Christmas Gift Ideas: Candles & Diffusers

Here are my ideas for gifting:

Beatitude's Christmas Comfort Candle* (200g - £30) is one of the nicest "Christmas" scented candles I've tried. It blends the original comfort candle (geranium, clementine, lavender and eucalyptus) with clove, cardamon & cinnamon and eco soy wax. It burns evenly and has a great throw. Highly recommend!

JOIK's Hot Chocolate Soy Wax Candle** (145g - £13.50) quite literally smells good enough to eat! See my review HERE.

The St Eval's Sea Salt Candle is one of my all time favourites (45hrs burn time - £9.46). See my review HERE.

Birch & Brook Library Scented Candle* (£38 - 40 hours burn time) I absolutely adore this "book" and "library" inspired scented candle. See my review HERE.

[M] Botanicals Rose Oud Soy Wax Candle (£15)* is one of my favourite candles I've tried this year. See my review HERE.

Amphora Aromatics Orange & Clove Reed Diffuser Kit* (£13.50) is one of the best reed diffusers I've tried. See my review HERE (it lasted six weeks using all the reeds and is such excellent value for money).

Are any of these on your wishlist?

*complimentary
**sent to me as part of the Love Lula Accredited Blogger Program

Christmas Gift Ideas

Here are some Christmas gift ideas:

From bodhi & birch their fabulous new Limited Edition Bath & Shower Oil Collection (3 x 15ml - £30) which consists of three great scents - all very different - so you can bathe or shower depending on your mood! Inside is Rosa Verde, a renewing blend which is formulated with Rose, Lime, Geranium & Frankincense. Jasmin de Lune (and my favourite) is relaxing. It's a blend of Jasmine, High Altitude Lavender and Vertiver. The final bath & shower oil is La Botanica which revives and detoxes. It's a blend of Lemon, Eucalyptus, Rosemary and Juniper Berry. Pick yours up HERE.

From Tropic Skincare I highly recommend their gorgeous Whipped Body Velvet (200ml - £28)* a deliciously fluffy and light as air body treat formulated with Madagascan rarabe butter and baobab oil which deeply nourishes the skin.  The scent is just divine with Tahitian and Bourbon vanilla extracts. 

This Christmas scented candle "Christmas Comfort" by beatitude (200g - £30)* is just Christmas in a jar. It combines the original "comfort" geranium, clementine, lavender and eucalyptus with cinnamon, clove and cardamon.

Sukin have a great range of gift sets. I reviewed their Love your Skin 3 step Face Kit* (£20). See my review HERE.

I love this little beautifully boxed set of minis from Willowberry. It's a great try me set and fantastic value at £30.95. I reviewed the products recently and loved them. See HERE.

Micheline Arcier have introduced a beautiful range of reed diffusers which I can imagine scent your home to perfection! They retail at £40-£45. I recently reviewed their Harmonie Dream Drops (15ml - £19)* which help to ensure a restful night's sleep - see my review HERE.

From Green People there are some beautiful gift sets - see HERE. I've been trying out latest launch which celebrates Green People's 20th Anniversary. Their Damask Rose Facial Oil (30ml - £29)* is simply divine (expect a review shortly).

As you'll know I'm a huge fan of Zing Organics. They have a range of Christmas gifts which appear on the website. My favourite is Winter Glow Skin Hamper (£49) which contains Eco Marine Algae Facial Cleansing Masque (review) & Velveteen Facial Serum (review) along with a bamboo face cloth and a couple of wooden spatulas (and a miniature cone found on the forest floor!)

A.S APOTHECARY Frankincense, Bergamot and Cedar Oil Scented Candle in a hand thrown Ceramic Pot (£42) which sounds absolutely heavenly. I also love the hand thrown pot!

I'm a huge fan of [M] Botanicals (especially their gorgeous Rose Oud Soy Wax Candle (REVIEW) and love their candle set which contains 4 candles - Rose Oud, Warm Lemongrass, Wild Grown Mint and Sour Plum - £50).

