Product Review: Tsi-La Organics

TSI-LA organics have been one of the more popular organic perfumes out in the market for some time now, with a celebrity following such as multi-award winning artist, Florence Welch (Florence And The Machine), supermodel Bridget Hall, and Grammy award winning artist, Nelly Furtado.


This will be the third edition from my perfume series. If you missed the second, please click here

Taken directly from their site:

Classically trained aromatherapists, botanical formulators, and organic advocates Natalie Szapowalo and model Annie Morton founded Tsi~La Organics with the goal of offering pure and natural perfumes and skincare products that benefit your overall well-being. 

With 40 years of combined experience in the fashion and beauty industry, as well as extensive studies in natural health sciences and aromatherapy , Natalie and Annie created their "Green Luxury" Tsi~La product line as a healthy alternative to a predominately synthetic market.


I've decided to try these babies out by purchasing the sample kit which would include 8 organic perfume samples for $20.00 and additional samples (not included in the kit) for $3.00. While the front packaging showed lush greenery, I thought it had a vintage feel (it reminded me of the "Madmen" aesthetic. Love that show!) with nature prints reminiscent of the mid-50's early 60's decor.The paper is soft yet sturdy enough to hold five sample vials of organic perfumes. 


Check it out.

FLEUR SAUVAGE  = A floral- fruity scent tempered with a bit of warmth from the smooth, woody sandalwood and creamy vanilla. Dried down a mild jasmine aroma. 


KIZES = Tuberose and Elderberry gave off a scent to be enjoyed by both male and female. They've labeled this scent as a unisex perfume.


ILANG ILANG - Ilang-Ilang and Tuberose are both highly fragrant and exotic scent. But when combined with vanilla, this perfume gave off a very delicate scent.


FIORI D' ARANCIO =  Sweet and citrusy blend from the caramelized vanilla, and various citrus scents. 


KESU = that mix of amber and exotic spices lends itself a spicy oriental based scent. Another unisex perfume.


SAQUI = Gave off a light, spicy mix. Dries down as a citrusy, nutmeg scent.

MISAKI = So far, this is the only alcohol based perfume in this collection. It gave off a mild scent of lavender bergamon and green tea moss. Refreshing and light, but the scent faded very quickly.

My favorite MIX and MATCH:




FLEUR SAUVAGE + FIORI D' ARANCIO  - WOW! My favorite fragrance combination from this collection. These items are great as stand alone scents but when combined, POW! It smells of sugary, vanilla icing that dries down to a lovely citrusy, warm, floral scent. Delicious!


KESU + FLEUR SAUVAGE = A gorgeous blend of sweet and spicy. It's a combination of a spicy,  musky (reminds me of L'Occitane Ambre) combined with a floral warm scent. It's bold yet alluring scent perfect for day or night.


ILANG ILANG - like Fiori D' Arancio, this scent combines well with everything. It wears great alone and mixes with the other scents.


SAQUI + ILANG ILANG = Gave off mild, spicy, floral scent. I'd wear this for a day out window shopping or a fun day hanging out with the ladies.


I've chosen three favorites from this collection. They all had their own very distinctive smell but, I have to say that I'm a HUGE fan of both FLEUR SAUVAGE + FIORI D' ARANCIO to wear alone or in combination. Ilang-Ilang came in a very close third. 


I hope you've enjoyed this review. Stay tuned for more lush, organic, non-toxic, perfumes to be posted soon.


Until next time,

Product Review: Trillium Organics

Welcome to the second review of my perfume series. If you missed the first one, click here


I have to admit, I'm having so much fun surrounded by all these wonderful perfumes! Oh, the joys of being a girl ;)


Now let me introduce you to another amazing company dedicated to delivering clean, handcrafterd personal care to the world.


 Karen Ciesar is a social justice attorney, an entrepreneur and mother of three. Born out her dream of a better world where genetically Modified Organisms have been outlawed, and conventional petrochemical farming is remembered as an ignorant mistake, Trillium Organics continues to deliver products that are certified organic and safe enough to use for mama and baby.


I heard about Trillium Organics a few years back as I was on my quest to find better, non-toxic products. Even before my switch to healthier items, I've always enjoyed trying out new products, cosmetics, fragrances and the like. The fact that their products were safe and non-toxic was a bonus. So, I decided to try out their perfumes.


