The room perfume is delivered in a glass container and the Pure bottle below comes in a 60 ml size. This handmade room perfume has a fruity-floral mixed note that will bring subtlety and elegance to your rooms or on your body (yes, you can use it on your body if you wish). The above option is a classic sprayer — we love the simplicity and beauty of the bottle design.
We also wanted to check out Enivrant, which comes with a fun antique sprayer. Enivrant has a floral, sweet musky note that will captivate not only your room environment but all your senses as well. It makes an incredible gift regardless of the season.
For those interested in other things for the home and body, they offer a few lovely candle options as well as an all natural body butter cream — so luscious. Made by a French native in the United States, the candles are made with soy wax, natural oils, and a lead-free cotton wick. The glass jar is reusable as well. We went for one of their fragranced soy candle infused with 100% pure natural essential oils called Paradise Rendez-vous!
This is a typical blend allying coconut and vanilla that evokes a wonderful holiday feeling with feet on the warm-soft white sand of a paradisiac island. Gotta love being taken away to paradise through smell. Because it’s soft and elegant, it makes a nice addition to a summer getaway to the beach. (below right)
Check out their Etsy store for more information on their products as well as to purchase any of the above items.
Essential Oils by Mary Tylor
The Mary Tylor brand offers a number of options, from bees wax and butters to pure essential oils. They also have natural soap like African Black Soap (we LOVE THIS!) and Zinc Oxide, which is so great for the skin and keeps the harmful rays at bay.
We decided to review one of their Essential Oil kits, which comes with a box of 16 different oils. These Therapeutic grade oils come in beautiful Amber glass bottles and uses a high quality Euro style dropper. They’re also all USDA certified organic as well.
We absolutely love the packaging. Because we do so many healing circles, we love testing things out that are useful and complement what we already do, such as crystal healing and of course, the use of essential oils. In our kit, we received Lavender, Tea Tree, Peppermint, Sweet Orange, Eucalyptus, Lemon, Lemongrass, Cinnamon, Bergamot, Frankincense, Grapefruit, Lime, Tangerine, Rosemary and Pine Tree.
Two thumbs up. You can find out more on their website including how to buy individual bottles or sets.
Malas by Malaology
The stunning malas at Malaology was started by Teresa Mayville in the Spring of 2017, only one month after she crafted her first mala. Prior to working with malas however, she had experience working with gemstones and crystals for decades.
It wasn’t long before she had several malas and decided to learn how to make them so she could become the collector she wanted to be. How fun, right?
Just look at Teresa’s beautiful packaging — so much attention to detail. This is how she ships her malas to customers.
Says Teresa, “I didn’t know the first thing about knotting malas, making tassels, or what I’d need to design and craft malas for others when I started. I worked day and night on my craft, practicing my knots, discovering tassel types, and reimagining the conventional mala which led to some really cool innovations, which clients adore!”
“I named my shop Malaology because I study malas and so my shop evolves continually with new styles and ideas.” — Teresa Mayville
She sent us a few malas to review which we are so excited to share with you. For example, this Wisdom Mala is made from 8 mm Genuine Sapphire, Ebony Wood beads, and at the bottom, there’s a stunning Ganesh Pendant.
This mala stands for pure wisdom because sapphire imparts wisdom and well….Ganesh is the deva of wisdom (ha ha). This mala is meant to supports the Vishuddhi, or Throat Chakra, which is our center of creativity and self-expression, where pain and loss are transformed into wisdom and insight. Since Teresa is a Virgo, Sapphire is her favorite gemstone and the mala she wears most often. It brings to mind Self-Love, Truth, Elegance, and Wholesomeness.
When she discovered that almost all malas offered today are knotted on silk, she was aghast because for her, it seemed counter-intuitive to create a mindfulness tool for the purpose of drawing closer to your Higher Self. For this reason, her malas have always been and will always be Vegan, knotted with nylon, a much more durable and longer-lasting material.
How’s this beautiful Magic Mala made from Labradorite? (btw, this is one of my favorite gemstones — there’s such a dreamy quality to it). This mala is offered with 4 length options: 30 and 35 inch long knotted and 30 long knotted (108 beads) as well as 35 inches long (adjustable with no knots)
Labradorite is the modern zodiac stone for Pisces, Leo, Scorpio, Sagittarius and is known to be a stone of Magic. (I feel this every time I use it in our healing work). The vibration of Labradorite holds a broad level of protection from negativity, therefore it cannot be used for ill. Wearing it is meant to lead to taking action toward manifesting our visions and making our dreams come true.
