When it comes to beauty, there’s almost nothing I love more than trying out a new fragrance. Sometimes it’s an instant hit, but more times than not, it’s a pass. This nose sniffs a lot of samples, from when I visit the mall/Sephora to checking out indy brands when I can. Who wants to smell like everyone else or have everyone know when you're wearing Flowerbomb to death? There's just so many scents out there so make 2019 the year you find a unique one for yourself.

One I came across recently is the eau de parfums by KIERIN NYC. What I like about this brand besides all four scents being genderless is how different each one is from one another. Each is hypoallergenic, vegan, cruelty-free, free of parabens & phthalates, and formaldehydes, among others. The brand also keeps a close eye on sourcing all their ingredients, only choosing to work with suppliers that share their sustainability views. 

And how about the sleek white bottles? The art is on each scent is very gorilla street art and will stand out sitting on your shelf.

As the name states, each is inspired by NYC stories and available in the following:

• 10 a.m. Flirt – fresh, flirty, magnetic.
• Sunday Brunch - floral, cheerful, luminous.
• Nitro Noir – spicy, intoxicating, hypnotic.
• Santal Sky – woody, intimate, serene.

Click here to read more

How do you choose your body products? Scent? Price? Ingredients? I pick mine based on all four of those premises and if you do too, then need to know about MALIE (pronounced may-lee-ay). It’s a luxury aromatherapy line from the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Highlighting their natural resources is their inspiration and they include them in every product, more specifically, hydrosols, which are the by-products of oil infused water collected during the steam distillation process. You won’t find a lot of strange words in the ingredient list and every product is cruelty-free. Besides the body products I’m focusing on here, they also offer candles and skin care. Read more about the different lines on their site @ malie.com.

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A company I’ve written about before here has pointed out an age-old problem when it comes to fragrance and the wintertime. Spritz a fragrance on in the summer and it seems to lasts and last but spray the same on in the winter months and boom, it can fall flat, so they’ve done something about it.

SCENTBIRD has created the Hand Cream Collection, which features fragrance notes, like a perfume, and tucks them inside moisturizing hand creams they claim will last all day.

And they make the actual creams with vitamins A and E, and aloe and without parabens or sulfates. 

Choose from scents like Cucumber & Lotus, Earl Grey & Blackberry, Pineapple & White Amber, Rose & Prosecco, White Tea & Fig, and Yuzu & Ginger.

The nitty-gritty – while these do have real ingredients like rosehip oil, chamomile flower extract, aloe etc, they all still list ‘fragrance’ in the overall list, which is usually synthetic. And it is about the 6^th ingredient listed and comes before any of the notes. Sad face here. I know that there are a lot of body creams that make a perfumed cream, so I’m thinking that the notes these are made up of are not as sustainable in a cream like this? Not sure but just thought you should know in case something like this is important to you.

So the big question - how long did the scent last? With no hand washing involved, I could still smell the fragrance at about the 9th hour. Yes, it was faint but that's how any fragrance would be after 9th hours, right? 

Just like their perfumes, you can get a subscription to your favorite one so you never find yourself without. Pick up one Hand Cream up for $12/1oz, $16.50/1.7oz or sign up for a subscription and get one for $14.95/1.7oz/month @ scentbird.com.

Disclosure: Samples of these items were provided for review purposes.

There’s nothing like the power of fragrance to take you away and boost your mood. I think we can all use a little dash right now. I’m getting my fix from the latest from the CLEAN brand.

They came out with two new ones a few months ago: Rain & Pear (fresh with notes freesia, of dewy pear, melon, violet and muguet, among others) and Air & Coconut Water (fresh with a little more floral than the aforementioned with notes of bergamot, lemon, coconut nat neo, freesia, rose, clean air musk, among others).

Both are light and airy and nice for the current season but I’m leaning more towards the Air & Coconut Water.

Something I’ve always been interested in is layering different scents, or what Clean calls it, fragrance pairing. And they show you how to pair theirs!

You should know that the above two are eau de fraiche. What does that mean exactly? See the bullet points below!

• eau de parfum -- 15 to 22 percent essential oils
• eau de toilette -- 8 to 15 percent
• cologne or eau de cologne -- 4 percent
• eau fraiche -- the most diluted version of scent with just 1 to 3 percent.

So if you like your scent to be just a wisp of scent and not overpowering, these could be just for you. 

$48/5.9oz @ cleanperfume.com, kohls.com.

Disclosure: Samples of these items were provided for review purposes.

Not wow’d by this fragrance or this one I recently suggested? Well then how about creating your very own personalized scent? With SCENT TRUNK you can do that and the cost doesn’t break the bank. I did this a few years ago and it was quite fun. The only difference with this one is that I do it in the privacy of my own home.

First, you sign up to receive their Fit Kit (just pay for shipping of $4.95) and you will receive back in the mail cute little roll-ons of the following core scents: floral, citrus, woods, aromatic, chypre, and oriental.

Next, go on their site and declare which aforementioned scents you like, dislike or are meh about.

Shortly thereafter, you will receive a spray that should last you the month and then you can reorder the same one or change it up a little the next time for only $11.95/month. And if you don’t like the final scent they send, they’ll send you something new for free.