Trillium Organics has three categories in their perfume collection. I got three perfumes from the OGSoul (ROMANCE, PASSION, LOVE) collection and one from the OGMind (WORK) collection. Each 33fl oz. roll on bottle will cost you $17.98.

Not bad.

The packaging was attractive. Well... I really liked the colorful, shiny, reflective label. It appealed to me because I'm always distracted by shiny, twinkly, glittery things. (heehee!)There was a bit of a challenge to photograph because it attracted so much light that you couldn't see the writing.

So, after a bit of time spent maneuvering the camera to ensure that I positioned it just right, I was finally able to get into the right angles that lessened the light reflected on the bottles.

Success!

Here's more from the company:

Taken directly from their site:

Trillium Herbal Company was born as a maker of non-toxic solutions for cleansing, moisturizing and protecting  skin.  Trillium Organics later became one of the first companies to sign the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics Compact and has worked to bring safe, innovative, Organic personal care to people world wide, ever since.

From a long line of artists, activists and entrepreneurs, Karen spent most of her time as an attorney advocating for women’s rights in the workplace. Today, bringing Organic personal care to women and their families has become her activism for the rights of people everywhere to care for themselves in a safe manner while supporting the earth for generations to come.

TRILLIUM ORGANICS

PASSION has a nice floral-oriental scent mix.
Ylang ylang, clove and vanilla blend and a heady, mysterious scent which reminded me of a mild version of
 Poison by Christian Dior.

As I mentioned in my other posts, I'm not really a fan of any rose-scented perfumes simply because I find it a bit overpowering. To smell like a bouquet of roses just wasn't my thing. But I also think that because it's so overpowering that I tend to dismiss it, not realizing that all the petrochemicals in conventional perfumes might have pushesd me away from it. But since using non-toxic perfumes, I've had a change of heart.
The rose here is blended so beautifully with the sandalwood and vanilla - which happens to be 2 of my favorite scents- that I don't mind wearing it all day.
LOVE emitted  a soft floral scent.

Out of the four fragrances, this was the least obvious of them all. The scent is so soft and delicate. 
 There was barely a hint of vanilla and ylang-ylang as I  practically had my nose up against my wrist. 
 Use a little ROMANCE to diffuse or neutralize the intensity of the other scents in this collection.

WORK had a fresh, green aroma with a delightful blend of lemon, bergamont and peppermint.
 This scent wakes you up and encourages to tacke the day with gusto!
WORK!

from left to right:
EMBRACE LOVE, ENTICE PASSION, INVITE ROMANCE
through inhalation,
absorption
and affirmation.
 Not that hard to be :)

Mix and Match

LOVE + PASSION = I am cuh-ray-zee for this combo! Subtle, yet mildly fragrant and deliciously mind-blowing. (Whaaat?)

 Savory and sweet at the same time. I kept raising my wrist to get a whiff of how well they complimented each other. haha! They were each effective as a stand alone product or combined with the other perfumes. This is definitely an evening scent to be worn out to dinner or a night to paint the town!

WORK + LOVE =  Gives off a fruity, slightly earthy scent.

  The lemon and begamont is tamed by the sweet yet subtle scent of vanilla and ylang ylang. 

A barely there scent perfect for school or the office.

LOVE + ROMANCE = Ahhh, yes. Some may argue that to keep this alive is the road to a successful relationship. 

Now back to the review. 

Together they gave off an attractive blend of sandalwood, vanilla and ylang-ylang. Dries down to a subtle vanilla. Very nice.

WORK + PASSION = ..will yield positive results! (Sorry - couldn't resist.) The combination gave off a delicious blend of spice, lime and vanilla. Dries down to a sweet, spicy scent. This scent evokes of a sunny day at the park or a day trip to the Catalina Islands for the weekend. YUM!

I've enjoyed them all, but if I had to choose a couple, I'd choose LOVE and PASSION. That spicy sweet combo is definitely my cup of tea.

I hope you've enjoyed reading this review as much as I did writing it.

 If you have any questions, feel free to comment below.

 I'd love to hear from you. :)

Until next time, 

Laugh, Love, Live Passionately

Product Review: A Perfume Organic

Ever wonder why a whiff of someone's perfume immediately places you in world of migraines, dizzines, sinus inflammation, or a series of head-shattering sneeze attacks that almost feels like your head is about to explode? 