Then, this beautiful Citrine mala drew us in as well. It is made with Crazy Lace Agate, Citrine, White African Opal and Sunstone.
The large Citrine Nugget is kept raw and with a minimum division, just as it emerged from Mother Earth, which helps to keep the energy pure and focused. Citrine is a modern zodiac stone for Aries, Gemini, Leo and Libra and is often referred to as “the Merchant’s Stone” for its ability to attract wealth and abundance whereas Crazy Lace Agate is called the “Laughter Stone” because it’s great for bringing joy, mental agility, focus, open-mindedness, balance, and composure.
Here’s a couple other malas (both light stones and dark) so you can get an idea of her diversity.
When crafting a mala, she wants to sense the person who will be wearing it or using it. Teresa loves receiving special requests for malas, like asking for a different guru, cord color, to include certain bead types or leave off others, to make an extra long or short tassel, or even change the bead size if possible. She welcomes all requests and usually can accommodate them. With the malas, she includes a carefully and intuitively selected Oracle or Tarot Card as well, to get the Universe in on the conversation.
Be sure to visit her Etsy store for all of the incredible options and choices. You’ll love what you see!
“These drums impress even me, the maker. Their sound is primal. It feels like the sound our ancestors heard on those fire-lit nights centuries ago as they processed into the stone circle.” — Michelle Meister
Below is the drum I was keen on reviewing which is made from Horse Rawhide and is considered a spirit drum. You can get it on Maple or Cedar Hoop with a suede wrap.
They subscribe to the notion that all actions each human takes should be guided by a desire for excellence within the natural balance of all things. The drums they create use the magic of both this land and the land of our ancestors, focused on the energies, elements & numbers used by practitioners of Paganism, Wicca, Celtic & Norse Shamanism, Faery & other ways — in other words, right up our alley. Michelle put together a great video showing how they make their signature harmonic shamanic drums.
Below is the end product — we have used it several times in drumming circles and sometimes we display various Goddesses on it during a spiritual meet-up.
Their Harmonic Shamanic Line of Drums is made for those who really care about the sound & the energy of their drum. They refer to those drums as “Harmonic Shamanic” drums because of the great resonance and multiple voices they create. These drums have had a special treatment of “honing & toning” developed by a Master Drummaker and an experienced Jazz/Rock percussionist, which brings into balance the animal spirit, the tree spirit, the masculine and the feminine.
Their drums are made with a five sided handle, for balance with the four elements with the central point of spirit. Anyone who has ever held a circle knows about the four elements and how powerful they can be. I was most interested in the Elk and Horse drums, which apparently have excellent harmonics, with a mid to low tone depending on size and thickness. The horse is the traditional journey animal and corresponds to the third eye chakra — no surprise that I am so drawn to the horse as a spirit animal. The craftsmanship and attention to detail is incredible.
They also offer a variety of custom and pre-made drum beaters in your choice of hardness, color and style. A variety of custom and pre-made drum beaters in your choice of hardness, color and style are available to choose from as well. Gaia’s Workshop goal is to create drums that use the magic of both this land and the land of our ancestors, focused on the energies, elements & numbers used by practitioners of Paganism, Wicca, Celtic & Norse Shamanism, Faery & many other ways. They also offer drum and rattle making workshops for individuals and groups in the larger Portland/Salem area. Be sure to check out their website as well as their Etsy store.
Rogue Perfumes
We love perfume around here. Perhaps it was so many years living in Europe, where I was exposed to so many colognes and perfumes. We just discovered Rogue Perfumery on Etsy and wanted to test a few of the scents. This elegant bottle below is called Champs Lunaires EDT and it exudes a beautiful combination of Tuberose, Musk, Rose, Sandalwood and Coconut Milk.
