Rosegirls March 2013 Order Part One - THE SAMPLER!

Hey everyone!! I'm so excited to be sharing this haul with you! I know it's been awhile since I've done a haul on here, but rest assured my wax stash has been growing steadily. This was perhaps my most anticipated outstanding order up until I placed my Rosegirls haul in April =) That one was by far the biggest wax order I have ever placed. Anyway, let's get back to my March order.

I placed this order on March 17th from a hotel room in North Carolina. That's dedication, folks! I believe they opened around 7 PM that day and stayed open for about 5 hours until noon. The TAT for those orders was a bit extended for a few reasons. First of all, they allowed everyone in March to order a sampler, much different (and much more time consuming) from their normal 50 or so that they allow. Second of all, Kathy, the owner's mom and one of the main brains behind Rosegirls, had to have emergency surgery in April so it was taking Jenny a bit longer to get orders out with Kathy in recovery. I believe this order arrived only 3 days past the original stated TAT of 35 business day so they are really working hard on getting these orders out! Besides, I expect a longer TAT with RG since they are so popular and I wasn't expecting to get my order as soon as I did so it was a nice surprise when I got the shipping notification=)

Enough with the chit chat, let's just hop into what I ordered! I ended up getting a sampler, 10 bags, 2 Triple Threats and 3 custom medium pies. I also received 4 chunks for free so I ended up with 24 sampler chunks! Today, I'll be showing you guys just the sampler and I'll be back tomorrow to show you the rest of what I ordered!

First up is the sampler/free chunks:

• Strawberry Jam Cream Cake - I actually used to have a bag of this but I was never a huge fan. It gets a lot of hype in the wax community but it's a tad too sweet for me. It is a blend of strawberries and cream and strawberry jam. No, there's no cake notes in this one. I ended up putting this one in a RR because I know that it is a much beloved scent and it will find a new home with someone who is able to appreciate it more than I am =)
• Vanilla Dipped Fruit Salad - I am not a fan of the "fruit salad" scent from any vendors, and sadly, I didn't much care for this one either. I think there's just too much citrus in the scent for my liking. The "vanilla dipped" note mellowed it out a bit, but not quite enough for me. I believe the vanilla scent they use for all the vanilla dipped scents has been discontinued so this one will not be available for purchase anymore. 
• Orange Sherbet and Pink Chiffon - This was one of RG's new blends that they are testing out. To my nose, it was very heavy on the orange sherbet note with a slight hint of the fruity-perfume note in the background from that Pink Chiffon. I didn't care for this blend, there is just something about orange scents that have been rubbing me the wrong way lately. However, it seems to be popular on the RG board so I will be passing this one on as well to give someone else to opportunity to try it. 
• Raspberry Cotton Candy - This is a nice blend of their tart raspberry sauce and cotton candy. The raspberry is definitely the dominant note here, with a nice sweet undertone from the cotton candy. I have found my favorite raspberry blend from RG (Raspberry Marshmallow Smoothie) and since this one doesn't quite hit the spot for me, I ended up passing it along in a swap to someone who was excited about trying it!
• Apple Colada - Although I have been more open to green apple scents lately, RG's green apple is a bit too astringent and candy-like for my tastes. It almost smells like one of those green apple Mr. Mistys from DQ...do you guys remember those? This one is a blend of pina colada and green apple, and the pina colada adds a nice creaminess to the blend but not enough for me to like it. This one was passed on in a RR as well, as I know it's a super popular scent and someone else would really enjoy it. 
• Spiced Apples and Peaches Ice Cream - This one is yummy! I love the spiced apples and peaches scent from any vendor, and when it is mixed here with the ice cream note, it really mellows out the spiciness nicely. It's definitely still spicy, don't get me wrong, but it is definitely more tolerable for those of you who might be sensitive to spicy scents. This one will be wonderful in the fall!

• Cool Beans - This is a blend of lavender, peppermint and Vanilla Bean Noel. I've begun to realize that I'm not the hugest fan of RG's lavender scent. It's definitely a sweet lavender that has a hint of powderiness that doesn't agree with my nose (with the exception of a few blends). I've been on the hunt for the perfect lavender/peppermint/vanilla blend since I was running low on my favorite blend of those scents, Lasting Scent Candles Candy Land Dreamin'. I've tried that blend from a few other vendors as well and nothing will ever compare to Candy Land Dreamin'. Anyways, this one is VERY popular in the RG community and I have already found a new home for this little chunk =)
• Soothing Lavender Dreams - Another cult favorite in RG Land, this is a blend of lavender and zucchini bread. Being that I'm not a fan of RG's lavender or zucchini bread scents, you would think this would be a major bust for me but actually, it's not too bad. I've gotten this scent several times, whether in orders or through RR's, so this one was passed on to someone else. It's definitely not my favorite scent but it's tolerable. I've come to realize that I am super picky when it comes to lavender scents.
• Fairy Woods - This is a blend of their Twilight Woods and Pink Sugar dupes. Twilight Woods is a nice perfume but I'm not so sure that I would like to melt it in wax, especially since it's the dominant note in this blend. It's just a wee bit too perfumey for my nose and I'm not sure I would want my house to smell like it. This one was passed on in a swap as well. 
• Moonspice Royal Sugar Cookies - Yummmmmmm! I'm a huge fan of both Celtic Moonspice as well as their Royal Sugar Cookie scent so this one was a match made in heaven for me! Of RG's two cookie scents, Royal Sugar Cookies is the sweeter and creamier fragrance of the two. It blends so flawlessly with Celtic Moonspice, making a lovely sweet and spicy bakery scent. This is full bag worthy for sure!
• Escape to Neverland - This is one of their newer blends, with chunks in Pineapple, Orange Dreamsicle and Raspberry with a Vanilla Ice Cream overpour. I've been quite picky with orange and pineapple scents lately and I just wasn't loving this one as much as I thought I would. It was a nice, creamy fruity blend though and I can see why people love this one!
• Raspberry Key Lime Pie - I'm normally not the biggest lime fan, but I am in LOVE with RG's Key Lime Pie scent. It's so authentic, right down to the pie crust undertone. It's so yummy blended with the sweet raspberry scent, and you can smell both notes equally. I already have a bag of this so I'll be passing this one on in a swap or RR as well to give someone else a chance to try it =)

