All products click through to their product page at Sephora.
The product: Tom Ford Black Orchid Eau de Parfum
The feeling: Black Orchid is a far cry from my usual fragrance picks — full of amber, woods, or patchouli, quietly sitting close to the skin. Instead, Black Orchid is loud: exciting, brash, and full of sharp, bursting fruits set against a dark base.
It reminds me most of Dior Poison, but they’re not copies of one another. Instead, the two fragrances seem to have similar intent moreso than anything else: both are wonderfully audacious, and because of the way they’re composed, each give off a bit of an 80s vibe, at least to me. One because it set the era; the other because it’s a fresh take on the same ideas.
I wasn’t around in the 80s (for which I’m glad; if everyone was wearing Poison, there’s no way it wasn’t too much), but they smell like how I think an idealized version of the decade would smell. Bold, and glamorous, and fruity and floral and a little bit spicy but not in any way just another cookie-cutter scent.
Black Orchid smells like confidence. It smells like a woman with the most amazing retro-Hollywood wave in her hair, walking out of the shadows of an Upper East Side bar, leggy and red-lipped and hopefully, hopefully powerful and outspoken. She gets what she wants because she’s gorgeous, but it’s in the way she works, not the way she looks — by the time she’s asked for it, she’s already worked out ten ways she could outsmart you to get it.
The mechanics: Designed by Givaudan in 2006 (Now Smell This cites David Apel as its creator; Bois de Jasmin credits Roman Kaiser for capturing the scent of the Tom Ford black orchid; most sites mention no perfumer in specific), Black Orchid highlights the custom-bred Tom Ford black orchid with woods and fruit accords overtop an oriental base.
To be honest, things get a little dicey if you try and pick out notes from this one. Taken as a whole, however, Black Orchid slots right into that perfect, intriguing spot between harmonious and cacophony.
Opening with a bright, almost disconcerting beginning, Black Orchid lists citrusy top notes of bergamot, citrus, and mandarin alongside floral French jasmine and fruity black currant. These blend into a floral heart, highlighting black orchid with black gardenia, ylang-ylang, and lotus wood. Finally, the show closes with a woodier base (patchouli and sandalwood), sweetened with vanilla and made even more complex with a hint of incense.
As I said — things get a little dicey. There’s a lot thrown into Black Orchid’s art-deco inspired flacon, and the company’s “oriental chypre” label is probably as accurate as you’ll get. It’s every bit as interesting as a chypre, if you ask me, but it’s darker, spicier — more modern, more sexy; less dated and stuffy.
The verdict?
I had initially assumed this would go into my holiday gift guide (after all, it was my big fragrance love of last winter, and I missed it all summer), but it seems too intimate for gifting. I would have hated this when I just started getting into perfume, and while the dark, twisting composition of fascinates me today, it’s too much of a live wire to be one of those won’t-stun-but-probably-won’t-offend scents.
That said, Tom Ford Black Orchid is a perfume that really deserves a chance if you want a sexy, glamorous date-night scent. While not show-stoppingly unique, it sets itself well apart from your run of the mill floriental, and has managed to completely end my hunt for the perfect bold perfume: it has fantastic tenacity, great sillage, and most importantly, it’s interesting.
Black Orchid is a throwback but it’s modern; it’s spicy but it’s fruity and it’s floral. I may not have been a Tom Ford believer in the past, but Black Orchid has me in its throes.
Availability: $72 USD/$80 CAD & up at Sephora. International readers can find this one at Nordstrom, who unfortunately don’t stock the 1 oz (which I’d recommend — this one is strong!)
Keep reading! There are no more actual words, but could I perhaps entice you with some pretty, pretty pictures? »
Our New This Week (& etc) posts always operate on the same concepts–new products and collections featured in scrollable widgets,–but I thought I’d try something a little different today.
Rather than everything that’s come out recently, here are just a few of my holiday picks, in (clickable!) images with text (actual words!) beneath.
Dior Golden Winter Holiday Look 2013
Dior 5 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette in Golden Snow ($60.00) – One of two Golden Winter eye quints, Golden Snow seemed like a good inclusion for this post. It’s a soft, pretty palette that’s both lovely to look at and (presumably) easy enough to work with, making it ideal gift-giving material (especially for lighter, cooler skintones).