Manuel Cross is the force behind Rogue Perfumery and he loves creating unique perfumes — we love the packaging too. The Tuberose base he created for Champs Lunaires was based on three models: the realism of PK Perfume’s TNT, the amped methyl salicylate notes of Serge Lutens’ Tubereuse Crimenelle, and the lusty creamy fruit notes of Piguet’s Fracas. He says he spent months of trial and error until finding a satisfying balance. Here’s more information on the process and this scent.
Says Manuel, “My first love was cooking.” He has apparently been cooking professionally since 1993. He goes on to say: “My perfume obsession came about the time I discovered Basenotes.net in 2004. I caught the bug and began collecting, nearly hoarding fragrances. In 2008, I attempted to recreate a fragrance using some essential oils purchased at the local health food store.”
“There’s a connection between the art of cooking and perfume, as there is a connection between taste and smell.” — Manuel Cross
He found myself spending many hours over the course of years researching and studying the principles of perfumery. Tabac Vert and Chypre-Siam were the first two fragrances he sold on Etsy under the brand name Rogue Perfumery. He later created Champs Lunaires which is his favorite from his line (see above).
A completely different style is Derviche, which is a Oriental blend with Amber. It has Labdanum, Bergamot, Vanilla, Frankincense and Jasmine.
Tesalate is an innovative sand-free towel from Australia that is both fashionable and functional. We really fell in love with their designs so decided to review a few of their towels this month.
These beautifully designed towels are perfect for yoga, picnics and any outdoor activity as well as the beach and pool time. We also think they’re perfect for travelers and here’s why!
Their beach towels are made with AbsorbLite fabric. This means that in addition to repelling sand, the towels rapidly dry compared to regular ones, yet it can absorb at least one (33 ounces) liter of water. What we also love for travelers is that the towels are super compact and light. They’ve also been getting quite a bit of buzz, having been featured in Vogue, Elle, Harpers and even Business Insider.
The idea for Tesalate came to founders Jacky Lam and Volkan Ozbek when they were taking a hike to a secluded beach at the Royal National Park in Sydney. When it was time to head back, their towels were as they always are after a long day at the beach: wet, heavy, and worst of all sandy.
They started questioning if they could make a towel that not only performed much better but looked amazing too.
“Tesalate was launched at Bondi Beach Markets and since those humble beginnings, Tesalate has now sold to over 70 countries in its first 12 months.” — Jacky Lam & Volkan Ozbek
What impressed us most were the beautiful designs and the fact that they’re so lightweight and small. Take a look at a few of our favorites:
This one is called COSMIC DREAM
This one is called TO TUSCANY
The above towel for two is one of their bestsellers. Called Bohemian, it is available as a single towel as well as a double one for two (shown above). So much vibrant color and fun, right? Plus, they don’t wrinkle, they’re super light and thin and as mentioned above, they dry really quickly. Yogis will love these towels as well.
They have so many fun designs to choose from — be sure to check out their website and buy your favorite picks for your next getaway.
Yoga & Casual Wear by Purapple
We loved the casual designs on Purapple which offers a number of yoga pants and leggings as well as tank tops, and slightly more elegant tops you can wear with a pair of jeans and a nice pair of sandals for summer. What drew us to their site was their wide selection of color options for so many of their items. For example, how fun are these yoga pants with the flare bottom?
They use a combination of a cotton blend with spandex (90% cotton/10% spandex). They tout that they’ll be the most comfortable yoga pants you’ll ever put on. The bell bottom of this piece is around 19-20 inches and the top has an elasticity waist band, making it more flexible and comfy to wear.
Another pair we wanted to test out had a more tailored leg but still wide enough to be incredibly comfortable and casual when traveling. And, you can choose from 30 different colors — that’s right….30. Rare that you find items on Etsy, Amazon or elsewhere with such a wide color selection.
The fabric for these fabulous yoga pants are also in a natural cotton spandex blend. You can ask for a special inseam, high waist and a fold over waist band by request. We also thought this cute sleeveless turtleneck was adorable and makes for such a great addition to any suitcase.
Plus, it is also available in the same 30 colors, so you can mix and match with a number of their leggings as well. This turtleneck top is super versatile in that you can style it with a skirt or pants for a sleek desk-to-party look. And, it’s made in the United States, since so many ask us when we write about clothing.
Note: we were given some of these products to review but there was no financial compensation nor did they tell us what to say. More often than not, we discover the brands — all opinions voiced here are completely our own.
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