If you're raising your hand like I am, I can feel your pain :(

Come to find out, about 90% or more of the chemicals in synthetic fragrance are derived from petrochemicals,causing an adverse reaction to most consumers with a sensitivity to conventional perfumes.

Now, I can easily make this post about the dangerous cocktail of undisclosed ingredients swimming inside alluringly shaped bottles of perfume. But I won't.


However, if you're interested about how the federal law allows a special loophole for trade secrets, permitting popular perfumes to hold an alarming amount of harmful DNA-affecting, eye and skin-irritating,  headache-inducing chemicals masked as  ”fragrances”, you can read through a few articles by clicking here, here, here, here  and oh! this one too.

My favorite scents were perfumes by Hanae Mori (Butterfly), Chanel (Bois des îles), and L'Artisan Parfumeur (L' Été en Douce). So, laying them to rest was a battle for me.

Ugh! This was a toughie, but I had to make a choice.

The goal is to minimize (asking to completely eliminate would be a bit more of a challenge in my book) the amount of toxic overload in the body. So, after much deliberation, I've decided to let go of the scents I was familiar with in exchange for cleaner but exciting new fragrances. :)

With that said, I've conducted my own search for my new "signature scent" by testing several brands of natural/organic fragrances.

First one up is from a company based in New York named

A Perfume Organic

Taken directly from their site:

While studying with Master Perfumers and Distillers, Amanda Walker (founder and owner)  was reminded perfume was originally produced from flowers, fruit, herbs and spices. As chemicals are a cheaper alternative today, most perfumes are now formulated entirely with chemicals. Amanda only wanted to use the finest, rarest, safest, and purest ingredients from plants…she decided to launch

 A Perfume Organic!

A Perfume Organic offers exquisitely crafted perfumes blended from the finest USDA certified organic botanicals, hand-poured locally in Manhattan in small batches to maintain purity.

Bottle type: 

$65/ 12ml roll-on bottle

Box type: Flower seed-embedded box

Samples: $22/ five 1ml tester vials

Sample Box type: Secured on recycled paper cards, in a muslin bag

A PERFUME ORGANIC

MEJICA

mmmm... not your typical vanilla scent. 

It's a bit more smoky, sandalwood, slightly sweet caramel scented vanilla. 

An earthy, sophisticated, grown-up version of my favorite scent.

(reminds me of L'Artisan Parfumeur's Vanille Absolument)

WHITE MAGIK
Nice mix of citrus, jasmine and spearmint. 
Perfect to layer with Green or Perfumed Wine (Rose)

PERFUMED WINE
~Rosé~
A beautiful blend of apples, cinnamon, cloves and berries.
Blends well with Urban Organic or Mejica
This oil mixture reminds me of the holidays :)

GREEN
Upon contact, I immediately identified the ylang-ylang top note.
 then dried down to a mild woody, powdery scent.
This combines well with Urban Organic or White Magik.

URBAN ORGANIC
ooo, I REALLY  like this scent, which happens to be their popular item.
I enjoy the mix of lime with a hint of ginger and a touch of vertiver.
 This scent reminds me of a fresh lime or lemon sorbet.
Blends well with all the other oils in this collection. 

Since I'm a big fan of layering scents, I had fun mixing these essential oils to create an entirely new smell. They all blended nicely and felt silky to touch. But if I had to choose a couple to add to my perfume arsenal, I really enjoyed Urban Organic and Perfumes Wine (Rosé). They seem to compliment each other really well and works very well as a stand alone fragrance.

Hope you've enjoyed this review. Stay tuned for a few more fragrance reviews to be posted in the next few days.

Until next time, 

Laugh, Love, Live Sweetly

Events: NaturallyNancy's Valentine's Day Giveaway!!

Roses are red


Violets are blue


Join my awesome giveaway...


to win a bottle of Grace for you!

Welcome to my first sponsored giveaway of 2012 from the awesome people at 

goldenearth

YAY!!

Grace is an essential oil blend which gives off  a soft, citrusy rose scent. Perfect for everyday wear or a night out on Valentine's Day!

Get ready to paint the town red!

Join in to win GRACE in a bottle.

Here's how you can win.