Dior Addict Gloss in Enchanted Rose ($29.50) – Again, one of two shades in the Golden Winter collection, and again: pretty easy to wear. I’d actually panic if someone gave this to me, because my intense fear of shimmery lip products would take over, but — well, I hear shimmer is a thing people actually like. (I guess that’s why it’s found in 80% of the lip colour market, and beginning to infiltrate even the skincare ranks.)
Dior Diorific 3D Jewel Manicure Duo ($39.00) – These are weird, admittedly, and packaged in those strange little bottles that no one actually seems to like. The concept, however, is pretty novel for a mainstream brand: the shimmering gold is made to be a base colour, and the silvery shimmers (clear crystal micro pearls) are meant to be applied on top. Think Ciaté, but more chic.
Armani Holiday 2013: #400 reds
Keep reading for Armani, Diptyque, & more!
I’m partway through writing a Tom Ford Black Orchid review, and I wanted to take a moment (okay, a whole bunch of moments) to talk about the brand, first — and why I’m okay with writing about it, even though Tom Ford ads still totally give me bad-touch vibes.
(As a warning: this isn’t going to go any more in depth than your typical ninth-grade gender studies class, I’m afraid. You can’t cover much more than that in a sourceless 700 words.)
Despite the rave reviews that Tom Ford now gets from beauty bloggers, both in fragrance and in makeup, I’ve always held myself back from the line. After years of crude advertising to over-sexualized and dehumanize faceless women, we’re just supposed to — what, forget about it? Because they stopped running those ads so that they could appeal to a female consumer base, too?
Faceless Mariana Braga for Tom Ford for Men, 2007 – via 1
I’m still torn on this subject, but I do find myself more comfortable with the brand as time passes. I’d still never want to meet Mr. Ford or his marketing department in person, but, well, baby steps.
While Tom Ford’s male models are typically clothed and looking directly into the camera, and their female counterparts are frequently not–a common practice in displaying a strong patriarchal power dynamic, and just one of many issues people have with Tom Ford adverts–the brand is beginning to even out its advertising practices, with less-sexualized female models and more-sexualized male models.
(Uh, is that even a good thing? That now we’re stripping down our male models and covering them in oil, too? Shouldn’t we maybe be aiming to not do that to anyone, instead?) There are older examples of this as well, as seen below — turns out that while Ford gets flack for sexualizing his female models, and he strips down and lays bare his male models, too.
But, of course, social context is incredibly relevant when it comes to things like the portrayal of the human body, and just because there are naked men and naked women does not mean that both are being represented the same way, nor are they sending the same messages.
Edited to add: To read more on context and male objectification, this post on Jezebel is great. A big thank you to one of our readers to emailing me about it — the viewpoints in the comments are so much more varied than I could have managed to fit in this post, and worth a look if you’d like to read more on the topic.
Jon Kortajarena for Tom Ford Eyewear, 2009 – 2, 3
That said, Tom Ford is hardly the only brand that blatantly uses sex to sell its products, or reinforces this power dynamic. Gucci is another repeat offender who comes to mind; D&G, on the other hand, does a good job of using nudity in a sensual–rather than sexual–way, in my eyes.
I really respect that D&G have chosen older, well-established, publicly outspoken models, and photographed them in a way that seems more, “these iconic women and not-so-iconic men are doing a job that they chose to do, and were captured as professionals,” rather than, “cover your eyes, we’re about to have a non-consensual orgy.”
Keep reading »
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you probably know by now that Sephora is running it’s annual autumn/winter Friends & Family sale, starting today — with a bit of a twist (a bad one).
The details: This year, VIBs/VIB Rouges will be the only ones getting 20% off their orders, without brand exclusions. Using the code VIBTOPIA at both Sephora.com and Sephora.ca, they (and one friend, with a single-use code) will get the discount at checkout from November 7th, 2013 through November 11th, 2013 — just five days, so act fast!
Click here to shop.
If you’re not a VIB/VIB Rouge (it’s okay, neither am I) but still want to haul, I’d recommend using the code BLITZ: it’s valid on all orders over $25 USD/$35 CAD, and lets you choose from four free sets of deluxe samples to add to your order.
Not sure what to buy? Here are some of my picks… (all images click through!)
