tilbury Plumpgasm, you’ll be able to experience a tingly lip treatment that makes your lips look bigger by inducing a bit of temporary inflammation. The drugstore option actually comes in more colours, but the Plumpgasm treatment makes up for its price with opulent packaging that looks almost sculptural and this is a lip oil you’ll love pulling out of your bag. It even shuts with a satisfying click. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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Kingdom of Scotland Perfume Reviews

Posted on July 22, 2025 by Henna

I’ve never been to Scotland, but I can envision its richness thanks to the perfumes from Kingdom of Scotland. These are inspired by the botanics and history of that landscape and they’re all solid releases. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Portal is fresh and green, Kingdom Scotland celebrates Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Albaura is all about snow and ice. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

My favorite is Metamorphic. I normally don’t like tobacco and boozy notes, but this combines them with a dark rose and an ambery anchor. It was my favourite one to wear, because it turned spicy and rich on my skin. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

All four scents are evocative. They tell a story and offer a glimpse of dramatic heritage in a bottle. Check them out if you get a chance. I was introduced to the brand in Milan this year and that’s why I love going. It’s the opportunity to be introduced to some lovely perfume off the beaten path.

Metamorphic also ended up winning some awards since its launch, so make this a brand you try when you head to Scotland.

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Skincare Update – MDCI, Biotherm, and Charlotte Tilbury

Posted on July 21, 2025 by Henna

Apr 19
I’m behind on writing about my skincare, but I’ve got samples of MDCI’s new beauty line, and I happened to read that their serum is lightly scent with one of their perfumes, Cio Cio San, so now I’ve got to write about scent in skincare. I don’t demonize perfumed skincare. The best skincare smells nice as I apply it and then the smell disappears once I make it to my perfume corner to spray on my scent of the day. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

I will say that if you have sensitive skin, and are trying to repair your barrier, then stay away from anything scented.

For this reason, I’ve been enjoying Sisley’s Sensitive Skin Soothing Care cream over Biotherm’s Hydra Barrier Cream because the latter is scented, and the former is not. The zinging sensation that a scented cream gives is less than pleasant, so I recommend avoiding it when you need to. For me, a week in Mexico meant I had to take extra good care of my skin the week following, so I took the barrier repair creams out for a spin. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

But lastly, Charlotte Tilbury has come out with a serum, their Dark Spot Correcting serum. This serum is doing some heavy lifting with the addition of vitamin C, Tranexamic Acid, and Niacinamide to really help brighten your complexion. I thought it was a brand new product, but the second I applied it, the scent took me back – it’s slighly spicy, almost like saffron, and I realized that they’ve reformulated an older brightening serum. Now it has more actives and comes in a pump bottle instead of a dropper bottle, so that must be an indication of the trend in skincare packaging. Maybe we’re done cosplaying as scientists when we do our skincare routine and we can just breathe in and enjoy it. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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A Fleur de Piel Perfumes

Posted on July 18, 2025 by Henna

May 3
Today I’m swept away by the creations of @afleurdepiel.perfume from Barcelona, and working while wearing a spicy floral with a beating heart. The spices and almost syrupy, jammy flowers make me think of more exotic places than this desk, where flowers are so bountiful that you could eat them.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Placa is for lovers of white florals because it has orange blossoms in all its incarnations, jasmine, a bit indolic, but warm enough that I can imagine a tropical heat, fresh fruit just within arm’s reach. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Ana (the one with the picture on it the most right) is a chypre that evokes old-school perfumes we love but makes them richer, almost tangible. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

These are indie perfumes at their finest – they evoke a time and place, and they also use lots of naturals which you can smell in every spray. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

A Fleur de Piel is available on Etsy and on vacation right now, but next time you’re in the mood to be moved and you want to smell something completely different from what’s on your local perfumerie’s shelves, smell these. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Gifted. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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Creed Royal Mayfair Relaunches

