Jo Malone Wood Sage and Sea Salt Cologne Review

One day closer to Christmas. And I need to get started with gift shopping. I think I am going to try and do at least one order a day until I am done. First order is the easiest. Tomorrow I will have to put on my thinking cap. I also need to think of what I am gonna make for Christmas. I'm seeing people try the new Grinch meal from McDonald's. Maybe I'll do a Grinch theme? That could be fun. But what could I make? 

 In the meantime, I have a quick cologne review. The last in the discovery set I bought that had five minis. I think it was part of their best sellers. I saved the best for last? Or did I.

Jo Malone claims:

Breathe in the bracing air of the British coast. The windswept shore alive with sea salt and the mineral scent of rugged cliffs. Immersed in wild waters, the sound of breaking waves heightening the senses. The natural beauty of the British Isles inspires a fresh woody scent.

Top - Ambrette Seeds

Its textural quality wraps the top notes with an aura of sophistication.

Heart - Sea Salt

The crunchy nature of sea salt brings both texture and a sense of freshness and purity to the heart of the fragrance.

Base - Sage

Woody with earthy, aromatic tones that bring a natural depth to the base, grounding the sea salt accord.

 I was eyeing this in candle form but I really wasn't sure it would be a scent for me. It was the Wood Sage that had be unsure. I tend to love Sea Salt scents. I think. I'm basing it on that being my favorite cleaning spray scent (Method Lime and Sea Salt). 

That being said, I really enjoy the scent. Or at least I did in the beginning. I don't think it smells like what it says. It just smells fresh. A little citrusy. It's just immediately pleasing to the nose. It's supposed to smell like the British coast. I've been on the British coast. I don't remember it smelling this nice. I'm also a little surprised because it is a woody fragrance and usually those can go either way. But I do like this one.

This is one that I do agree is unisex. So many fragrances these days fall into that category....but they don't really seem uni. I think it's just trendy. But this one I could see anyone wearing. 

It is a newer scent- came out in 2014. I'm always glad to try newer scents because the oldie scents although fun to try mostly don't seem to stand the test of time. 

The main problem is that it doesn't last. It's nice for as long as you can smell it- then it disappears. And it disappears fast. You can really try to layer it on and it will not stick around for more than 30 minutes to an hour. 

It's also a simple scent- it's not a journey. It doesn't develop. You don't get interesting top, middle, or base notes. It's very linear. 

For the price I'm not sure I think it's worth it. It's nice. Non- offensive. Easy to wear and I'm glad I gave it a try. But I wouldn't pay asking price. I think it should be cheaper. Not cheap- but just more affordable. I wouldn't buy it in cologne form again- but I do want the candle. Maybe the next time I am in the market for a candle- I'll pick it up. 

Nudy Rudy Berrylicious Soap with Cloudberry Extract and Shea Butter Review

 

My oven is not cooperating with me at the moment. I thought once I got off work I would try to make another batch of brownies. Some days my oven get's hot enough- other days it just does what it wants. I probably should have just baked in my more accurate small oven. Ah well.

Today we have a new to me brand. Nudy Rudy. Made in Australia. I love trying different brands from other countries so I was excited to see this.

Nudy Rudy claims: 

NUDY RUDY was born out of a feeling and desire for the purest form of simplicity: being bold, happy, label-free individuals, or in other words, being NUDY. NUDY RUDY is an expression of freedom and attitude with the aim of bringing body care to every body, giving you a range of personal care products that celebrates your differences, with a little cheeky humor thrown in. Our secret to ensuring a beautiful, velvety texture with long-lasting smooth and silky touch is Shea Butter. Our generous amounts of Shea Butter in every NUDY RUDY soap bar ensures long-lasting use and a beautiful texture and feel against the skin.Adding vitamin and antioxidant-rich cloudberries to our soap is approved by 70% of all known Vikings. Or at least we like to think it would be. Native to the Arctic Circle, Cloudberries have a sweet, tangy smell that makes you forget all the good stuff inside the soap. Made with natural ingredients and no harsh chemicals with love by some crazy Aussies.