I'm currently testing out these products from Guiltless Skin (expect a review in January!) The set contains Charcoal Cleansing Gel 30g, Hydrate Intense Moisture Serum 30ml and Revive Organic Facial Oil 30ml along with a cotton travel bag. This set is brilliant value for money at £46. See the others available HERE.

Are any of these gifts on your wishlist?

*complimentary

[M] Botanicals Geranium Toning Body Oil

I'm a huge fan of [M] Botanicals having tried their mini skincare box (REVIEW) and their exquisite Rose Oud Soy Wax Candle* (REVIEW) so I was delighted to try and review their Geranium Toning Body Oil* (100ml - £25).

The body oil is lovingly handcrafted using a rich and indulgent blend of skin loving oils including Olive, Borage, Tamanu and Blackseed oils. The body oil is scented with Geranium, Frankincense & Bergamot essential oils and is simply heavenly!

It helps to fights cellulite and deeply hydrates the skin leaving it feeling nourished and smooth.

To use: apply generously to the skin after your bath or shower.

What's your favourite product from [M] Botanicals?

*complimentary

May: Lately I've Been Loving

Here are my May loves:

We had a night away in North Berwick last week. It's one of my favourite get-away places. It just calms my soul and makes me happy. Being sunny was a lovely added bonus!

These Pip & Nut Squeeze packs are great for some nutty goodness on the go! 

I first spotted The Salt Parlour on Instagram and this Energising Lime & Avocado Salt & Sulphur Scrub is gorgeous! It deeply exfoliates the skin and smells delicious. I also love the simple but pretty packaging.

I love Estonian brand, JOIK. See my review of these salts* HERE. They make for a great soak and are great value at £6.00.

Latest Launch at Love Lula is Walden Natural Perfumes. I've been testing out two of them. You can see my thoughts on Two Eternities EdP* HERE. A Little Star-Dust EdP* is a heady blend of Ylang Ylang, Iris, Jasmine, Amyris and Tonka Bean. It is a beautiful rich floral which is very long lasting and was a finalist for Best Natural Beauty Product in the Natural & Organic Awards Europe 2017.

This Rose Oud Soy Wax Candle** by [M] Botanicals is simply exquisite. See my review HERE.

Phyto Botanicals have recently re-branded and are now called Vetivert & Co. I've been testing out two of their products which are gorgeous. Lumina Nourishing Facial Oil (£35 - 30ml)** is a beautiful blend of Geranium, Ylang Ylang, Sweet Orange & Ginger with a base of Rosehip, Squalane, Jojoba & Safflower oils. It absorbs easily and quickly and is suitable for dry to combination skins. The deep cleansing beauty balm (£25 - 50g)** can be used as a cleansing balm or moisturiser and contains ingredients which brighten and nourish the skin.

I've been enjoying paperbacks again and here are some in my TBR pile!

What have you been loving in May?

*sent to me as part of the Love Lula Accredited Blogger Program
**complimentary

[M] Botanicals: Rose Oud Soy Wax Candle

I've been trying the absolutely exquisite artisan [M] Botanicals Rose Oud Soy Wax Candle (£15 - burn time 20-25 hours)* and I can honestly say it's one of the nicest scented candles I've ever used. 

It has a beautiful deep rose scent with a touch of smokey, woody Oud and I think it's the perfect combination. Essential oils and fine fragrance molecules are combined with 100% Vegetable and Soy Wax.

The candles are handmade in small batches with love and care. I love the simple but pretty recyclable packaging.

Other scents available are: Warm Lemongrass and Wild Grown Mint. Buy yours HERE - both of these scents appeal to me too.

I recently reviewed the mini [M] box sampler. See my review HERE. Have you tried any products from [M] Botanicals?

*complimentary

April: Lately I've been Loving

So many April loves..

I'm thoroughly enjoying Sara Sheridan's fabulous Mirabelle Bevan Mysteries. I read the 1st and 2nd books in the series last month (link) and can't wait to read about what Mirabelle gets up to next!  Pick yours up at Amazon.

I'm currently testing out bodhi & birch's latest launch - a new blend of their fabulous Desert Rose Facial Oil*. I'll be reviewing it soon! Pick yours up HERE (psst...it's gorgeous!)