* You must be a follower of my blog
*You must participate via Rafflecopter below. This will help me keep track of your entries

*If you are under 18, please follow Terms and Conditions below

Contest will end 2/9/11 @ 12:01 EST

GOOD LUCK!! :) xox

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Product Review: January Conscious Box

Product Review: January Conscious Box


Hello dear readers!


Welcome to my first review post of the New Year! How is everyone doing with their resolutions?


If you plan to introduce a few "green" products in your pantry or make-up bag this year, make it a slow and thoughtful transition. You don't have to buy EVERYTHING all at once. Be mindful of your purchases just as you would be mindful of making a decision concerning your health, selecting what you'd wear for the day or how you would react to a situation. More importantly, make 2012 the year to not only to consciously READ your ingredients, but to actively look up to see what it means to have sodium laurel sulfate in your shampoos, mineral oil/petroleum in your luxurious and expensive face creams or lead in your lipstick. A lot may argue that the toxins contained in these products are minuscule, but if these products are used on a daily basis, the effects are cumulative and can be damaging. 


Here's another chance for you to benefit from my blog. I LOVE talking about healthier, non-toxic alternatives to makeup, food, or anything I feel will contribute to making better choices in what I eat, drink or apply to my skin. Allow me to show you what products are out there to help you make that decision. After all, we are both on this journey together. :)


With that said, I'm truly loving the variety in January's Concious Box!  For December's Conscious box, please click here

Enjoy! 

Items I enjoyed:

Green Tara Spirulina Crunchies -What is Spirulina you may ask? Spirulina is a plant based fresh-water alga (a form of good bacteria) with an impressive 60% protein content, which knocks both red meat, at 27%, and soy, at 34%, on the ropes in terms of muscle-building potential. Combined with all that protein, are a mix of potent minerals including iron, calcium, and magnesium, as well as most of your vitamins contained in the alphabet. I've always added this in powder form in all my smoothies and shakes, but having these as bite-sized edible snacks is quite a treat! I immediately tasted the coconut, dates and bananas. Deeelish! 

Raw Revolution Spirulina & cashew Raw Rev 100 calorie bar - Another spirulina snack, YES! Tasty and savory with enough protein to help quiet your mid-afternoon hunger pangs. YUM!

thinkThin Crunch  - packed with protein and blueberries that satisfied my sweet tooth.

Eco Dent Daily Care toothpowders - This product had a mild salty taste coupled with the texture similar to powder detergent(I know, some of you may gag at the thought - haha!) but the texture and taste didn't bother me at all. After brushing my teeth with this product - with just one use - I immediately noticed how much brighter and whiter my smile was. I was AMAZED! So, I read the ingredients and found that the first ingredient was baking soda. That explained it all! When I was younger, my mom would tell me that baking soda had several uses. She would use it brighten her laundry whites (which I still do to this day) and as a form of a teeth whitening agent (which I  used to do as a child). This product reminded me of how wonderful and powerful baking soda is, if used consistently. It's non-toxic, efficient and cost effective. I may not re-purchase this product but I'll sure get a lot more use out of my Arm and Hammer baking soda in my fridge. ;)

Kelapo Virgin Coconut oil - As an island girl born and raised in the tropics, my love for anything coconut runs deep. Coconut is ever present and used in many different ways in my household. You name it, I've probably tossed in a spoonful of coconut oil in it. haha!

Although I don't use this particular brand, I still enjoyed it. I was glad to see this product in my box this month.

Golden Earth in Grace - I'm typically not a big fan of heady, rose scented fragrances of anything from candles, to perfumes. But the rose mixed with geranium gave off a lovely, soft and citrusy oil-based scent which made it wearable for everyday. And since fragrances made from ingredients sourced from nature generally don't last as long on the skin as their synthetic counterparts, (i.e. none of the yucky synthetic toxins or  phthalates which could disrupt the body's endocrine system. BEWARE of products that hide behind the word "fragrance" which contains a smorgasbord of harmful toxins.) it gave me the chance to re-apply the same scent that evening or apply an entirely different scent to match my mood. 

I hope you've enjoyed my January's Conscious Box review. Feel free to ask me any questions about the contents of this months box by leaving a comment below. I'd love to hear from you! :)

Until next time,

Laugh, Love, Live Positive