To start: products to get the glowiest skin on the block. From the Bobbi Brown Brightening Finishing Powder ($50 USD/$58 CAD) I’ve been lusting over all year and will likely never, ever be able to use due to its silicone content, to the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette ($58 USD/$67 CAD) that I also can’t use because of its silicone content, these are a handful of surefire products to help you get what I like to call “runway skin.”
(Man, that was a long sentence.)
Fresh, dewy, and completely separate from your foundation routine–because we all have entirely different ones,–hopefully at least one of these products will float your boat. If not all of them, because gah.
Keep reading! »
The product: eos evolution of smooth Smooth Sphere Lip Balm Limited Edition 3-Pack
↳ Sweet Mint, Pomegranate Raspberry, and spherical-only-in-this-set Vanilla Bean
Ahhh! Another holiday season, another Gift Guide series. This year, we’re starting off with eos’ limited-edition lip balm trio: a great drugstore pick-me up that’s sure to be a crowd pleaser.
I have yet to meet anyone who doesn’t love the Smooth Spheres, from my boyfriend to my best friend (read: sister). They’re surprising, sweet-smelling, and unbearably cute — plus, with the subdued rainbow of colours you can find them in, you’re pretty much guaranteed to find one that’ll suit you.
The formula: As I’ve said in the past, the Smooth Sphere formula is a good one — but it’s not the best. It’s 100% natural (95% organic) and gluten-free, with a well-balanced sweetness (sweet-but-not-too-sweet), both in fragrance and flavour. Er, not that I’ve intentionally tasted these because they smelled delicious, or anything.
What keeps the Smooth Spheres from reaching holy grail status is their level of hydration: some find their shea butter, vitamin E, and jojoba base to be deeply hydrating, but my lips need something with a little (a lot) more oomph. To be on the safe side, I’d say that they’re mildly hydrating: somewhere around Maybelline Baby Lips, but below Aquaphor and far below my beloved Bobbi Brown & Osmia Organics lip balms.
The flavours (I can say “flavours” for these, right?)
eos smo0th sphere in sweet mint
Sweet Mint is my #1 favourite Smooth Sphere, and for good reason. It’s sweet and minty, in that oh god eat me now kind of way, and tingles just a touch. If you love minty balms but you don’t want anything to aggressively (read: irritatingly) minty, this is a fun one to have in your stash.
eos smooth sphere in vanilla bean
Vanilla Bean isn’t a must-have for me, but it’s a surprisingly nice vanilla. I’m not usually a fan of the scent in general, but eos does it softly and… smoothly. (Sorry, I had to go there). If this was sold in a duo with Sweet Mint, I think it would sell out in no time! Vanilla fans, be aware: the Vanilla Bean Smooth Sphere is exclusive to this set.
eos smooth sphere in pomegranate raspberry
I’ve left Pomegranate Raspberry, my least favourite, for last. It’s not a bad scent by far, but it’s not my favourite Smooth Sphere — it smells good, but not salivation-levels of good, you know? (Points to eos for getting this to smell like both pomegranate and raspberry, though, no matter how subtle. I’m sure it wasn’t the easiest feat!)
The verdict?
If you love eos’ Smooth Spheres, or you know someone who would (spoiler: everyone on your gift-giving list would, even your grumpy great-aunt), this set would make a pretty cute Christmas tree gift-ornament. That said, these three aren’t my absolute must have spheres, as far as scent goes — though they do look very Holiday-appropriate!
If I had to pick my three favourite Smooth Spheres, in order, they would be Sweet Mint, Blueberry Açai, and Summer Fruit.
Availability:$9.99 USD, limited edition. Or, get them separately: Sweet Mint, Pomegranate Raspberry, and Vanilla Bean (the Smooth Sphere is exclusive to this set, but you can still get the flavour in stick form).
Keep reading! »
Earlier this month (late last month? Early last month? The days are all a little fuzzy for me right now), ELLE Canada sent over a copy of their October issue, as well as their cover girl’s new scent: Killer Queen.
While I’m not big on either Katy Perry or her perfume, I’ll give Killer Queen one thing: it was a blast to photograph.
Killer Queen ($49 USD and up) is a perfume that I’m not sure I’d want on my dresser, despite finding it remarkably easy to take pictures of. Like the larger versions of Burberry Body (which has to lie down horizontally, lest it fall over and club a small animal to death), it doesn’t have a base to stand on. Instead, it has to be lain on its side, like a beached whale or a vial of poison.