I recently reviewed Earth Mother Soul Sister's Perfume Collection 1** which is available to buy at Love Lula. I absolutely loved the collection of perfumes. My absolute favourite is Violet Rose which I will buy soon. See my musings HERE.

And, in a true case of the blogger made me buy it....guilty as charged Lynda! 

Lynda has a drool worthy Instagram Feed and I can honestly say she's to blame! I must admit I was in beauty heaven when the Kjaer Weis Lip Tint arrived (passionate). The packaging is just WOW, really weighty and luxurious and of course, the shade fabulous. It won't be my last buy, that's for sure.

I've had the real pleasure of trying out A Little Star-Dust EdP* and Two Eternities EdP* by Walden which is an exciting new perfume launch at Love Lula. Both are gorgeous. Again, expect review soon!

As you'll know I love anything rose and this Rose Oud Soy Wax Candle* by [M] Botanicals is just exquisite. The candles are hand poured with love and have a burn time of 20-25 hours. Again, another product I'll be reviewing soon!

For my birthday, earlier this month I received Shay & Blue's latest launch - Dandelion Fig which is a simply stunning scent. It has top notes of Dandelion leaf, fresh greens and lemongrass, a heart of tomato vine and juniper with a fig base note. It's absolutely incredible and one of my favourites from the range.

Birthday fizz at Harvey Nichols.

I also picked up at Amazon - Clean Beauty - Recipes to manage your beauty routine naturally by Clean Beauty Co. Elsie and Dominika are also part of Clean Cult - fabulous sounding wellbeing events held in London (I really want to go to one sometime). The book is fantastic and I'm looking forward to trying some of the skincare recipes.

Another candle! Grapefruit+Sage by Wax+Wick which I adore! Love the wine bottle container (and it's ruggedness), the use of soy wax, beautiful scents and of course the clever use of repurposed glass - wine bottles from the pubs in Primrose Hill! Again, a fuller review will follow. I just LOVE!

What have you been loving this month?

*complimentary
**sent to me as part of the Love Lula Accredited Blogger Program

[M] Botanicals: Mini [M] Box

I love try me sets and this little one by [M] Botanicals is exquisite. It's the perfect try me kit, small gift or holiday set. The packaging is so simple yet gorgeous. It retails at £20 and you can pick yours up HERE.

The products are hand made in London in small batches. Plant based ingredients meet ECOCERT certification for organic and/or natural products. There are some active lab ingredients used which can't be certified like Niacinamide and Peptides but these are only used in products which "do something special for the skin".

I love that each ingredient is selected for a reason. Formulas heal repair and rebalance the skin. The essential oils used smell gorgeous but also treat. 

Inside there is enough product for two-four weeks:

10g Exfoliating Bamboo Cleanser which revives and brightens dull skin. Bamboo and Clay exfoliate while plant based actives protect. Natural fruit acids clean the pores and naturally exfoliate. The skin is left radiant and healthy.

10g Hydrating Beauty Balm a rich and nourishing balm suitable for dry/mature skins. Stuffed full of Evening Primrose and Borage oils which are rich in essential fatty acids. Cocoa butter and Olive wax lock in moisture while Rosehip oil repairs, hydrates and firms. Seabuckthorn C02 extract supports and heals. This has a floral/woody scent. Use where the skin feels dry.

10g Daily Rejuvenator is a Beauty Shortist 2017 Editor's Choice winner. It's best for mature skin types. Palmitoyl tripeptide-5 helps to prevent collagen breakdown while Vitamin B3 helps fade pigmentation and dark spots. Hyaluronic acid draws moisture to the skin and amino acid rich Prickly pear, Rosehip extract and Pumpkin Seed oil improve texture and rejuvenate the skin.

5ml Rejuvenating Facial Elixir is suitable for all skin types. Lightweight, it absorbs quickly. Use it under moisturiser, as a night treatment or on its own. Amino acid rich Blackseed oil is activated by Prickly pear. The elixir nourishes and protects leaving the skin looking healthy and glowy.

10g Pink Clay Soap for Face an Body in a cute little owl shape.

I've loved trying out these beautiful and very effective products. Have you used any [M] Botanicals products before?