• Cheeky soap with Nordic cloudberry extract. Approved by 70% of all known Vikings.
• Enriched with shea butter. Soapy, sudsy and soft all over. Get nudy and just add water
• Berrylicious adds cloudberries that are rich in vitamins and antioxidants for a sweet & tangy smell
• Plant Oil Soap
• Made in Australia
• Cruelty free
• 4.2 oz when packed
  
  
  
  
  
  What's a cloudberry? Doesn't sound real does it? According to the Googles it's an amber colored berry that grows in arctic/alpine regions. It's often mistaken for a raspberry or blackberry. They are high in Vitamin C and used in folk medicine. I wish I could try one. Maybe I could find some jam or something one day. So I have no idea what cloudberry is supposed to smell like.

 If the soap smells like cloudberry I couldn't tell you. But I can tell you I'm not a fan of the scent of this soap. It smells like something else I have bought before that I can't quite remember.A berry scented soap never appealed to me in the first place. I really didn't think I would like it. And I don't. It's not a bad scent- I just don't enjoy it. Maybe it's a generic berry scent? 

It's not strong and doesn't last long.

You get a decent size of soap for the price. I think I got this under five dollars. It's also a hard bar that seems like it would last a decent amount of time. I melted mine down on purpose to try and get rid of it because I wanted to use it up so I could move on to something else.

It comes in nice packaging that is very easily recyclable- no plastic to worry about.

I almost forgot to talk about the shape- which I really dislike. It's an awkward shape to hold. I wish it had any other shape than this. It gets better as it melts down. 

It's also the most drying soap I have tried in quite awhile. My skin just feels like the moisture got sucked right out of it. Nothing lotion can't fix but worth noting.

Ingredients are pretty basic- same things you see in most soap.It does have Shea Butter and cloudberry extract. I like that the ingredient list is nice and short. 

Ingredients: 

Sodium Palmate*, Sodium Palm Kernelate*, Aqua*, Sodium Gluconate*, Fragrance, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter*, Palm Acid*, Glycerin*, Rubus Chamaemorus (Arctic Cloudberry) Fruit Extract*, Sodium Chloride*, Titanium Dioxide*

Overall, this wasn't for me. I do still have about three different scents from the brand so I'll probably be reviewing those very soon. Hopefully I like the other scents a lot more than I liked this. 

Samples Review: Kayali Vanilla 26 and Prada Infusion De Figue Parfum

 It's been a minute since I've had any samples to review. Now I have quite a few. Mostly skincare. But I do have these two perfume samples so figured I would give them a go instead of keeping them sitting around and collecting dust.

Kayali Vanilla 28- This came in my latest Sephora order. I have seen this brand everywhere- they seem to have really great reviews. Normally I would think Vanilla is a little boring but I love the top notes of this. I  think it's probably the best vanilla scent I've come across. It's been a minute since I've used straight up vanilla. There is also quite a bit of patchouli in it that I really picked up on in the latter half of the wear. I used the entire sampler and it seems to last forever. I could even smell it the next day when I woke up. I'm not typically a fan of gourmands but this is nice. I actually want a full size bottle. 

Next up Prada Infusion De Figure. I've never experienced a full sized Prada perfume. Only a few samples here and there. I've had a few fig candles and sampled a few fig perfumes. This is quite a different scent to any other fig scent. Really unique in general. It definitely smells of summer. It's nice enough...I thought it was OK. It didn't compare to the Kayali perfume which I enjoyed much more in comparison. I think I would have liked this one more on a hot summer day...it's just not the right season for it. I don't see myself buying it anytime soon...but it was nice to try something so unique. 

And that's all for now....

Pooka Nectar Hair Oil and Treatment Review

 I made it to Season 6 of Game of Thrones. I'm surprised I have made it this far- usually this is about where it started falling apart for me. I found the Mereen storyline really boring as well as the Dorne storyline. Almost forgot about the Iron Island storyline- but that was mega boring as well. The only interesting part of the show was the stuff with the High Sparrow (he was a great "villain" that wasn't really a villain- cause shouldn't we all be on his side?) and the stuff going on at Castle Black. Hopefully I can make it through this time and then I'll be switching to  Christmas movies and getting into watching all the classics and a few more I haven't seen.

In the meantime, hair oil.

Pooka claims: 

Feed your hair everything it deserves with our delicious Hair Nectar. A quadfecta of goodness with lemon, rosemary, peppermint & lavender essential oils.  Perfect to use in your next hot oil treatment or just for daily use. 

Pair it with our lush hair butter for a supernova of hair goopery.

Ingredients: Avocado Oil, Olive oil, Beeswax, Rosemary, Lavender, Lemon, Peppermint  Essential Oils & Fragrance

I haven't tried a lot of this brand- but what I have tried I really like. They use glass packaging, the ingredients are great and the prices aren't outrageous. 