Posted on July 17, 2025 by Henna

May 3
Fun times Holt Renfrew for the re-launch of Creed’s Royal Mayfair. It’s a fresh minty rose-jasmine, kept fresh and watery with some sparkling ambroxan. It’s a great warm weather perfume that almost makes me think of this as Creed’s version of Imagination. This is a reissue of an older scent but the packaging has been updated so if you look this one up, look for the blue label. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Always a great time at these events and being able to try the perfume at home on skin gives you the chance to fall in love with it. As usual, I took too few pictures. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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New L’Oreal Paris Le Glow Tint

Posted on July 16, 2025 by Henna

Don’t be put off by a glowy foundation – this one looks like skin and makes you look alive, while actually covering too. It’s not a greasy kind of glow, it’s more of a glow that makes it look like you have a spotlight on your face. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

May 3

It’s been a minute since I’ve been enamoured with a drugstore foundation, but I’ve been using @lorealparis Le Glow Tint for the past couple of weeks and it’s become my go-to. Word is that all the other brands owned by the parent company are launching similar products (Lancome, It Cosmetics, etc.). The difference will likely be more shades offered, and in larger bottles, but for me, these are perfection. My shade is 210 right now but I will likely go to the colour 220 sometime in the summer.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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Drake Summer Mink Review

Posted on July 15, 2025 by Henna

A year after launching the Carby Musk perfume oil, Better World Fragrance House, better known as the Drake perfume brand, has launched another perfume. This one is a spray, and has a unique presentation. It would be nearly impossible for a perfumer to produce two hits in a row, and Summer Mink is a disappointment. ⠀

May 3It opens with a citrus accord that reminds me of orange juice, syrupy sweet and tart, on a base of generic amber woods. This is mass appealing in the way that it smells like the perfume section of a department store or a gaggle of teenage boys at the mall. While the opening and sweetness is feminine, the dry down is masculine and sticks around for hours and hours. It feels like AI tried to make a unisex perfume and smooshed together elements from best-sellers in both categories so here we are. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

May 3This is a safe blind-buy if you like the mainstream perfumes of today. I’m still a fan of Carby Musk and the candles from this brand – there still nothing out there that smells quite that good. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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Diptyque Milan Candle

Posted on July 14, 2025 by Henna

May 3
Geranium season thanks to this Diptyque Milan candle. The throw is softer than the holiday Diptyque candles, but I prefer it that way because it means that I can burn my candle longer and enjoy its beautiful glow. The candle is supposed to be spiced with cardamom too and some vanilla, but I only get a rosy type of floral with sweet herbaceous minty facets. The scent of this candle is light and fresh which makes this a perfect springtime candle.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Milan is a city I love visiting. so I love that I can think of its beautiful tree-lined streets every time I look at this candle. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

This was a limited edition candle and it isn’t at counters anymore, but you never know when it might come back.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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New Sisley Paris Phyto-Rouge Lipsticks

Posted on July 12, 2025 by Henna


These @sisleyparisofficial Phyto-Rouge Velvet Matte lipsticks are the smoothest I’ve ever used. Velvety and matte, very pigmented and very long lasting. Look at the texture on the bullet.  I’m finding that high end lipsticks are setting themselves apart by adding sensorial touches to their products. In this era of dupe culture, you can get the same colour but the feel will never be the same.

Each lipstick also comes in a gorgeous velvet pouch to give the user the ultimate luxury experience.  It’s like getting a high-end bag, not just a lipstick.

 

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Eris Mx Perfume Review

Posted on June 23, 2025 by Henna

Apr 19
SALT.

Olfactory magic in Mx. creates the scent of salt without using any of the actual material. Maybe it’s the use of spices that are adjacent to the salt in my kitchen that gives me that salty scent, without it just being mineralic like sea water. There’s a warm dry cocoa, a bit of piquant ginger, but all of them are far away and out of reach so it’s like I’m getting a memory of them not even the actual flavour. It’s the faded dustiness of opening a spice cupboard and reaching for something savoury instead of something sweet.

It’s the perfect perfume when you’re sitting inside and watching a blizzard.⠀⠀⠀⠀

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