• Butterbrickle Cotton Candy - I had a pie in this combo in my cart for my April order but for some reason I took it out last minute. After smelling this chunk, I am kicking myself for not getting more! Butter brickle is my new obsession in wax, I just can't get enough of this scent! The caramel notes in butter brickle blended with cotton candy become such a rich and decadent scent. I am not sure this is a regular blend that they sell in bags, but I will for sure be ordering a pie in this scent the next time I order. I also have ordered the blend from a few other vendors as well. Some people have a signature blend that they tend to order from every vendor. For some, it's Pink Sugar Marshmallow, Fruit Loops Birthday Cake or Zucchini Bread Noel, but for me, I think it's going to be Butter Brickle Cotton Candy =)
• Circus Concession - So good. This is another new scent blend that they are testing, and it's a keeper for sure. I'm not quite sure of the exact notes in here but I'm fairly certain it's a blend of caramel apple,  cotton candy and funnel cake. It's pretty similar to all the other circus/carnival/fair scents out there but it's definitely one of the strongest and most well-blended ones I've smelled. Full bag worthy. 
• Tropical Passion -  I was so excited to see a chunk of this in my sampler because it has been on my to-try list forever and I've never seemed to have been able to get my hands on it. Tropical Passion is a blend of pear and pina colada and the two notes really smell awesome together. I can smell the pear slightly more but the pina colada is definitely there. It's way better than any coconut pear scents I've ever smelled. Winner winner!
• Raspberry Coconut Ice Cream - This is another favorite of the whole sampler. Their raspberry coconut scent smells to me like most other Raspberry Zinger scents I've smelled, which is awesome because I LOVE Raspberry Zinger scents. The raspberry coconut blended with ice cream is PHENOMENAL. I think I described this one to someone as Raspberry Zinger on steroids. It's mouthwatering. I don't remember seeing this one available as a bag the last opening, so I'll probably be ordering this blend in a custom pie next time they open.
• Royal Sugar Cookie Noel - This is a nice, simple bakery scent. Like I said, I'm a huge fan of the Royal Sugar Cookies scent and when it is blended with VBN, it just becomes creamier and more yummy. It's a bit light on cold throw, and I've found that VBN tends to be on the lighter side in their wax so I'll have to melt this one too see if it is, in fact, full bag worthy.
• Royal Serendipity Sugar Cookies - I am just loving all the Royal blends in this sampler! This super sweet cookie scent is the perfect companion to the tropical fruitiness of Serendipity. This one is definitely full bag worthy for my next order. So sweet, creamy and delicious! For reference, I like this one better than CFTKR's Serendipity and Sugar Cookie scent, but not quite as much as their Ultimate Serendipity scent, so it's somewhere in between those =)

• Follow the Yellow Brick Road - This one is basically like their Strawberry Jam Cream Cake scent, but with actual cake - strawberries and cream and strawberry jam chunks with a cuppa cake overpour. The cuppa cake definitely cuts down on the sweetness from that strawberries and cream scent and adds a nice bakery note as well. I'm going to give this one a shot and see if I like it more than Strawberry Jam Cream Cake. So far, I'm definitely liking it better off of cold throw.
• Butterscotch Coffee - I'm trying to hop on the coffee scent train, and so far I'm still pretty shaky. I did order a few coffee scents in this order and I don't like them quite as much as I had remembered liking them before. This is a nice blend of sweet, sticky butterscotch and their coffee scent but it's just not for me. I will say though, out of all coffee scents I've smelled, I definitely like RG's coffee the best. I passed this one onto a friend in a swap, I know she is going to love this one!
• Key Lime Birthday Cake - Again with the key lime awesomeness! This is a great blend of key lime and birthday cake where the birthday cake adds a really awesome sweet, almost frosting-like note to the blend. So good! I ordered a bag of Key Lime Swizzle Sticks in my April order and for my next order, I'm deciding between this and the next key lime blend I am going to talk about. I just can't get enough RG Key Lime!
• Florida Key Lime Pie, 7 Up Pound Cake and Vanilla Ice Cream - This one is awesome as well. If you've never smelled 7 Up Pound Cake, you're missing out. It's hard to describe, but the scent is both fizzy and bakery at the same time. Delish! When blended with key lime and ice cream, it sends it over the edge into a whole new dimension. YUM! I just can't decide whether or not I need this or Key Lime Birthday Cake in a bag next time around. I'll have to melt them both to see which one I like better =)
• Pink and Blue Swizzle Sticks - I am a huge fan of their swizzle sticks scent, it is a sweet, sugary scent that is light on its own but somehow seems to make the scents blended with it even stronger. It's magical! Of course, I love blue and pink blends so this one is right up my alley. I have a bag in Pink and Blue Royal Sugar Cookies and I think I may like this one a bit more than that one. It's so good!
• Purple Cow Ice Cream - This is a blend of purple cow (grape) with their vanilla ice cream scent. I am not a fan of grape scents at all, but if I was, I'm sure this would be a good one! I'm passing this onto someone else who I know will love it.

Okay guys, that was my sampler from Rosegirls!  It's always so much fun opening samplers because you never know what you're going to get. I was super pleased with this sampler and I'm so grateful that they allowed everyone in March to place an order for one.

Thanks for stopping by today everyone and I'll be back tomorrow with the rest of my order =D

Two Timing Tart - Cold Sniff and First Impressions Review

Hi everyone!! Long time, no see!! I need to stop taking such long hiatuses from this blog. I'm such a terrible blogger! Truth is, I've been crazy busy lately. School just finished up for the semester and things have just been crazy. Besides all the regular life stuff, I was struck with the plague a couple weeks ago and lost my sense of smell for almost two weeks! The ultimate worst nightmare for someone who is obsessed with things that smell good. My nose is FINALLY back to normal so I'm back again for some of my recent hauls and melted reviews =D

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Today I have something a bit different for you. A few months ago, Becky, the owner of Two Timing Tart contacted me and wanted to know if I'd be interested in reviewing some of her products. I said that of course I would love to try some of her tarts and from there, we started chatting and I found out that Becky is a really cool lady. She asked me to go through her scent list and give her an idea of what kind of things I would like to try, and ended up sending me everything I thought looked interesting and so much more! So thank you so much Becky for giving me the opportunity to try some of your products! And of course, I apologize that it took me so long to get this review up =)

Two Timing Tart is a company that makes both candles and clamshell tarts, all 100% soy and dye free. The thing that makes Two Timing Tart stand out from all the other wax companies out there is the sheer uniqueness of her scents. You're not going to find the likes of Pink Sugar Cookie Dough Bread or Serendipity Marshmallow Birthday Cake here. No siree. Becky blends her fragrances from the finest oils and uses several different oils in each tart or candle to come up with scents that are totally different from your typical candle scents. If you've ever heard of BPAL or Villainess Soaps, think of those kind of scents only in wax form. Love it! The names are great too, from Drunken Tweeting and Intergalactic Kegger to Sex Kitten and P0rnography, one can tell that this isn't a run-of-the-mill brand. The wax world is rather saturated these days with companies that do lots of bakery and fruity scents, so it's refreshing to see a wax company with more complex and uncommon fragrances. 