On one hand: what an inconvenience, right? I don’t want a beached whale on my countertop.
But on the other… yeah, a glamorous, gold-capped, ombré vial of poison and I would probably get along just fine.
October’s issue of ELLE Canada was a door-stopping 312 pages long (their largest issue yet), with two separate covers: one for subscribers, and one on the newsstands. (The only image of the subscriber cover online comes from E! Online, and can be seen here). The issue also boasted their biggest beauty section ever, as well: 31 pages, including a 17 page Beauty Trend Report insert.
Keep reading! »
To wrap up our #24Days of TwistUp series, here are arm and full-face lip swatches of all twenty-four shades, as well as some pretty wordy descriptions of each.
The lip swatches have been going up every day this month through theNotice’s Twitter and Pinterest accounts, but I wanted to gather them all up & put them into a post for future reference (and for those of you who aren’t into social media! I feel you, ladybro.) Enjoy the swatches!
More TwistUps: Annabelle TwistUp review, Canadian & international giveaways, {shop}
Nudes & Browns
Naked is a little drier than most of the TwistUps, but goes on without settling into lines. It’s surprisingly peachy, and looks incredibly natural on fair to light-medium skintones. It’s lighter, peachier, less pink, and more neutral than Havana.
Havana is noticeably drier than many of the other TwistUps. Darker than Naked, it’s fairly neutral with both brown and pink undertones. It looks a little obvious on me, but would be lovely on light to medium-dark skintones.
Absolute is a cream-finish warm pink with yellow undertones. It’s a on the sheerer side, making it a pink-nude that’s a little (okay, maybe a lot) easier to wear.
Tease is another sheer TwistUp, this time with strong orange undertones and plenty of shimmer.
Romance is a gorgeous nude with mauvey-brown undertones. It looks incredibly natural on my fair yellow-olive skin, but might look a little chalky on darker skintones.
Divine is a… I want to say “tomato nude,” but I don’t know if that’ll make sense to anyone. It made me think of a slightly redder version of Eva’s Nude, which leads me to believe it would make a gorgeous nude on darker olive skintones — but on my complexion (in real life), it wasn’t a hit.
Vamp pulls surprisingly brown on me (I was expecting more of a rich purple), and doesn’t read quite as red in real life as it appears on film. It’s not quite opaque, shimmer-free, and very bold. Vamp is the greyed brown-purple to Cherry’s red-purple, and it’s definitely more of an oxblood than a berry or red.
Keep reading — we’re not even halfway done yet! »
The product: Annabelle TwistUp Retractable Lipstick… in all 24 shades!
↳ See all 24 shades swatched here.
The formula: Your average TwistUp is creamy, comfortable, and very well pigmented — so much so, in fact, that they’ve quickly become not only one of my favourite drugstore lipsticks, but one of my favourite lipstick formulas overall. They apply with a nice sheen, settling into a lovely cream finish, and fading down nicely into a stain. I get 3-4 hours of wear out of the average TwistUp before I need to reapply (less if I eat or drink anything).
The TwistUp Retractable Lipstick formula is also scent-free, which gets it big points in my books, and applies without any catching or tugging. I didn’t notice any settling into dry bits or lip lines, despite how creamy the formula is upon application.
Day 24’s (that’s today!) #24Days TwistUp: Vamp. See the other shades here!
Compared to other lip crayons: Okay, so hopefully someone has wondered how these compare to the Clinique Chubby Sticks by now. (Someone? Anyone?? Helloooo?)
Annabelle’s TwistUps are most similar to the Clinique Chubby Stick Intense Moisturizing Lip Colour Balms ($17 USD/$19 CAD), and I would definitely recommend both ranges. I find that the Chubby Stick Intense formula is more slippery at first, but wears for a smidgen longer once it sets (an extra hour or so). I also find that the Clinique lipsticks are a hair less comfortable; however, the two products weren’t wear-tested during the same season.
It may be helpful to note, for some, that the Clinique formula is quite a bit more simple and far more natural — these two lipsticks feel and perform very similarly, but the formulas couldn’t look less alike. (Full ingredients for the TwistUps at the bottom of this post.)
