Diptyque Fleur de Peau – perfume but make it HR-friendly.
A blend of iris and musks. The musk starts like a clean laundry musk, but then the ambrette comes out, and the warmth of your skin makes this feel like a clean skin musk instead. People who smell you will smell that you’re approachable and unassuming, but really, this scent doesn’t have a lot of sillage or throw. It’s a skins scent, but with lasting power because musks tend to stick to your skin and stay there.
I’ve been convinced. The @olaplex No. 7 Bonding Oil makes my hair so soft and smoother, and it’s light enough for my super fine hair to not be weighed down and looking greasy. I’ve finished a little mini and cracked open a full-sized bottle. In fact, the full-size has made it on to my counter solidifying top shelf status.
The Bonding Oil has been proven to tame frizz for up to 72 hours, and can heat protect hair for up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. It feels light and makes your hair shiny too. I find it easy to add into my routine, and often put it on my hair at night time so that I wake up with less frizzy hair.
Have you tried it? It’s actually good. Perfect to use as a pre-treatment too if you like to oil your hair before washing it so that it doesn’t get extra dry from shampoo.
The latest addition to the Ledda fragrance family: 18 Vanilla Nera. A very sweet vanilla with hints of spice, thanks to a touch of ginger and cardamom. It’s almost as if it’s holiday time and I’m eating a delicious spiced cake, but it’s store-bought so the spices are turned down and the vanilla is turned way up, but that’s ok because this is the dessert that’s mostly for the kids anyway.
Is this a grown up vanilla? I’d say, maybe, for the person who wants to pretend that they’re grown up because they can order their own perfume online, but for those of us actually paying taxes and packing lunches… this is a throw-back to when “grown-up” was a concept and not a reality.
The formula is intense, and super strong, and the presentation doesn’t disappoint. Of course, even Zara is packaging each perfume in heavy glass bottles now, but this juice doesn’t smell generic and there’s impressive longevity in each spray. A safe blind-buy if you like cozy sweet vanillas, but maybe Burberry Goddess had too much ambroxan for you, or you didn’t like the lavender note. Maybe Dolce and Gabanna Divine Devotion was too citrusy in the opening and that wasn’t your thing either. Maybe you like the impressive bottle and the idea of getting your hands on something not everyone has. Then 18 Vanilla Nera is for you.
This cute case that dropped for Fenty Beauty’s holiday collection is already sold out, but the lipstick in Sorta Single is a mainstay. I love that the brand continues to offer super pigmented and bright colours – especially in their limited edition accessory drops, probably tapping into what their customers seem to be buying. Offering a lipstick that you have to buy a separate case for is an interesting choice for a brand and reviews on Sephora are all over the place – lots of people love them, and some find they’re too clunky. I’m in the love column. I like that you choose the case and the refill, although I don’t think that I’m ever going to run out of any of these lipsticks. The colours are great but the only ones I’ve ever finished are lipsticks that are sheer, glossy, and can be reapplied on the go without a mirror. Still, Sorta Single is a sorta red/magenta that is like a red when you don’t wanna red but it’s bright and yeah, there’s a sorta stain when it’s gone.
Although Sephora has next day shipping on things that are in stock in their stores, if you’re buying any of the gifts for yourself, you’re better off getting them from the Fenty website, where many are on sale. You won’t get them in time for Christmas, but probably the savings are worth it.
I’m also loving this new shade of the Fenty Beauty Cream Gloss in Dragonfly. It’s only available in the gift set, which is sold out at Sephora but available on the Fenty Beauty website. This set has a value of over $70 but retails for $55, so whether you keep the glosses for yourself or share them with someone, it’s a great value. Again, at this point, they may not arrive until after Christmas, but that’s ok.
It’s been a while since I shopped for perfume (or anything!) at a real in-person physical store, and my experience at Diptyque was a good one. I wasn’t planning on buying anything but then I did, and a whole bunch of samples came with it, like this cute Eau de Sens body wash. Eau de Sens is green and fresh – it’s a petitgrain scent that’s unisex. Think delicate green stems and branches without the thick bark. Green leaves that smell like summer is coming. No heat, just optimism. The experience is luxurious and if you’re looking for a good gift idea for the holidays, then a bougie body wash is the perfect thing for a perfume lover. Even if it’s a scent they don’t love, it’s a luxury that they might not get for themselves and that’s what the best presents are.
