Fall Scent Additions - The Body Shop

 When the seasons change, I feel like the kinds of perfume and bodywash I use also tend to change along with it. I love my fruity florals, but in the fall I prefer something a little more fresh, spicy and light. If that makes any sense.

I feel like The Body Shop nails scents in some areas. They don't smell essence-y and are really natural and 'unedited'. There aren't impossible mixes like sweater-weather-marshmallow-pumkin-latte-cinnamon-dreams *cough-splutter-bathandbody*.

Here are some recent additions to my 'scent wardrobe' if you will.
Also, I just learned that L'oreal owns TBS and that's why they have French translations.







1. Body Shop Shower Gel in Smoky Poppy
    When this line came out, I was curious as to whether the scent would be manly, womanly or both. I'd definitely say both. It's got spicy undertones but a subtle sweetness that makes it just right. The gel is actually black which makes lil old me VERY happy. I live with guys so I will be sure to keep this in my room so that I don't wake it to it completely over one day.

2. Body Shop Shower Gel in Blueberry
    This is one of those 'good enough to eat' scents. Loads of brands do berry inspired scents (Bath and Body, Victoria's Secret) but they come off as synthetic to me. This literally smells like the fruit. You can even smell the tartness, you know? It's brilliant and definitely not an overpowering or clawing scent.

3. Fragrance mist in Fijian Water Lotus
    This rave could be long so grab yourself a cup of tea.
 Back when I was home, a couple of years ago, I bought (okay, my Mom bought) this perfume from them called Aqua Lily. It was one of the nicest, freshest scent's I'd ever had the pleasure of smelling so of course, I stole it.
It got discontinued so I decided to move on. And I thought I'd never find a scent like that again.
Until now.
I was at the store here in Manhattan and I showed the lady at the counter my empty perfume bottle and asked her if they had anything similar. She herded me towards the Body Mists and told me to check out the Fijian Water Lotus one. I didn't have high expectations but I thought I'd give it a shot. And oh my god. It is amazing. If you're into fresh, ocean-like, sweet but sharp scents, this is the one for you. The price point is insane for the amount of silage is has. It stays on ALL DAY. I've always thought The Body Shop fragrance mists are underrated as they fare just as well as an eau de parfum in terms of staying power. And they're also 1/4th the price. This is going to be my go-to scent this fall and winter till I can find afford to supplement it with another one.


What are your favorite scents from TBS?

   

Drugstore Haul & Review











The moment I got my acceptance letter this was my thought process:
1. I have brought honor to my family.
2. I can now shop at the drugstore.
3. I CAN NOW SHOP AT THE DRUGSTORE.
4. TGYUIOPIGFGYUIUYTRE5Y7DRUGSTORE

I have spent many a day envying the American beauty community who has access to a wider range of Maybelline/Revlon/Rimmel than I do in India and who have Elf/Wet n Wild/NYC at their disposal.

This is why I decided to move to New York for grad school.

(ONLY JOKING PARENTS)

This is a result of a month of small sneaky purchases and the combined cost of all that doesn't even cross $20.

1. Wet n Wild Megaplump Mascara
     This was probably the first thing that I bought from the drugstore. I was in desperate need of a mascara and my Million Lashes dried up on me. I did a big of in-store research and saw that this wand gives you a pretty similar effect. The formulation is a little too wet for me, but it's a great one for daytime.

2. Elf Volumizing Mascara
    Elf products are notorious for being either brilliant or completely awful. After the average performance of the Wet N Wild mascara, I took a gamble and bought this. I LOVE it. It goes on so easily and two coats gives me exactly what my Million Lashes used to. Stays on all day, as well. And I think the packaging is great too!

3. Wet n Wild Megalast nailpolish in Disturbia
    This is by far my favorite purple nailpolish. Ever. I've been on the hunt for a nice vampy dark purple without sparkles for years now. This has done it. The brush is also one of them fancy ergonomic ones that fit your nail perfectly. I think it works well for everything except my pinky cause it's tiny. I just end up using the brush on its side.

4. Wet n Wild Topcoat
     I picked this up along with the nailpolish cause well, dark colors chip and leave you looking like a preteen that bites your nails for fun. I wouldn't say I'm a fan because my nails gave me two days grace then started chipping. Why. Topcoat, you had one job...

5. Elf Flawless eye shadow palette in Tantalizing Taupe
    I'm all about the neutral palettes. I have a few of them now, and I think they're great for stashing in your purse. These four shades are nice, pigmented, buttery taupe shades. They're quite satiny (I expected them to be more matte) but I'm happy with them all the same. I love using the darkest shade in my crease - really adds depth and takes my usual gold day-eye to a night time vibe.

6. Burt's Bees Vanilla Lipbalm
    This stuff is an American cult favorite so when I saw it on a discount, I just grabbed it. I love it.

7. Wet n Wild lipsticks in Vamp it Up and Spotlight Red
    These lipsticks were impulse purchases. I was looking for some fall appropriate lipsticks and I picked these two up. I really Like Spotlight Red - it's a nice cool toned red. I'm still debating on whether to drop the $20 on Ruby Woo. But I think as this isn't AS nice, I may just have to. Vamp it up is a straight up purple. Not for the faint hearted. I love it stained out a bit (I am not brave enough to slap it on directly:P). The formulas of both these lipsticks are really good, I'd recommend buying them if you're looking for a quick budget matte lipstick.

On a side note, the atmosphere in the city here is brilliant. It's almost fall, it's Fashion Week and there's a nice drop in temperature. I am going to have the nicest, laziest Sunday tomorrow and probably have a wander around the city. Happy Fashion Week, guys!
    



Bag Lovin'

Long time no see! I am so sorry for the delay in posts - I've been getting into the whole 'back to school' rhythm. Classes at night are something extremely new for me, so I've been trying to find some sort of schedule that works (I haven't been successful so far). Sigh.

Anyway.

I've been thinking about buying a shopper/tote style bag for a while now. I wanted something that would hold my textbooks/notebooks/laptop and all the other fun stuff that comes with grad school and not look bulky or overloaded (my textbooks weigh about one ton each).

I was browsing the internet and looking at what people usually carry to school and the whole shopper-tote style seemed the most popular. I narrowed it down to two brands that I could 1. Afford and was still 2. Fashionable. Nine West and Kenneth Cole do a really god job of making designer bags that don't break the bank. I was going to buy the bag on Amazon but I feel like you can get a much better idea of the size when you're in the store, even if you can do the whole free returns thing. 

I bought this beauty at Strawberry which is a retail outlet in the city. They have a lot of amazing products (especially designer) at ridiculous prices. When I saw this, and the price, I bought it and ran out of the store. I kid you not.

This is the Kenneth Cole Reaction 'Foxy' Two-tone Shopper. I absolutely adore this bag. It fits everything that I need and still retains its shape. I went with the black because well, I have no imagination, and I thought the white striped detailing looked brilliant. They had this in a couple of other solid colors but this one really did it for me. I also love the chain detailing on the front.





Bag - Kenneth Cole - $39.99
High waist trousers - Mango
Tank top - H&M - $5.00


© Seriously Noir.. Design by Fearne.