Aequill Juniper Berry and Cedarwood Candle

The first thing you should know about this candle is that it smells likes a double gin and tonic. I could even go as far as saying that the Juniper and Cedarwood Candle smells like enjoying a gin and tonic by the fireplace. That probably sounds a bit contrived but if you could smell this, you'd totally understand!
Gin is made from Juniper berries so it makes sense that the fragrance is going to somewhat resemble the cocktail while the addition of Cedarwood creates that toasty Autumnal feel.

Perfect for candle lovers who enjoy rich, woody fragrances, the candle also features notes of Bergamot and Vetiver to complete the scent beautifully.
The Juniper Berry and Cedarwood Candle is part of Aequill's 'Mum's Aromatherapy Shop' range which founder Jintana Khieochuam created after being inspired by helping her mum blend essential oils in her beauty shop.
Other candles in the range include Grapefruit and Vetiver, Lavender and Marjoram, Lemon and Rose Geranium and Orange and Ylang Ylang. The candles are paraffin wax based for optimum scent throw.

I think the backstory of Aequill as a brand is quite nice- Jintana was born in Thailand and moved to London with her mother who owned a beauty therapy clinic. Growing up, Jintana was surrounded by essential oils and was intrigued by their therapeutic properties. Her interest in essential oils coupled with an obsession with candles gave way to the inception of Aequill, which is based on the idea that old and new worlds need to collide for a sustainable balance. Like the rest of the range, the Juniper Berry and Cedarwood Candle is presented in a 100% recycled glass jar and is hand poured. The traditional apothecary feel of the packaging is inspired by Jintana's first job in a chemist.
To finish, each box is hand-stamped with a wax seal. Gorgeous. Aequill 'Mum's Aromatherapy Shop' candles are available in regular (approx 200g) for £24 and travel size (approx 100g) for £14. Interestingly, Aequill also offer an eco-refill service which I think is a very cool touch.
You can read more about Aequill and find stockists here.

Liberty Beauty Advent Calendar Reveal #25

Merry Christmas/ Happy Holidays etc etc ;) On Christmas Day the Liberty Beauty Advent Calendar has given us a 70g Diptyque Tubereuse Candle. I think there were two different fragrances available but I'm happy with this - though to be honest I would be happy with any of Diptyque's fragrances. The scent throw of these candles and clever fragrance blends really make them stand out. This one is worth around £20 and you can find the 190g version of it at Liberty.
Thanks for reading and Merry Christmas!

Bath and Body Works Pumpkin Pie Candle

If there ever was a candle that smelled exactly like the description on the label, this is it. I impulsively ordered the Bath and Body Works Pumpkin Spice Candle from Amazon the other night for two reasons.

1. The description of the sweet, spiced pumpkin scent sounded irresistible and just what our flat needed to get suitably autumnal and Halloweeny

2. It was available for next day delivery through Amazon Prime and my trial subscription was about to expire.
Trivial justifications, I know, but scented candles are one of life's little pleasures and quite frankly, I like them.

The Pumpkin Pie Candle is described as: A delicious autumnal blend of creamy pumpkin, whipped vanilla and flaky pie crust that's as sweet as your favourite pumpkin pie.
It's a pretty spot on description really - like deeply inhaling a Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte with an extra shot of syrup. It's just very, very nice.

The Pumpkin Pie Candle that I have is only 170g but the scent throw is seriously good- our living room fills with the scent almost immediately after lighting it. It also allegedly has a burn time of 30-40 hours, though that is yet to be confirmed. This candle wasn't particularly cheap but it was still less expensive than a Diptyque 70g candle (though Diptyque really are in a league of their own when it comes to fragrance), so looking at it that way may just be justification enough!

Getting your hands on a Bath and Body Works Candle without making the trip to America used to be tricky and super, super expensive but it looks like there are now a few UK sellers on Amazon flogging them for a somewhat reasonable price. If you're keen to try a candle or body product from Bath and Body Works, have a browse on Amazon and see what you can find. I now understand what all the fuss is about with this brand!

L'Erbolario Narciso Sublime Bath Foam & Candle

Italian plant-based beauty brand L'Erbolario have pretty much bottled Spring with the Narciso Sublime collection. As a rule, I'm not much of a florals girl and will usually choose gourmande/ vanilla scents over anything too flowery but I must make an exception with this scent because it is a little bit gorgeous.

The Narciso Sublime range is based around the fragrance of the Narcissus flower ( also known as the daffodil but Narcissus sounds so much better) - a pretty special flower really because it is known to bloom before all the other flowers. With this in mind, this is a lovely fragrance for this time of the year when we're all still walking around with our coats on yet have secretly already started fake tanning as if we're willing the sun to come out.

I have the Narciso Sublime Bath Foam and Perfumed Candle to try and have so far been enjoying both rather a lot!

I've turned into quite the bath dweller recently so the bath foam couldn't have come at a better time to a more willing guinea pig! A couple of glugs added to a running bath produce fluffy, foamy bubbles that leave the skin delicately scented with the narcissus fragrance. Narcissus flowers and Narcissus distilled water combine with almond oil sufactants (basically a natural cleansing agent) and oat amino acids to soften the skin while you soak. The skin softening and toning agents are just a bonus to me really because the scent alone makes the bath foam worth using!

The Narciso Sublime Perfumed Candle is a proper luxury candle with a very decent scent throw considering its compact size. The candle is soy-based and encased in a heavy little glass jar with the prettiest/ cutest/ swooniest (not a word) design featuring illustrations of the Naricissus flowers. As you can see I have burned it a little already but I'm glad I've photographed it now so I can actually start burning it recklessly.

The Narciso Sublime collection also includes an Eau de Parfum, Cream Talc, Soap, Body Oil and Body Cream and can be found online or at the L'Erbolario store in London N1.

This post contains a sample