I've had this hair oil for years- mostly because I just forget about using a hair oil. It's not something I need- I don't have scalp issues or dry scalp. But if I did I think I would use it more often. Because I do like the ingredients. But it is a heavy oil so I only like using it has an oil treatment before I wash my hair. 

It might be a good one to use if just want to promote a healthy scalp which is the best for health and growth.  I probably could have used more at the front of my hair that seemed to have thinned a little in the front after using the Mielle products. But my hair is back to normal anyway. 

I think it's great for your scalp though and if I was a devoted hair oil user this is the one I would go for. 

It smells nice. And even though I have had it for years it still smells great. The scent is hard to describe but it's a bright and pleasant scent. 

It comes in a brown glass apothecary. My favorite type of packaging. I love anything in glass over plastic.

The ingredients are exactly what I like to see. I am looking at the site now and it seems a little different from what's on my bottle...not sure if the ingredients changed or if they didn't fully list everything. You could definitely DIY something yourself a bit cheaper....but I think this is a nice brand to support if you can't DIY. 

Ingredients: 

Olive oil, Avocado Oil, Rosemary, Lavender, Peppermint and Lemon Essential Oil Blend, Dried Lemon Peel, Rosemary and Lavender Buds, Fragrance 

Overall, it's a great hair oil. It's one I would recommend if it has a place in your hair routine.

Sweet Potato Fries and Cilantro Lime Sauce + Thanksgiving Dishes

 I feel like I have been cooking a lot this past week. I'm surprised I haven't just reached the point where I start burning things. I also spent a good majority of today cooking. I'm waiting on my bread to finish rising so I can bake it up. 

In the meantime...this is what I made this past week.

Sweet Potato Fries 

First Fry 

And done! 

I have never made fresh fries. It's crazy- but true. And if I had known how easy it was I would have never bought the frozen fries. I'm thinking I might never buy them again. Fresh is always best. This came from the Unofficial Harry Potter book and it really was a recipe for plain fries. But sweet potatoes are in season and I love sweet potato fries. So I subbed sweet potatoes. You just cut them and double fry. So easy. I served with a fish sammich. 

Next up, Cilantro Lime Sauce. Except I skipped the Cilantro. I hate cilantro. Basically it's a sauce with Basil, Parsley, Lime, Jalapeño ( I forgot the Jalapeño), chicken broth, Balsamic Vinegar, honey  and a few other things blended up. It was actually really good. You are supposed to cook it with white fish. I ended up frying up fish nuggets (first time frying fish)- they came out really good. The sauce didn't do quite what I wanted it to do so I mixed it with a little mayo as a dipping sauce. I also drizzled it into my lentil soup. If you love basil you would love this. And now I know how to fry fish. I would definitely make this or something like this again. It's a great way to add flavor to whatever you are cooking and I loved it drizzled into soup.

Then for Thanksgiving I made a sweet potato pie. I love Sweet Potato Pie...it's a Thanksgiving favorite for me. My Dad makes the best sweet potato pie. Followed by my sister. And now I can say I make a  great one too! I want to make another for Christmas...I think the only thing I would change is using less sugar. Otherwise it was so, so good! I made an all butter crust which makes all the difference when you make a pie. 

And I also made mac and cheese. This is only my second time making a mac and cheese. I had to change up the cheeses from what I wanted because I could not find sharp cheddar and a few of the other cheeses I wanted to use. This one ended up being cream cheese, pecorino romano, gouda, and a lot of pepper jack. It was pretty good but I was missing the sharp cheddar.  This was it before the top was browned. It looks so much better with the brown top. I wish I had a bowl now....

And that's all for this week...

Sylvia Robinson

 

Otherwise known as the Mother of Hip Hop. Listening to her music and seeing her earlier image you might never had known that. But it's true. She was a founder and CEO of Sugar Hill records. Fascinating stuff. 

How Gorgeous is she in this clip? I don't have this in my playlist but I do really enjoy this performance so I thought I would share. So talented!  You would never guess she was a producer of the "Rapper's Delight" or "The Message" (Grandmaster Flash) 

Then a few decades later we have Pillow Talk. A bit of a risqué song at the time. Not so much today. I can't listen to this record without thinking of Erykah Badu. It really feels like her whole style was born from this song. 

The stuff of legends....