Happy Monday you guys! I neglected my little blog over the holiday but I’m back now! I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving, I certainly did. I have some delicious (and skinny–duh!) recipes to share with you this week that I … Continue reading
I have quite the collection of perfumes, some that I only wear during certain seasons and some that are year-round. I’ve always liked the idea of having a signature scent but I switch it up too much for this to happen. I’ve recently acquired two new perfumes and I’ve been rotating between just these two lately. They literally smell so good that I consistently smell myself throughout the day trying to soak up all the goodness. I think Jon loves these two new scents more than I do. He’s always leaning in to get more of the fragrance and telling me how awesome I smell. These are now a part of my year-round perfume collection since they’re both light enough for the warmer months and rich enough for cooler seasons.
While I could keep these scents to myself so I’m the only one who smells this good, I thought I’d do the nice thing and pass these little treasures along to you. You’re welcome! 
The first of these perfumes is Prada Candy. My June Beauty of the Month, Lauryn Evarts, listed this as one of her top 5 beauty essentials she can’t live without. I was hesitant to buy it because, as I’ve mentioned many times before, I get headaches really easily from perfumes so I’m not very adventurous when it comes to trying new scents. Especially ones that sound like they are going to be really sweet. I got a sample first and fell in love with the first spritz.
The top note is caramel and gives the seductive aspect to the scent. The powdery musk of the middle note adds the sophistication that the perfume boasts and the vanilla base note enhances the sensuality of the perfume.
I definitely smell the caramel and vanilla but it’s so much more than a sweet perfume. It has a very slight edge to it that keeps you from smelling like a dessert. Jon describes it as sexy and feminine and I agree. This is by far the sexiest, warmest, girliest scent I’ve ever worn. Allure voted it “Best Sweet Scent” in the 2011 Best of Beauty issue. One of my favorite things about this perfume is how light it is for being so warm and rich. It’s not overpowering at all when it’s on and you have to be fairly close to smell it. The staying power of the fragrance isn’t as great as some of the other perfumes I own but the scent is one-of-a-kind and worth every penny.
My friend Shay works as an aesthetician at Blush Beauty Bar in Portland (in addition to being on the Portland Trailblazers Stunt Team!). She has the skinny on all the best beauty products and has gotten me hooked on Tokyo Milk. They make the richest, delightfully scented hand creams and they also have matching perfumes that are surprisingly affordable ($36 per bottle!). I have several Tokyo Milk perfumes but Shay recently brought me Tainted Love during her visit last month and it’s divine. Shay absolutely loves this perfume and now I do too.
The notes in this scent are dark vanilla bean, orchid, white tea and sandalwood. The vanilla and sandalwood make the scent rich and sultry while the orchid and white tea lighten it up and make it as fresh and girly as it is sexy and warm. The staying power on this scent is similar to Prada Candy. By the end of the day I hardly smell it anymore. However, for the price and the scent quality it’s worth the purchase. Also, the bottle is small enough that you can carry it in your purse for easy re-application (2 oz).
Jon’s always raving about this one as well. I think the lesson here is that perfumes with notes of vanilla are bound to make you smell appealing to the opposite sex.
What perfume makes you feel irresistible?
Being a major product junkie, I’m constantly rotating cosmetics and grabbing new items to haphazardly throw put neatly in my purse. There are, however, a few items that are constant staples for me. Here are four things you can always find in my bag:
MAC Cremesheen Lipstick in Creme Cup-This is my perfect pink shade for both day and night and for any season. I also like a lipstick I can apply without having to look in the mirror and this shade is perfect for that.
Color Stick-I’m currently carrying Nars The Multiple in Orgasm, and I rotate that sometimes with Tarte Cheek Stain in True Love. These sticks are great for a quick blush touch up throughout the day and can double as a lip color in a pinch.
Smith’s Rosebud Salve-My favorite balm that also works as a lip gloss, cuticle moisturizer and dry/itchy skin soother.
Hand Cream-My hands get so dry in this desert climate so I always keep a moisturizer in my purse. My favorite line of hand cream is by Tokyo Milk. Their creams are full of shea butter and come in a variety of unique, beautiful fragrances. I’m currently rotating between the Dead Sexy and Honey & The Moon scents.
What are a few things you always carry?
Last week I came home to the sweetest little surprise in the mail. My friend Shay, one of my dearest friends in the whole world, sent me a darling little gift to congratulate me on starting my blog. This little cutie pie is always so thoughtful. She sends me hand written cards every once in a while to remind me that she’s thinking of me. She lives in Portland and, as you’ll see in the picture if you click on the above link, she’s on the Portland Trail Blazers Stunt Team. Yea, she’s totally awesome.
She sent me a beautiful card with the most thoughtful message, a Tokyo Milk hand cream in the Dead Sexy fragrance, and a The Balm Girls lipstick in Mai Billsbepaid. Since the gifts she sent are exactly the type of thing I would write about in my blog, I thought this would make a great post.
I absolutely adore Tokyo Milk. Their Honey & the Moon hand cream is my favorite hand cream ever. I recently ran out and need to get another one ASAP. The Dead Sexy cream Shay gave me smells heavenly. It’s supposed to smell like “Deep Vanilla, Exotic Wood, White Orchid, and Ebony.” It definitely has a rich, earthy, sexy smell to it. Tokyo Milk hand creams are extremely moisturizing and high quality. They also make perfumes to match all the hand cream scents. The packaging is always beautiful with all their products. They make candles, diffusers, and lip balms as well.
The Balm Girls lipstick also had really adorable packaging. It’s a James Bond theme. The Mai Billsbepaid color she gave me is a beautiful muted nudish mauve shade with no shimmer. The color didn’t photograph well on my hand or lips so I didn’t include any pictures of those. The lipstick applies well and has decent staying power. It has a bit of a mintiness to it that I really like. It tingles lightly when I’m wearing it.
I highly recommend all Tokyo Milk products and I’m going to try other shades in The Balm Girls lipstick line!
Shay sure knows how to make a friend feel special! I’m so proud and grateful to have her in my life.
Nail Polish Update! Wearing Essie Absolutely Shore. It’s a pale sea-foam green that’s perfect for Easter.
