candles

December 2018 Favorites

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December 2018 FavoritesDecember 2018 Favorites
1. Urban Decay Heavy Metal Glitter Liner in Midnight Cowboy, $20 / 2. Dove Dry Oil Moisture Body Wash, $5 /
3. St Tropez Tan Build Up Remover Mitt, $6.50 / 4. Jergens Natural Glow Wet Skin Moisturizer, $8 /
5. Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Whey in Double Rich Chocolate, $50

How ’bout that, we survived another trip around the sun. In spite of not feeling remotely enthused about the holidays, December was a blur; it started with a business trip, ended with a brief break from my day job and a visit from a dear friend. Today, I find myself back in the saddle of my normal routine. Details on my December 2018 Favorites after the jump.

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Off Topic: Candles

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Are you even a beauty blogger if you don’t talk about candles? /s

Anyway, I can’t resist. Not because of the oddly pervasive stereotype that I just poked fun at, but because I really freaking like a few so I’m going to share. I can deviate from time-to-time, damn it. Call it beauty-for-the-home, if you will.

Yankee Candles

I tend to buy a lot of Yankee Candles when they’re on sale. They carry a lot of fragrances that:

  • I enjoy
  • My husband enjoys (or at least tolerates)
  • Do not give either of us headaches

motheroceancandle

Mother Ocean from the Margaritaville collection is … everything. It’s fresh without being overpowering. I think the ozone component is responsible for my obsession with this fragrance. It’s incredible, and if money were no object I’d clear the shelves at my local Yankee store every time I saw it in stock. This is my absolute favorite candle, period. I will grieve when they end the line.

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2015 Holiday Gift Guide – Under 25

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Those of you in the United States, I hope you had a delightful Thanksgiving. I’m still working on my tryptophan coma. No, I did not go shopping yesterday (I vehemently disagree with shopping on Thanksgiving). No, I did not line up or go shopping today (as someone who, in a past life, worked Black Friday at a big-box store… never).

ANYWAY. The $25 and under price point is where value really starts to kick in. Admittedly, I was wanting to add most of these to my own cart (especially the candles & Black Honey set!) – but I’m on a bit of a no-buy for myself for the time being.

2015 Holiday Gift Guide – Under $25

LORAC Pocket PRO and Pocket PRO2, $18 ea

I’ve hosted giveaways for each of these, because, frankly, they’re a great sampling from their big sister palettes, LORAC PRO and LORAC PRO 2 (which I also reviewed & gave away). They’re a great value, and a nice way to expose someone to prestige-quality products without busting your own budget. Quite stuffable, as far as stockings are concerned, too.

2015 Holiday Gift Guide – Under 25

Primal Elements Santa’s Cookies, $20

This one is the scent of warm cookies (side note, who’s ready to put those holiday baking skills to the test?!) and it is divine. Really, practically anything from Primal Elements. I found Primal Elements years and years ago – Ulta.com actually carried some of their smaller candles on their site back then. I picked up a small pair of their Tahitian Vanilla candles – the’re so unique, a blend of wax and that weird, fun-colored jelly-goo… and they smell amazing. Most of the candles in my house are Yankee due to the sheer accessibility and price-point, but I’d say Primal Elements candles are my true candle love.

More of my 2015 Holiday Gift Guide – Under 25 after the jump…

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