After taking a picture of this, I had to take a picture of all the skincare I’ve been loving recently. The next picture is of the cleansers. Cerave Hydrating Cream to Foam Cleanser is a great one for people with normal or oily skin that maybe just feels a little parched in the winter. This is a more gentle cleanser but because it’s foaming it still washes clean.
The Tatcha Rice Wash is also a creamy foam and lovely. I thought that it would be more exfoliating because of the rice, but because there’s so much foam, there’s no scrubbing action to be found. La Roche-Posay Toleriane Dermo-Cleanser is a cream cleanser that’s good for dry skin. No foam here, and it leaves skin hydrated. I sometimes use it as my first cleanse or as my only cleanse in the morning. Finally, Avene Micellar water, which smells amazing and I use on reusable cotton pads to soak off mascara. It’s lovely and comes in a huge bottle so that I can use lots and replace less frequently.
Changing cleansers in the winter could help with a dry skin situation, if that’s what you have going on. Try it.
I was feeling inspired so I did a black cherry lip. I used Covergirl Clean Fresh Tinted Lip Balm in Bliss You Berry. It is rather dark and ver tinted. I used the Clean Fresh Yummy Gloss in Acai You Later and I loved this – apparently this is what all the kids are using right now once they run out of Sephora money 🤣. Will you try this? It’s a pretty easy holiday look, especially if you’re the type of person (me) who thinks a new lip colour is “dressing up”.
Trust me, if I was impressed, anyone on your list will be too. This is the perfect gift for anyone – whether they’re into skincare, beauty, or perfume.
This is the cutest makeup bag and came as part of a larger gift set. You get the bag, a setting spray, a Magic Cream, a mascara, and a full-sized Pillow Talk lipstick. They’re still available on the Charlotte Tilbury and Sephora website and in store.
I can’t believe how close to Christmas we are. It just snuck up on me!
The Watier Fondant Lipsticks are my favourite lipsticks right now. Slightly sheer, but immensely wearable, they are easy to throw on and look amazing.
The lipstick swatches are in Kate and Sarah. Kate is my go-to but I’ve been using Sarah a lot too. And they’re Invisalign-friendly for my peeps who are looking for that info. Some-how this creamy and moisturizing formula doesn’t end up all over your teeth so that’s a win.
Gifted.
It’s a perfume for someone living in Paris who grew up around vintage perfumes but trying to break away from my mom’s perfumes, I’m going indie where the ingredients are pricy and the formulas are heftier. It’s like moving out of your parent’s house as a fit of rebellion, but not to worry, you’re going into a pretty loft that your dad bought as an investment years ago. This rose feels like you’ve met it before, but unlike the rose in your memory, the real thing is much more interesting.
The brand is known for its florals and references to Guerlain’s Nahema are apt, the rose here is fresh and potent. There’s also patchouli, and the combination of spices and rose and patchouli might remind you of other rose-patchouli perfumes, but Dusita perfumes have better quality materials – you can smell the difference. Every aspect of the perfume is rich and textured, the rose so potent that it’s like sticking your nose into a bouquet of red roses created just for you.
At this point, it’s hard to be really wowed by a rose perfume, but the mix of florals here smells of high-quality and is in the style of classic French perfumery, so Rosarine is a delight to wear.
Even though it’s just an eau de parfum, this is a potent mix. I could catch whiffs of it on my skin even after I showered so this isn’t a rose that’s going to disappear slowly. In fact, all the Dusita perfumes that I’ve tried have been heady and intense, and I’d love for the brand to have an eau de cologne formula that you can spritz on from head to toe.
Ambre Sultan by Serge Lutens today. It makes me think of virile strength, a man breaking his way through a dry jungle, tree branches snapping, dusty earth under his feet, the snapping of dry leaves that crumble in your hands. He escapes the bush only to come upon dry sand, desert.
A woodsy amber harkening back to when perfumes didn’t have to be so sweet. Bay leaf, oregano, sandalwood, and an earthy patchouli. Easy to wear because it doesn’t get cloying or heavy.
I’m making pasta sauce and looking at the snow out of the window. It’s an Ambre Sultan weekend.