What I'm going to do is go through all the clamshells that she gave me and give a cold-sniff review on those scents then I will give my overall impressions of the company after that. So, please read on for my cold sniffs of these Two Timing Tart fragrances =)

NOTE: COLD SNIFF REVIEWS ONLY

• Tease
• Official description: 'Make a good cup of tea - vanilla tea and Moroccan mint - and show a little knee, ladies. Just don't get caught winking and blowing kisses at the married men.'
• My take: I can definitely smell the tea and the mint, but it's not like the typical "mint tea" scents that I've smelled in wax before. Something about it takes me back to the 90's, perhaps reminding me of something I custom blended at The Body Shop back when they had oils that the customers could blend themselves. Ahhh, those were the days. Anyway, this is a very fresh fragrance that is heavy on the mint and would be great for summer!
• Freak Flag
• Official description: 'Everyone has that one little thing that makes them just a bit weird/eccentric/freaky. (Okay, maybe a lot freaky.) So don't fight your Inner!Freak: embrace it and fly your freak flag proudly. My Freak Flag encompasses a sensible base of sandalwood and berries dipped in dark chocolate then drenched in champagne. Live long and proper, my freaky bitches.'
• My take: Oh yeah, I can definitely smell the sandalwood and chocolate. What an awesome combination! There's definitely a hint of berries and champagne in there as well. The sandalwood smells a bit more on the soapy side than the incense-y sandalwood I'm used to but I still really like this blend. I'm a HUGE fan of chocolate scents in wax, and this is definitely a good one. Very unique!
• Mae West's Diamonds
• Official description: 'Mae West was famed for her on-and-off-screen sexuality, best showcased by her stereotypical rags-to-riches, diamond-dripping characters. This is a sleek, sensually sparkling scent with surprisingly simple ingredients: musk and caraway.'
• My take: This is one of Becky's absolute best sellers and I can see why - it smells absolutely amazing! Musk and caraway, who would have thought? The musk is very pleasant and the caraway adds a kick to it that is fresh yet spicy at the same time. Trust me on this one - it's a must sniff for sure! 
• Parasol
• Official description: 'Keep the sun off your face in style! This parasol is also wonderful at dissuading unwanted suitors (and anyone else that might upset you or do you bodily offense). An unexpected blend of green fig and peach blossoms covers the potentially lethal combination of femininity and strength.'
• My take: This is another absolute favorite and another one that is a very nostalgic scent for me. The green fig and fresh peach blossom scents blend together to create a smell that is both comforting and invigorating. Again, I've never smelled anything like this from any other wax company before. The scent reminds me of my childhood somehow. I can see this being a universally well-liked scent and would be something I would recommend to anyone wanting to try this brand.  

• Intergalactic Kegger
• Official description: 'This is the scent of the keg of beer from the Restaurant at the End of the Universe: a bubbly, frothy raspberry porter with hints of dark chocolate, perfect for dethroning the Pan-galactic Gargle Blaster as favored drink of the universe at large.'
• My take: This is a special edition scent that is only available through The Rhinestone Housewife store. If you've never checked out this site, definitely do so because there's some really neat stuff on there. Anyway, this scent is SO GOOD. It's a fizzy raspberry scent (I don't really smell any beer undertones) with the added deliciousness of chocolate. You really just can't go wrong with raspberry and chocolate. This is not your typical chocolate raspberry scent, however. If this sounds in any way interesting to you, try it. It's really fantastic!
• Drunk Tweeting
• Official description: '140 characters, alcohol, and a QWERTY keyboard... what could possibly go wrong? This is the scent of a coconut-mango mojito; and a hella possession of the ability to crunch down words into nonsensical letters.'
• My take: This is a really fantastic combo. You get the sweetness from the coconut and mango, but the mojito adds a refreshing, minty aspect to the overall feel of this scent. This is another awesome scent for summer! I can't get over how awesome these blends are.
• Drunk Status Updates
• Official description: 'Ever been so drunk that you had to tell everyone just how drunk you were, where you got drunk, and who you were with when you got plastered? And why the hell do you have friends anyway - they just hog all the booze. Because, holy hell, who doesn't need another drink? The scent of comrades in drink: a pomegranate-lavender martini.'
• My take: Yet another awesome blend that I've never seen anywhere else. Pomegranate and lavender martini? Yes, please! The pomegranate and lavender martini scents blend together so effortlessly in this blend that I wonder why I've never thought to blend them before. The two together provide an awesome fruity and fizzy scent with a calming undertone. Not one note overpowers the other for a nice, balanced scent. I want to drink this. 
• Drunk Texting
• Official description: 'It's difficult to understand QWERTY keyboards when you're drunk. Damn autocorrect - I didn't really mean to text my dad... crap. The scent of a cucumber mojito that tipped the scales in favor of drunken textual mayhem.'
• My take: I get mostly cucumber and mint out of this one, with a slight lime-y undertone. It's an awesome fresh and clean kind of scent without having that sharp note that a lot of fresh scents have. If you are a fan of fresh scents, this one is a must have. I can see this one being an excellent hangover cure type of scent as well. Perhaps a good antidote to a night filled with drunk texting?

• P0rnography
• Official description: 'Rule 34: if it exists, there is p0rn of it. Sometimes, the wrongest of the wrongs is the rightest of the rights. And how many times have you gone, "OMG WTF AM I WATCHING?" This is the scent of a dirty, dirty whore cupcake tainted with dragon's blood.'
• My take: YUMMMM! This is an awesome cupcake scent without having that super sweet, hits-you-in-the-back-of-the-throat kind of reaction. It almost has a bit of a licorice-y undertone that kind of reminds me of anise pizzelle or biscotti. It's phenomenal. One of the best bakery-type scents I've ever smelled before. I would love this kind of scent in a body lotion or perfume as well. In fact, all of the scents from Becky would make awesome perfumes.
• Peacock Plumes
• Official description: 'Instead of flowers or ribbons, why not deck your curled bob out with a peacock plume and rhinestone headdress? Yuzu and bamboo, tempered with teakwood and a hint of lemon - isn't that color just lovely with your eyes!'
• My take: This is another really fresh scent. I can smell the yuzu and the teakwood with slight undertones of lemon and bamboo. I have realized that I'm not a huge fan of yuzu scents (which is odd because I usually love grapefruit-type scents) but I can see this being a hit among citrus lovers. The citrus notes blended with the fresh and woodsy notes of the bamboo and teakwood make this one a standout for sure. 
• Teatime with Mary Pickford
• Official description: 'Old Hollywood's den of vice extended even to teatime. Instead of a nice darjeeling, partake of a cup of champagne cocktail that's ripe with mango juice and coconut milk.'
• My take: I just love the coco-mango oil that she uses. It's so tropical and sweet and delicious. The coconut mango is definitely hits your nose upon first sniff but there is a nice undertone of tea and champagne which adds a bubbly freshness to the fruity notes. Very nice and refreshing for a summer day!
• Innocence
• Official description: 'The very concept of innocence as a thing that you can lose is an adult idea. Sugar, spice and everything nice, with a decidedly adult bent: brown sugar, nutmeg, and an anise chaser.'
• My take: To me, this smells like pumpkin pie spice without the pumpkin. SO YUMMY! You definitely get the anise note prominently so if licorice-y kind of scents aren't your thing, this might be one to pass on.