What I like most about this scent is that I don’t have anything like it in my vast collection of scents! I mean, I really thought I had it covered in my collection but now, I think I do … but do I?

Create your own scent @ scenttrunk.com and what a thoughtful gift this would make for your best girlfriend or boyfriend!

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided for review purposes.

Fragrance has been on the top of my mind and here’s another one to consider! As you know, URBAN DECAY loves naked and all things naked so it doesn’t surprise me that they named this one ‘Go Naked’ It’s a concentrated perfume oil and wow is this one tropical and summery! Maybe something you would wear when naked perhaps?

Notes: Italian bergamot, lavender, citrus, neroli, sea salt, musk. For me, the middle notes really shine through with the really orange blossom really standing out to my nose.

It will be $24 and available for VIB Rouge members @ sephora.com on June 3 and @ urbandecay.com on June 7, and then July 13 at all Sephora locations. Like any fragrance the brand has put out over the years, this one is limited-edition so be sure to pick it up while you can.

And be sure to pick up any of their Naked palettes for $54 each through the above link!

Disclosure: Samples of these items were provided for review purposes.

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To say that I have grown to be a huge fan of the ELIE SAAB perfume collection is an understatement. I mean, I’ve featured so many of her fragrances on the site over the years and I don’t seem to be slowing down.

The latest one is what’s being ordered up for summer, The Resort Collection. And again it’s created by renowned perfumer Francis Kurkdjian. And I’d call this a fruity floral. Just look at these notes: white flowers, red mandarin, open the scent, frangipani accord, pomegranate, and orange blossom, jasmine are at the heart and Indonesian patchouli is the base. 

So how does it fair against the others? Some days I love it and other days, I don’t. I have a handful of fragrance in my collection where I have to be in the mood to wear it and this one seems to fall into that category. Now I’m really into fruity florals but this one is a heavier one than what I’m used to and again, I have to have an outfit at ready to go with this scent because when it works, it really works!

Are you in the market for a new lush summer scent?

$98/3oz @ nordstrom.com.

Disclosure: A sample of this item was provided for review purposes.

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Nothing makes me think of springtime like roses! Here are three that having we whistling while using.

PIXI BEAUTY Makeup Fixing Mist ($15/2.70oz @ pixibeauty.com, target.com) – makeup setting sprays are H-O-T right now. This one contains rose water and green tea to balance pH and hydrate.

KYPRIS Beauty Elixir I ($225/1.5oz @ kyprisbeauty.com, nordstrom.com) – this is the Rolls Royce of beauty elixirs. It contains 19 active natural ingredients, which includes organic and biodynamic Bulgarian Rose Essential Oil, and CoQ10, vitamin C, among others.

GIORGIO ARMANI BEAUTY Sí Eau de Parfum ($86/1.7oz, $112/3.4oz @ ulta.com, sephora.com) – I’m a fan of the original Sí and this one has a touch of rose to the mix.

CRYSTAL HILLS ORGANICS Crystal Love Body Serum ($58/4oz @ crystalhills.com) – I don’t waste my time with body oils that contain fillers like silicones. This one has a lot of great ones like rosehip, coconut, apricot kernel, and rice bran oils.

Disclosure: Samples of these items were provided for review purposes. 

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So we are officially off to the races, the shopping races, that is. Only twenty-nine shopping days left until Christmas! So what’s my go-to gift this year? For women, overall, I still find the scented body lotion one of the best gifts you can give a woman. It’s personal yet not personal at the same time and most importantly, something the recipient probably wouldn’t pick up themselves.

I’m adding to the above pick this year with a perfumed candle. I mean, who doesn’t love a great candle and in their favorite scent? You really can’t go wrong. 

Two that I’ve enjoyed that fall under this category are ALAïA PARIS Scented Candle ($89/5.2oz @ saks.com) Body Lotion ($55/6.7oz @ saks.com) and the Scented Body Cream ($95/6.9oz @ saks.com). This is the brand’s first fragrance ever and it took a few to grow on me as it’s not like anything else I have or normally go for. It’s described as airy notes and pink pepper; freesia and peony; animal notes and musk.

But if this one is not your flavor or your recipients, there are a ton of brands that make a scented cream and scented candle like this one or this one.

Disclosure: Samples of these items were provided for review purposes.

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I really like independent perfume brands. I mean, who wants to smell like everyone else? I recently experienced the Santa Barbara, CA-based MALIA B. line of fragrances and these are not your typical ones found in a Sephora or Ulta. The brand sells the fragrances as 1/8oz roll on using only perfume oils so it’s a very concentrated. And it lasts on the skin.

Malia – orange and jasmine with a fresh top green note

Soul – pineapple, papaya and coconut

Luv – white flowers, gardenia and vanilla

My nose most resonated with the Luv because it is just so feminine with the gardenia notes and Soul really grew on me after a few wears! And each paper label attached to the perfume is wildflower seeded paper so you can plant the piece of paper in soil and it will grow flowers. Nice touch!

$38 each and all 3 sampled for $2 @ maliab.com.

Disclosure: Samples of these items were provided for review purposes.

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