WALK 'N' SNIFF: Candle Day Collections
Sorry posting this so late; after Candle Day, I had a guest staying with me so I didn't have a chance to write this or revisit BBW for second opinion re-sniffs. So I'll be talking about the candles that either came out on or after Candle Day and I'll only be focusing on candles that new or unfamiliar.
After the Snow (8296G3A10) As intrigued as I was about this scent, the notes made me a little suspicious. Maybe I was wrong - maybe it was Frankincense or something slightly Snow Mountain Lodge-ish or something in the Autumn Spiced Wreath family. I finally sniffed it and my suspicious were correct - it smelled like The Original albeit watered down and weak. A little dry, a pencil shaving/ old wood chips woodiness, sappy resinous pine action and a hit of black pepper giving the blend a spicy cologney feel.
Forest Flurries (8296AGA2) - once again, I was quite intrigued as the notes were right up my alley. Were we finally get Snow & Slopes back from failed test scent purgatory? Or perhaps the return of the one hit wonder Dashing thru the Snow? Nope, not so much. What I ended up smelling was not at all what I imagined. Call me crazy but I got..wait for it...Flannel! Maybe not a total and complete repackage but extremely similar. Right off the bat, like Flannel...it's cologney...which makes absolutely no sense. With a name like "Forest Flurries" and notes like citrus, patchouli and eucayptus, you would think it would smell fresh and herbal and outdoorsy..plot twist, it aint! I didn't get any of those notes when I sniffed FF, just watered down Flannel. Very bizarre!
No sign of Cuff Links from the "Effevescence" collection at my store which was the only new scent but I'll keep an eye out.
Now I'd like to talk about the infamous "Buzz Collection" candles since I'm sure there are readers who have never smelled any of them and perhaps have only heard of them in passing or not at all
So all of these candles were scents that haven't been around for a few years but have been requested by fans, thus causing a "buzz" Though I think calling this collection the "Buzz Collection" is a bit dubious and quite the overstatement as only really 2-3 scents have I seen/heard requested a lot over the years. But anyway, I digress
French Baguette (circa 2012, first in a French themed collection, then added to WB Core Collection)
For years, candle enthusiasts have begged BBW to bring this back and their pleas fell on deaf ears..until now. There were rumors that at some point FB would be making it's grand return. Then a mason jar of it appeared and everyone creamed their panties. Then Candle Day arrived with the debut of the 3wick and everybody lost their proverbial shit. My store had none that day and but I was fortunate to sniff sometime later. I'll let you in on a secret - I didn't care for FB backintheday and I still don't now. It's not that it's a bad scent cuz it isn't; it gets an A for accuracy...and that's my problem with it. It smells too authentic; it literally and genuinely smells like freshly baked bread...which is one of my favorite smells. However I don't know if I would like that smell in home fragrance form and I don't know if I could commit to burning it and having my residence smell like bread all day. You really have to love the smell of bread or enjoy gourmand scents in general to really enjoy this candle. Anyway, I noticed that there is a small tweak; this version seems slightly saltier and more buttery than what I remember the old version smelling like but that could just be a matter of fragrance oil quality. Otherwise it smells the same.
Party Dress (circa 2013 in the Toast the Night/It Happened One Night collection)
This was a midly popular scent backintheday, despite seeming a bit out of place. It came back in yet another New Year's themed collection in 2015. When it first came out, there was some debate as to whether or not it was a repackage of a candle from yet another New Years collection called Twinkling Night as they both smelled quite similar (I think it was atweaked repackage with a twist as there was no denying the similarities yet there were stark differences) Anyway, so Party Dress was/is a very feminine fragrance, very heavy on floral notes...which I suppose is a nice change from all of the cinnamon, pine and mint of Christmastime fragrances and there are some whackadoos out there who actually floral scents during the winter/holidays. It comes off almost bodycare-ish; I could easily see this scent as signature body spray and lotion; I said in an old review that it reminded me off BBW's Dark Kiss and Black Amethyst signature bodycare. Like those scents, PD comes off a little dark despite the light and soft floral notes; there has to be some dark berry action in the bottom notes and some kind of binding musk like patchouli or sandalwood.
I don't really know why this scent is in this collection as FB has been around for years and still pops up; hell, it was just around last year in the spring! I'm not gonna waste my or your time talkig about ths cuz I'm sure you all know what it smells - fresh, watery, green with a hint of jasmine.
Gelato (circa 2013 in the Italian Piazza collection)
Folks went NUTS over this candle backintheday, the hype was paplable. There I was sniffing Tuscan Herbs and Espresso Bar and Villa Bergamot with reckless abandon and wondering why folks weren't losin their over those scents instead. I never understood why it was so popular and why it continued to be demand years later. Now the candle is back and so is the hype. My main criticism about Gelato is that in my most humble of opinions, it just didn't smell like gelato; there's no creaminess/milkiness, it's neither rich or smooth, it's just sweet - to the point of smelling more like a sweet confection or candy. And there's berry blend, more heavy on raspberries, that comes across artificial. And it could be my nose playin tricks on me, but it seems like this new version smells more sweeter, but otherwise it smells the same. Honestly I wasn't a fan then and I'm certainly not one now.
ADDENDUM: If you are familiar with Raspberry Peach Macaron, that and Gelato are quite similar and share common bottom notes
ADDENDUM: If you missed Gelato on Candle Day, Gelato is back in it's original packaging (with hopefully the rest of the colection) and is currently online
Caribbean Escape (circa 2010, signature Slatkin staple)
This damn candle..ugh. Caribbean Escape was one of BBW's "herpes" candles - it popped year after year after year despite no one wanting it around and you just couldn't get rid of it. It was, for awhile, the Ma-blah-gony Stankwood of its day. It finally disappeared in recent years but now it's back with a vengeance. It just smells wrong - it's odd mix of berry and cocnut and melon and lemon and you would think it's smell tart and juicy and exotic but nope, not so much. And it just so waxy; I also say that it smells like a jar of melted crayons. Of all the candles to bring back for this Buzz collection, why this? They should've brought back Seaside Escape instead of this mess.
Boathouse Row (circa 2013 in the Summer Lakeside collection)
OMG..I am so moist that I'm practically slipping off of my chair as I type this. As you know, when it comes candles and candle reviews, I'm pretty blunt and harsh; you rarely ever see me hyping up anything and in the off chances I do hype something up, it's very much worth it. This is one of those instances! I was obsessed with candle backintheday and I have Touchthefiretwice and his glowing review of this candle (and this collection) that prompted it. I bought and burned this badboi all the damn time! I never bothered stocking up (raely did in those days) as I assumed it would be back. It didn't! I'd have to wait until 2018 for it's return and no one was more happier than I. I'm not gonna go into too much depth as I plan to dedicate a whole post to the this sexy ass mandle. Basically it's a cologney scent; if you've ever smelled Burberry's London cologne, that's pretty much what it smells like that. It's dark and earthy, a little bit herbal and hint of an aquatic presence. There's been some controversy as there was an added note in the description that wasn't in the original note description nor do you actually smell...but more about that later. If ,like me, you prefer your candles to be conceptual and/or cologney and you enjoy a sexy madle that smells like a sexy man, BR is for you!
Comments
Post a Comment