• Sex Kitten
• Official description: 'For when you just need a little boost to remind you that you too can purr like a kitten, light this mixture of honeycomb, patchouli, and vanilla up and get busy!'
• My take: When Becky and I were discussing what kind of scents I liked, I mentioned that I was not a huge fan of patchouli. She told me that I needed to try this one anyway because she uses a patchouli oil that doesn't smell like old dirty hippies. I'm so glad she talked me into this one because it smells fantastic! She is correct, her patchouli oil is more of an herbal patchouli rather than a stale-incense-head-shop kind of smell. It's really, really nice! If you are a patchouli hater, I truly encourage you to give this one a sniff. It changed my mind about patchouli scents!
• Insanitea
• Official description: 'If insanity is hereditary, so also must be the love of tea - and liquor. Don't worry, we won't tell your therapist about the compulsion to run around naked with a tea cozy on your head. Or the fact that we <3 our tea a little too much around here. Tea, absinthe, mint, and hints of vanilla.'
• My take: This smells very similar to Tease, which is a vanilla mint tea scent as well, but this one has the added woodsy undertone from the added absinthe fragrance. I think I like this one a bit more than Tease because I'm a huge fan of absinthe scents. I get the strong minty undertone in this one as well but the absinthe mellows it out a bit more. Really good, and another one of Becky's best sellers!
• Daydreamer
• Official description: 'Lose yourself in the clouds and zone out to the scent of citrus musk, sandalwood, and a warm rush of cassis, lemongrass, and kiwi.'
• My take: Oh man do I love a good lemongrass scent!! That is definitely the dominant note in this blend - a fresh, green lemongrass scent with undertones of other fruits and sandalwood. If you've ever smelled Lemongrass Kiwi Cassis from other vendors, this has that note in it but with an added complexity from the sandalwood and musk. This is a scent I'll definitely love on a warm day with the windows open and breezes flowing through!
• Seduction
• Official description: 'Less than innocent furtive glances, stolen touches, brief kisses, and the less than faint breath of desire expressed in tones of Madagascar vanilla, a delicate breath of orchid and blondewood, and the warmth of cardamom and teakwood.'
• My take: This is definitely one of my favorites of the whole bunch. If you've ever smelled i Profumi di Firenze's Vaniglia del Madagascar perfume, this is it in wax, but with a bit more spiciness which perhaps is coming from the cardamom. SO GOOD! It's a sexy and sophisticated vanilla scent with a twist of something different. My husband loves this perfume on me so I know he'll love this in wax as well.

• Madman with a Box
• Official description: 'Anyone who hangs out with me more than five minutes knows that I have an incurable love of Doctor Who. So what better way to salute my favorite show than a mix of blue agave, blueberry, lime, and freshly crushed peppermint candies? It's a little fruity, a lot crazy, and totally sonic. Who looked at a wax tart and though it could be a bit more sonic? This Whovian.'
• My take: Oh so yummy. I smell mostly blueberry and mint with this one, which I've realized is a favorite scent combo of mine. Fresh, invigorating and fruity all at the same time. Really awesome blend! I'm not a Doctor Who watcher but I think this would be something fun for all of you Whovians out there.
• Lustful Longings
• Official description: 'It's only human to lust after those we find attractive. Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte went there - a lot. Pent-up desires and a need to express them can only lead to angst, epiphany, or oblivion, but still we have them anyway. This scent is a deep, rich sandalwood with dancing notes of Blue Sugar and Pink Sugar - the male and female coupled together in the profane and the divine.'
• My take: You guys know me and Blue Sugar - I can't get enough!! This is different from the typical Blue Sugar/Pink Sugar blends because it has that added touch of sandalwood that makes it a bit deeper. LOVE this one! 
• The Haughty Flounce (LE March 2013)
• Official description: 'Turn your back on your enemies and strut away like it just ain't no damn thing - a deeply disturbing and complex scent that slaps like an insult but soothes like sugar: toasted hazelnut and spiced caramel.'
• My take: This is definitely a caramel and nutty kind of scent, but there is something else in there that I can't place that takes it to a whole different level. Sandalwood? Patchouli? Musk? I'm not sure of what makes it so different from your typical nutty caramel scent, but it's definitely unique. And delicious! This would be the absolute perfect Halloween scent. It was limited edition for March but it is still available on the site, and for half off! 
• Unemployment Apathy (LE March 2013)
• Official description: 'For those of you not in the know, I recently was laid off from my day job. And, really, maybe that's for the best. Whatever, I don't know. All I know is that I'm making a ton of wax and watching a damn lot of stuff on Netflix. I could start drinking, but then I'd have to stop when my severance pay runs out - so, instead, here's a sloshy drunk tart! Sangria mixed with champagne and a drunken toast to my future success in finding another job.'
• My take: Oh, this is another one of my favorites from the bunch. I love me a good fizzy drink scent and this one definitely fits the bill. It has a strong fruity note from that sangria but the champagne just puts it over the top with an awesome citrus-y, fizzy scent. SO awesome! I would love to slather myself in this scent on a daily basis. Fresh, fruity and wonderful! This is another LE scent that is currently half off on her site!

• Pin-Up Girl
• Official description: 'From the girl next door to the vampy flash & glam, a pin-up girl was on every male mind from about the age of 8 till the age of 90. So show off your curves and put on some bright red lipstick and rock it! The scent of freshly baked almond cookies, a lemon sugar drizzle, and two perfect, lush, burgandy drops of black cherry to finish.'
• My take: This is a fantastic, yummy almond and cherry cookie scent. I don't get much lemon out of this scent but that's okay because everything else I'm smelling is great. I love cherry almond scents, but some can be too cloying. This is not one of those scents. It is light enough to where it doesn't make you feel queasy. Delish!!
• Sex Bomb
• Official description: 'Ladies, you wish your man smelled like this and not cheap deodorant, soap, and sweat. Deep, sweet myrrh, masculine, spicy bay rum, and a surprising twist of pineapple - all leading to a lingering disappointment at the Guitar Hero marathon in the living room. The least he could do is have moves like Jagger, right?'
• My take: This is a really fantastic scent. I was a bit scared off by the mention of 'masculine' in the description, but I don't think it's too masculine at all. In fact, this kind of reminds me of a holiday scent. The pineapple mixed with the myrrh and spices kind of smell like some kind of old-world Christmas punch. This one surprised me, as it's definitely one of my favorites! Really unique and awesome scent. 
• Pride and Prejudice
• Official description: 'I finally admit to being a girl and liking Jane Austen... but it doesn't hurt that Mr. Darcy is so brooding and sexy. Elizabeth Bennett is lucky to have found her match, and this scent celebrates her twisted love story with Mr. Darcy - linen, amber, sandalwood, and dusty, musky vanilla.'
• My take: This is another scent that is very similar to my beloved Vaniglia del Madagascar perfume but with a bit more of a kick to it. This time, it's the deep, resinous amber notes that give this tart it's mysterious undertone. I absolutely love this one as well. If I had to choose between this one and Seduction, this one wins by a hair but they are both fantastic. I just love amber notes and this is a great one without being too powdery like some ambers can be. Love it! 
• Drunk and Disorderly (bath salts)
• Official description: Pumpkin lager, black cherry, patchouli and Blue Sugar.
• My take: I'm pretty sure this scent is the best thing I've ever smelled in my life.  My love for cherry, pumpkin and Blue Sugar scents knows no bounds but when mixed together? It's a scentgasm, you guys. I have been tempted to many times to use these but I've been waiting to do this review before I indulged myself. Pure, utter, amazing wonderfulness. I need this scent in every single product imaginable, including laundry detergent, dishwashing liquid and anything else I could get my hands on. Becky. This is phenomenal. 

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I hope you guys enjoyed my scent descriptions of these tarts! Now I will go into my pros and cons about this company. Please keep in mind that your experience with these tarts may be different and these are just my opinions. I encourage you all to try these for yourselves because they are truly unlike any other wax tarts I've ever smelled before. 