The variation: Quite a few brands nowadays are doing split ranges (e.g. MAC Amplified/Lustre/Matte, YSL Rouge Pur/Rouge Pur Couture/Rouge Pur Couture The Mats/Rouge Pur Couture Golden Lustre), but the TwistUps are all sorted into one category. It not a bad thing by far, but it does mean that you can’t know what to expect from a stock photo!
This will be discussed further in tomorrow’s post, but in general, most of the line is similar to the Clinique Chubby Stick Intense range: high coverage, creamy, and comfortable. However, a few of the TwistUps are more like NARS Velvet Gloss Lip Pencils (Fizz) or the original Chubby Sticks (Tease, Absolute), and a couple are more dry than the rest (Havana, Naked, Cherry).
The verdict?
Honestly, I cannot recommend these enough. Not only are the Annabelle TwistUp Retractable Lipsticks impressively pigmented (in general) and wonderfully scent-free, but they’re also very portable, well-priced, and comfortable to wear. Annabelle has done a wonderful job with both the finish and (lack of a) scent with these, and the shade range is fantastic.
My personal favourites from this range are Cherry and Naked. For individual shade descriptions, swatches (arm and full-face photos), and overall recommendations, check back tomorrow!
Availability: $9.95 CAD online and in Canadian drugstores across the country. (On sale for $7.25 CAD each at the Annabelle.ca site as I write this!)
Don’t miss seeing seeing all 24 of these TwistUps swatched, together and individually!
Keep reading! »
The products: L’Occitane Shea “Flowers of Love” collection
↳ Shea Hand Cream in Subtle Violet, Lip Balm in Passionate Jasmine, and Ultra Rich Body Cream in Rose Tenderness
This year’s limited edition L’Occitane Shea Flowers of Love collection features three scents created to express love and care, each offered in all three formats reviewed in this post, as well as a collector’s edition of their cult-classic hand cream and a shea butter Solidarity Soap (details at the bottom of this post.)
The collection was created by L’Occitane’s founder, Olivier Baussan, who was inspired by beaded jewels, a token of love in Africa.
A quick “mini-verdict”
I always love the sentiment and charitable work behind L’Occitane’s shea butter collections, but I just wasn’t smitten with the scents in this collection. They’re all a little too sweet and sharp, in a way that feels uncharacteristic of the brand — I’m sure many will love them, but I was a little disappointed in the composition of the fragrances this time around.
Passionate Jasmine Lip Balm ($18 CAD)
Like the Date Bouquet Lip Balm in last year’s Fortune Flowers collection, I’m not totally smitten with Passionate Jasmine, either. It’s scented with a lively floral (I was hoping for a passion fruit-jasmine blend with irrational optimism, so sue me), and contains much less shea butter than the rest of these products: only 10%.
With a formula based mainly on oils (vegetable, castor seed, and sunflower), and thickened with shea, beeswax, and hydrogenated oils, L’Occitane lip balms are a little too greasy for my tastes — they sort of slide around on top of my lips, never providing quite enough hydration. My vote is to skip the lip balms (again, like last year), and spend your money on the other two formulas instead!
Subtle Violet Hand Cream ($12 CAD)
While I won’t personally be enjoying this violet-wrapped hand cream (it, like the Ultra Rich Body Cream, contains dimethicone), you can hardly throw a stone without hitting a fan of L’Occitane’s Shea Butter Hand Cream. Formulated with 20% shea butter, it’s designed to be richly hydrating, if a little heavy — a little goes a long way.
The Subtle Violet fragrance of this hand cream has an unexpectedly sweet edge to it, sitting close to the skin and smelling softly of candied violets. The cap, however, is the most notable thing about it: larger than usual and with more pronounced edges (“petals”), it’s exactly what we’ve all been praying to the L’Occitane packaging gods for.
Rose Tenderness Ultra Rich Body Cream ($28 CAD)
The Rose Tendress scent was my favourite of these three: soft and sweet, with an unexpectedly zesty edge, I think it’s worth a sniff if you love a really bright rose. I’m always careful when using L’Occitane Ultra Rich Body Creams, as they do contain silicone, but I’ve tested them in the past on my legs — I loved last year’s Mango Flower scent.
With a hydrating formula, the Ultra Rich Body Cream’s fragrances always have great throw and longevity. If you’re looking for a body product that will stay with you for a little while (and definitely hydrate for longer), I’d say give this one a sniff.