Pros:

• The scents. Becky is truly a master at blending fragrances and these are some of the absolute best scents I've ever smelled in my life. The fragrances are unique and complex, but not so much so that you lose out on smelling the individual notes in the blends. I don't know how she did it, but so many of these scents are very nostalgic for me and some evoke memories that I never even knew I had. Very cool.
• The concept. I absolutely love the concept of this company. The names and scents are clever, tounge-in-cheek and humorous. I love the simplicity of the tarts as well. No dyes, no crazy labels or shapes. Just white wax and black and white labels. For those who like a more natural product, these tarts (and her candles as well) are 100% soy.
• The customer service. Becky is very responsive to e-mails and messages and very much wants to make your time with TTT a great experience. She's hilarious and is really great at knowing what kind of scents you would like based on your other likes and dislikes. She's a riot to chat with and definitely puts a lot of thought into her product. For those seeking a bit of a different experience from your wax, I highly recommend checking Two Timing Tart out. 

Cons:

• The price. These clamshells are $5 a piece, with special editions running at $6 a piece (but those are on sale for $3 on her site right now). Most clamshells from online vendors run in the $3 range so these are definitely on the higher side. However, I do have a coupon code for you all to use that I will post at the end of my entry that will help cut down on the cost on your first purchase.
• The wax formula. I do not care for the wax, unfortunately. It is a 100% soy wax and it is very, very crumbly. It is also difficult to get the wax out of the clamshells, I've noticed. When I have clamshells, I prefer that the wax is easy to get out and easy to break off into cubes. This type of wax would perhaps be better suited to another container other than clamshells. I'm sure it works really well in the candles, but I've never tried those so I can't speak to that.
• The scent strength. This is difficult for me to say because Becky is such a sweetheart and I am head over heels for the scents, but they are pretty light on cold throw and so far of the one tart that I've melted, it had almost no throw. I melted Innocence, 2 cubes each in a 24-watt hotplate, an 18-watt hot plate and a 25-watt lightbulb warmer and I didn't get much. Of course, Innocence could just be a lighter scent so I am definitely going to give the rest of them a go and see if they perform better for me than Innocence did. Again, everyone's nose is different and for those people that don't like as strong of a scent throw as I do (I like nosehair-searing strong), these tarts may just be the perfect match for you. *EDITED TO ADD* She is working on reformulating her wax so the scent throw is a bit stronger. 

Even though the one I've melted so far didn't do much for me, I have hopes that the other ones will perform better and I will keep you all updated as I melt through the rest of these! I suggest you check out Two Timing Tart if you love scents that are more complex and if you are sick of the typical Strawberry Zucchini Bread and Fruit Loops Birthday Cake kind of scents that are so commonplace nowadays!

Here is a coupon code for all of my readers! SCHOLARLYNAIL will get you $5 off a $15 order, which is basically like purchasing two tarts and getting on for free! 

That concludes my cold sniff and first impressions review of Two Timing Tarts! I hope you saw something today that caught your eye, as Becky really has some amazing scents. I'll be back in the coming days to catch up on some hauls and reviews! Thanks for stopping by today folks and I hope you are all having a wonderful day!

These products were sent to me in exchange for my honest review. 

My Current Top 5 Favorite Wax Vendors!

Hi everyone!! I'm waiting until this Sunday to post my weekly reviews, and I have one more post in store for you this week, but for now I figured I'd pop in with a quick post about my current top favorite vendors. I get asked who my favorite vendors are all the time so I thought you all would enjoy it! In addition, I tag all of my fellow wax bloggers to do the same!

This was definitely a difficult post to write because there are so many wonderful vendors out there and it's tough to narrow it down to five favorites. There's several things I took into account while compiling this list, including customer service, turnaround time, variety of scents available, etc., but in the end the most important thing for me is performance of the tarts. I want tarts that smell like what they're supposed to smell like, last a reasonable amount of time, and most importantly - they have to be strong! There's nothing worse than having a tart smell great on cold throw but when you put it in the warmer, you get nothing. AIN'T NOBODY GOT TIME FOR THAT!

Keep in mind, no vendor is perfect. Every vendor has their own drawbacks, and I will be listing those as well. Obviously, the good things about these vendors far outweigh the bad so that is why they are in my top 5. Also, just because a vendor is not listed here does not mean that I don't like their products. These are just the ones that stick out in my mind and that I continue to order from time and time again.

Without further ado, I present to you my top 5 favorite wax vendors! Please note that these are in alphabetical order and not in order of preference (that would have been even more difficult)! Oh and I apologize for the lack of pictures, this was a very spur of the moment post. Anyway, here we go!

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1. Candles from the Keeping Room

Candles from the Keeping Room (CFTKR) has been a favorite company of mine for many, many years. It is run by a lady named Carol who is so sweet and helpful to her customers. She has a TON of different scents and blends, probably one of the biggest and most diverse scent lists of any vendor out there. Her tarts are generally strong, and although I've had a few more duds than usual with her lately, the majority of CFTKR tarts are great. Also, CFTKR is a ready-to-ship (RTS) company so even when she is slammed (which she has been lately), you will still get your order within a week. When things aren't as busy, I have received my order within 2 days. A lot of vendors these days have TATs upwards of a few months so it's refreshing to see a vendor who sticks to a short TAT.

There are a few things to consider with CFTKR. First of all, you can't normally order single tarts. Her tarts come in 4 oz. or 8 oz. bags only. But, they are VERY reasonably priced so that's not a huge deal. Also, Carol has skyrocketed in popularity lately and it has been very hard for her to keep things in stock. I am thrilled for her, but at the same time, it is very frustrating when you can't get the scents that you were hoping for. She does restock quite frequently but lately things have been selling out instantly. Carol is currently closed but will be reopening at the beginning of May, so if you are planning on ordering, plan on waking up super early that day so you can get what you were hoping for!

2. Front Porch

Front Porch was one of the first vendors I ordered from when I got back into wax and I continue to order from them quite frequently (much to the dismay of my wallet). Front Porch is a RTS company as well, and they actually restock their site every day Monday-Friday which is great because there is always a lot of stock on hand. Besides the fact that they have great scents, their tarts are some of the strongest and long lasting around! Because they have such a huge scent list, they take requests from customers and every single time I have requested a scent, Angie (the owner) has listed it within a few days of my request. So cool! Another thing that I love about Front Porch is the fact that they never (or at least not in my recent memory) close down shop. Front Porch tarts will always be a staple in my collection for sure.

Some people seem to feel that Front Porch tarts are a bit expensive for what they are. A 4-pack of 1-oz. grubby tarts are $5.25 and the single grubbies are $1.75. Dollars for ounce, they do appear to be some of the more expensive tarts on the market. But here's the thing- they have free shipping, ALL THE TIME! No matter if you order a single tart or a huge $200 order, your shipping will always be free. Thus, the price of shipping is built into the price of the tarts. Some people still feel like FP tarts are too expensive, but I'm more than willing to pay a bit more when I get free shipping in the end. Another thing to consider about FP wax - it has a bit of a peculiar base smell, akin to friend dough or hot oil. It does affect the scents on cold throw but usually when melted, they smell just fine. I have found, however, that some fruity scents don't work well with the base smell so it's a trial and error situation. However, bakery scents are always AMAZING in Front Porch's wax.

3. Lasting Scent Candles

LSC was the very first vendor I placed an order with when I got back into wax and they are still in my very absolute favorite vendors list. Quite simply, LSC is amazing. They have some of the best and most authentic scents in the biz, their stuff is always SUPER STRONG, and I love the variety of scents that they have. They variety is definitely not as diverse as CFTKR, FP, or RG but what's awesome about their scents is the majority of them are custom blended by them. A lot of vendors just use stock oils, but LSC makes sure that their blends are the best of the best, and sometimes it requires a bit more than just tossing in some stock oil into some wax. Awesome, awesome blends! Another thing that I love about LSC is their labels. Each scent has it's own colorful picture on the label, they are all absolutely adorable.

A major downside of LSC is the TAT. Generally the TAT for custom orders runs about 21 days, but they got so overwhelmed with orders recently that they had to close up shop for a little while. For me, 21 days isn't a big deal as I've been waiting on orders for a few vendors for upwards of 3-4 months but I know some people prefer not to wait that long. But luckily, for those in need of instant gratification, LSC usually has a great selection of RTS tarts available. Also, they don't have a huge variety of products available. I believe they do carry room sprays and possibly home fragrance oils, but in terms of wax, there's only 1.5 ounce scent shots. That's it. No scoopables, no brittle, no chunks, no scallops. Just the 1.5 ounce scent shots. That doesn't bother me at all, though I know some people would prefer to have a variety of different product options.

4. Rosegirls

Ahh Rosegirls. I absolutely LOVE Rosegirls. Rosegirls is a more unique vendor in that they only offer chunk tarts and pie tarts. No scent shots, no scallops, no clamshells. Just chunks. And WOW are their chunks fantastic. They offer around 200 or so different chunk blends that they keep in stock and then they also offer custom blending options, where you can create any scent that your heart desires! I've had a few weaker tarts from them but overall, their stuff is super strong and both their house blends as well as custom blends, are all blended so well that you can smell all the specific notes in them! Gotta love that. These girls really know what they're doing. It's honestly like Christmas when I open an order from Rosegirls.

Here's the thing with Rosegirls. They are so popular that they can only open up shop once a month for a few hours. That means that you have to make sure that you are awake early, have your list planned out and your credit card at the ready because the site is absolutely SLAMMED when they open. It's a rush ordering from RG for sure. But rest assured, they will announce on Facebook when they have to close the site based on how many orders they have received. Some people find this system infuriating, but I absolutely LOVE it. They know their limit and they would much rather only accept as many orders as they can handle so they don't get overwhelmed and end up with TATs that are several months long. Much like many wax vendors these days, they have skyrocketed in popularity recently so their TAT has extended a bit, even with the current system. I don't mind waiting a bit longer because they are very upfront about their TAT and do everything they can to prevent from going over that.

5. The Bathing Garden

The Bathing Garden definitely has some of the most beautiful looking tarts around. If you've never seen Shannon's tarts before, you're missing out because they're absolutely gorgeous! She only does clamshells, and she has beautiful colored wax covered in glitter and various embeds that correspond with whatever scent   they are. I've had great luck with TBG's tarts, there have been a few duds but the majority of them are super strong and long lasting. Another great thing about The Bathing Garden is how unique her scents are. If you're looking for your typical Sugar Cookie or Blueberry Muffin scent, you need to look elsewhere because these blends are definitely out of the ordinary. With cult favorites such as Lemon Curd and Rose Milk, she has a knack for blending florals in a way that even floral haters will love. Shannon is also a sweetheart and is always willing to help her customers out. Really great stuff and great customer service as well!

A major downside of the Bathing Garden is you never really know what scents she will be listing. She had some major surgery back in December and is now unfortunately dealing with a family issue, so her restocks as of late have been a bit inconsistent. Totally understandable but just something to think about. If you are dead set on going to the site and being able to order your favorite scent at that very moment, it's just not going to work like that. However, Shannon has been working on opening up her own website outside of etsy and hopefully being able to carry more stock at a time. This may be a ways down the road due to current events in her life, but I'm patient and for now, I'm totally okay with stalking her etsy page on the chance that she may restock.

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And so concludes my top 5 favorite vendors!! At the time of publishing this post, all of these vendors are currently closed with the exception of Front Porch, but I anticipate them all opening back up again very soon. Like I said before, just because a vendor isn't listed here doesn't mean that I don't love their product. But these are the top 5 vendors that I consistently have great luck with and will continue to buy from again and again.

I'll be back this week to share with you guys a new vendor and later on with some melted reviews! Thanks for stopping by today and I'll see you all very soon =)

Weekly Wax Meltdown #7 - 3/24/2013 to 4/13/2013

Hey ladies (and gents)! Long time no see yet again, eh? I can't believe I haven't posted in almost three weeks! I've been busy with various things these past few weeks and in addition to slacking on the blogging, I haven't been melting a whole lot either. At the same time, my stash seems to have grown exponentially recently due to several swaps and RR's that I've been participating in. This means 2 things - first of all, I absolutely need to make an effort to be melting more when I'm home and second of all, DESTASHES! So, keep your eyes peeled for some destashes from me very soon! 

Also, I've started doing YouTube wax videos! A lot of my YT friends have been requesting that I do some videos and I finally gave in. I'll mostly be doing swap and Round Robin videos there, and I plan on keeping the majority of my melted reviews and hauls on this blog. So if you're interested in checking those out, here is the link to my YouTube channel: Scholarly Nail on YouTube. 

I may have another exciting announcement for you guys soon as well, but I'll keep that on the DL until things pan out with that. And no, don't worry, I'm not knocked up! For now, let's get into what I've been melting these past few weeks!

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• Front Porch Lemon Cotton Candy (1 tart) - Man oh man was this one awesome! I believe I've reviewed this scent before so I won't go into to much detail but it was truly phenomenal. Front Porch has one of the few cotton candy oils that is SUPER STRONG as well as long lasting. FP also has one of my favorite lemon scents so the two of these together is pure heaven. This little grubby tart lasted me over 12 hours in my 24 watt hotplate. I'm on a wax ban right now but I made sure I had another 4-pack on hand before that started =)
• Front Porch Iced Cinnamon Rolls (1 tart) - I got this one out of a recent RR box and when I went to put it away, I realized the bag was ripped so I just tossed it into one of my warmers. I'm not sure how old this tart was or how long the bag had been ripped, but I didn't get a whole lot out of this one. It was a generic spicy bakery scent, and I got a nice medium throw in my 18-watt hotplate but it quickly fizzled out after a few hours and started to get that waxy smell to it. I think I have a newer tart of this scent that I'll try before I come to any conclusions about this one. 
• Front Porch Blueberry Cheesecake (1 tart) - This was a nice scent from Front Porch but not really anything special. It had a very generic blueberry scent to it and I didn't get a whole lot of the cheesecake note in it, which was a bit disappointing. Overall a good tart but not a favorite. It had a medium-to-strong scent throw and lasted a good 8 hours in a 24-watt hotplate warmer. Probably won't be repurchasing this one, as I much prefer the Blueberry Cheesecake scent from Tiffany Candles. 
• Candles from the Keeping Room Strawberry Cookie (1 tart) - Okay, now this one was AMAZING. Wow. Wow wow WOW you guys. If you haven't tried Carol's Strawberry Cookie scent, you absolutely must. It smells a lot like her Strawberry Milk scent with a cookie undertone. You get the strawberry note, you get the crunchy cookie note, but then there's this underlying milky sweetness that is present as well. If I had to name this scent myself, I'd call it "Strawberry Milk and Cookies." It was a nice medium-to-strong scent throw in my 24-watt hotplate and it lasted about 6 hours before it started to fade. I'm so glad I have another sample and a 4-pack in this one because it is a new fave for sure! 
• Closet Full of Wax Blushing Peaches (1 Mickey shaped tart) - This was the first thing I've ever melted from CFoW and I was pleasantly surprised! I've heard that this vendor has been hit or miss for people and I can definitely see how, just based off of cold sniff of the ones I've smelled, but this is a definite winner! This is a very sweet peach scent with a bit of a berry undertone. I'm really big on peach scents lately for spring and summer so this one was right up my alley. Medium-to-strong scent throw. Lasted about 6 hours. I got back a pack of scallops in this scent in my RR and I have this scent from CBV as well so I think I'm good and stocked up for awhile.

• Lil' Kitchen Candles Twinkie (1 large teddy bear tart) - I just really have not been having great luck with LKC these days. This was a HUGE bear tart, probably around 1.5 ounces or more and I really didn't get much from it. I don't know if my order was a bad batch or what. I could smell a faint sweetness when this was melting but that's pretty much it. Light throw in a 24-watt hotplate. I ended up dumping this one out after about 3 hours because it just didn't do much for me. I have a scent shot from LKC in Twinkies Cheesecake that is a bit stronger on cold throw so I'll try that one to see if it does better for me. 
• Lil' Kitchen Candles Strawberry Banana Smoothie (1.5 scent sticks) - As a last ditch effort to try to get some of my LKC stuff to work for me, I threw 1 and a half of these sticks into my 24-watt and surprisingly, this one did really well for me! I got a medium-to-strong throw off of it. The blend was really nice too, you could smell the banana and strawberry notes equally. The banana was more of a Runts banana as opposed to a fresh banana so this scent was very sweet and candy-like, which I loved! Lasted a good 6 or so hours. I'd probably repurchase this one if I order from LKC again.
• Tiffany Candles Jelly Donuts (1 scallop tart) - Yum! This is Tiffany's new Jelly Donuts blend, which is actually a jelly donut scent blended with their infamous Donut Shop fragrance. I definitely get the fruity jelly scent but I also get that wonderful undertone of spicy fried dough coming from the Donut Shop scent. SO good! I was surprised that it performed so well for me, usually 1 scallop from Tiffany's doesn't really do it for me but this was pleasantly strong. Medium-to-strong scent throw, lasted about 6 hours. I'd definitely repurchase this and in fact, I bought a jar of scoopable wax in this one! Can't wait to try that out =)
• Tiffany Candles S'mores (1 scallop tart) - Meh. This wasn't all that strong on cold throw but I figured that since this is paraffin wax, it would come alive a bit more when melting. It didn't. At first, I got a slight hint of chocolate, a whole lotta marshmallow, and maybe the littlest bit of that graham cracker note but after about an hour it just faded into a generic sweet scent. Light throw. Lasted not even 2 hours. Definitely will not be repurchasing this one. I much prefer Campfire Dessert from Sniff My Tarts.
• Tiffany Candles Strawberry Banana - This was another great strawberry-banana scent. It was less candy-like than LKC's strawberry banana, probably due to the slight green undertone in the background. Medium scent throw. Lasted about 8 hours. Definitely not my favorite strawberry banana scent so I probably wouldn't repurchase. My current fave strawberry-banana scent is Rosegirls Strawberry Banana Bubblegum but it's not quite perfect so I'm always on the hunt for others (suggestions welcome).

• Candles by Victoria Banana Coconut Cream Pie (half a scent shot)- Two of my favorite scents in one, pure heaven! I could smell both notes equally, the sweet banana bakery scent mixed with the sweet coconut bakery scent. I just can't get enough coconut or banana scents lately!  Strong scent throw, lasted about 12 hours in my 24-watt hotplate. I ended up ordering this scent in a scoopable from her! Can't wait to see how CBV's scoopables work for me. 
• Shayz Crystal Light Peach Lemonade (1 scent shot) - This one was nice, but a bit odd. Shayz' lemonade scent isn't really a true lemonade scent and instead smells exactly like a fizzy pop scent. Okay with me, but I know a lot of people do not care for Shayz lemonade scents. Anyway, this scent did pretty well in my 24-watt hotplate, I got a strong scent throw for the first few hours of the fizzy pop blended with a nice peach note but after a few hours the peach fizzled out and it was all fizzy pop. Not bad but I wish the peach would have lasted longer. Not a repurch, as I don't see myself ordering from Shayz again in the near future.
• Haley's Heavenly Scents Cotton Candy (1 scent shot) - This is one of those super light cotton candy scents that just don't perform all that well melted. I got a faint cotton candy note when this was melted but not much else. I'm not too surprised because it didn't smell like all that much on cold throw and cotton candy scents are notoriously weak. Not a huge loss, as I got this one out of a RR box. Very light throw. Melted for about 2 hours before I tossed it. Not a repurchase. 
• Nene's Kitchen Melts Strawberry Buttercream (1 mini scent shot) - This was a really awesome strawberry and frosting scent. I absolutely love buttercream scents, and it didn't have that plasticky note that some frosting scents can have. The strawberry was sweet but not too sweet so the addition of the buttercream note didn't send it into that "too sweet" category. Unfortunately, this faded after a few hours in my 24-watt warmer. I am going to melt my Nene's stuff in lower wattage warmers from now on to prolong the scent throw. 
• Lasting Scent Candles Blueberry Muffin (1 scent shot) - I looooooove LSC's blueberry muffin scent. A lot of blueberry muffin scents are too heavy on the blueberry note but I get a great doughy note in this one as well. Strong throw in a 25-watt lightbulb warmer. Lasted 12+ hours. I have had amazing luck with my LSC tarts in general and they continue to be one of my go-to vendors so as long as they keep offering this scent, I will keep buying it!
• Lasting Scent Candles Candy Land Dreamin (1 scent shot) - I am getting to the end of my stash of this scent and I am bummed because it is SO DARN GOOD. It is a blend of lavender and peppermint with a slight hint of vanilla. It reminds me of something I used to buy from Lush way back in the day (Ickle Baby Bath, perhaps). Strong scent throw. Lasted about 8 hours in a 24-watt hotplate. To me, lavender mixed with peppermint is the ultimate relaxing/spa kind of scent and Candy Land Dreamin is BY FAR my favorite lavender/peppermint blend from any vendor. Unfortunately, it was limited edition for the holidays and is now discontinued. I'm now on the hunt for a lavender/peppermint blend that is just as good and I have not found one yet that can even hold a candle to this one!
• Lasting Scent Candles Pink Marshmallow Shortbread (1 scent shot) - HOLY COW YOU GUYS. This one is slap your mama good. I've been really into Pink Sugar blended with bakery scents lately and this is one of the best I've smelled thus far. I get the Pink Sugar and the marshmallow notes but the shortbread scent is the star here. Super rich and buttery, it blends amazingly with Pink Sugar. I need to get my hands on more of this for sure. Strong throw. Lasted about 8 hours in my 25-watt lightbulb warmer. Definite repurch!

• The Bathing Garden Cheshire Cat (2 cubes) - This was a nice raspberry/lemon scent but it honestly wasn't really anything special for me. I know, I know! It's such a popular Bathing Garden scent but something about it was lacking for me. The lemon scent was leaning towards a bakery lemon  so that was fine but the raspberry was oddly floral. Medium-to-strong scent throw. Lasted about 6 hours. Not sure I'll be melting the rest of this one. I'll probably pass it along in a swap or RR. 
• The Bathing Garden Cinnamon Cookie Dough (2 cubes) - This one I was unsure of on cold sniff but once it was warmed, I really loved it!! The cookie dough scent is very, very sweet and although this scent is very heavy on the cinnamon, that sweetness helps it from becoming too spicy. I melted this one in a tealight warmer because it was the only one I had open at the time, which is definitely not the ideal warmer for soft waxes like The Bathing Garden's. It only lasted about 3 hours but I know it will last longer in a different type of warmer. Really good!
• The Bathing Garden Gardenia Coconut Cream (1 cube)  - This is, hands down, the best gardenia scent I have ever smelled in my whole life! Absolutely incredible!! I didn't really smell a whole lot of the coconut on its own but it added a really nice sweetness to the gardenia scent. Gardenia scents can often be too sharp of soapy, but this one was soft, sweet and very pleasant. I enjoy floral scents and this one has to be one of my top favorites now. Strong scent throw from just 1 little cube! Lasted over 12 hours in a 24-watt hotplate. I hope she lists this scent again one day because I'll definitely need a backup of this one! 
• The Bathing Garden Lemon Curd and Rose Milk (2 cubes) - This is another one of The Bathing Garden's signature scents that I was thrilled to be able to get my hands on. Now this lemon blend was a definite winner in my book!! The lemon scent in this blend was not a bakery lemon, but it wasn't a cleaner-type lemon either. Just a nice fresh, tart lemon that blends really well with the floral and slighty sweet rose milk scent. This is pure genius scent mixing right here, folks. It is a very unique scent, I don't believe I've ever seen another vendor with this blend before. Strong throw! Try it, you'll like it =)

• Sniff My Tarts Raspberry Chocolate Truffle (half of a medium sized chunk) - I don't think there will ever be a SMT scent that I love more than this one. It is PERFECTION! I have been really into chocolate scents lately which is quite odd because I don't even really like chocolate all that much in real life. Anyway, when I do like to eat chocolate, my favorite is the raspberry truffles from Godiva. This, my friends, smells exactly like you are taking a bite into a delicious raspberry truffle!! It's truly wonderful. There is a slight boozy note to the chocolate scent but somehow that makes it seem all-the-more of an authentic chocolate scent for me. I can't get enough of this scent you guys! I recently passed a chunk of this on in a RR and I'm kind of regretting that because I want it all to myself. I did half of a chunk in my 24-watt hotplate and this bad boy lasted over 12 hours for me. So not only does it smell amazing, but it lasts forever too. I may have to switch out one of the bags in my pending SMT for this scent so I can have backups. 
• Sniff My Tarts Smoothie Sugar Peppermint (1 chunk) - This is a really awesome peppermint and vanilla blend. I've realized that as far as minty scents go, I much prefer a straight up peppermint to "candy cane" scents, which have an odd undertone to my nose. Anyways, this was very strong as well, lasted about 8 hours in my 24-watt hotplate. I'm not sure what the "sugar" note in this one is supposed to be, but I'd definitely order this blend again once I actually figure out what that sugar note is. Sugar cookie? Warm Vanilla Sugar? Either way, it was a winner for sure. 
• Sniff My Tarts Campfire Dessert (1 chunk) - This scent blew Tiffany Candles S'mores out of the water!! You get notes of chocolate, graham cracker and chocolate evenly in this one and they all blend together quite nicely (much like an actual S'more!). Medium scent throw, lasted around 6 hours. I was really hoping for a bit of a stronger throw with this one but it was good nonetheless. I think I'd repurchase this blend, but probably only in scent shot form because they tend to be stronger than the chunks. 

• COMBO: Candles from the Keeping Room Serendipity and Birthday Cake (1 tart each) - I thought this sounded like a great blend idea and it was good but strangely, the Birthday Cake scent really seemed to dominate the Serendipity in this blend. I found this odd because usually Serendipity is a strong scent and birthday cake scents generally aren't as strong. I did end up liking this one but next time, I'll try only using half of a birthday cake tart to see if the Serendipity comes out a bit more. Medium scent throw. Lasted about 6 hours in a 24-watt hotplate warmer. 

• Candles from The Keeping Room Acai Berry (1 tart) - This scent started out AWESOMELY! It reminded me of a wildberry mousse scent but without the creaminess that WB mousse scents have. It was really fantastic for the first couple of hours and then it fizzled out quite quickly in my 24-watt. I hate to say it but I haven't had the best luck with CFTKR tarts as of late. I find that I'm starting to need 2 tarts to get the scent throw and longevity that I want from them. This is from a more recent order so I wonder if it's just a recent batch issue? Who knows. This would have been a new favorite scent if it would have lasted longer.
• Candles from the Keeping Room Pineapple Upside Down Cake (1 tart) - This did pretty well for me! I didn't get much cake, but I sure got a nice, sweet pineapple scent from this tart. I'm getting into pineapple scents lately, especially with the warmer weather on the horizon. I would have preferred a bit more of a cake scent from this but it was really yummy nonetheless. Medium scent throw. Lasted about 6 hours in my 18-watt hotplate. 
• Candles from the Keeping Room Fruit Loops - Toasted Marshmallow (2 tarts, 1 in each warmer) - This is one of Carol's most popular scents, I've heard nothing but raves for this one. It was really nice, you get both the Fruit Loops and Toasted Marshmallow scents (by the way, I LOVE Carol's Toasted Marshmallow scent) but the throw wasn't quite as strong as I had hoped. I melted one tart in a 24-watt hotplate and one in a tealight warmer. I got a medium throw from this scent in both warmers. Lasted about 6 hours in the hotplate, 4 in the tealight. I really like this scent I just wish it were stronger. 
• Candles from the Keeping Room Cotton Candy Frosting - Now this one was AWESOME! I love Cotton Candy Frosting from any vendor, I find it to be one of the strongest cotton candy oils available. Carol's version did really well for me, I got a medium-to-strong scent throw from it and it lasted a solid 6 hours. I'm trying to not order from Carol when she reopens because I have so much CFTKR already (plus that whole wax ban thing), but if an order happens, I'll definitely need to grab another bag of this one!

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Alrighty guys, that's all I've melted for the past few weeks. Definitely some hits and misses in that bunch. Thanks to everyone for stopping by today and I'll see you all again very soon! xoxo