Swell Smells: Smell Bent Holiday Fragrances

I got the latest Smell Bent limited edition smellies in the mail. My favorite thing about this batch is the spicy-woodiness of the notes. My favorite would be Reindeer Games with notes of French Incense, Bergamont, Popular Bud, Amber, Templin, and Douglas Fir. A set of all 5 holiday sample-size sprays would make a great stocking stuffer.

Here's something really swell....

This year, we have created a scent to help benefit an organization which we think is on the forefront of helping others - charity: water. with nearly a billion people in the world struggling for access to clean water, we think the work done by charity: water is more pressing than ever.

For each bottle of scrooge the pooch purchased, 50% of the selling price will go directly to charity: water. for every $20 raised, charity: water can supply clean water to an individual for 20 years.

Scrooge the Pooch is a Chypre with notes of Blood Orange, Aged Patchouli, Vanilla Resin, Bay Leaf, Poplar Bud, Natural Oakmoss, and Musk.



Image credit: Smell Bent

Swell Natural Beauty: Crazy Rumors Vegan Lip Balms

The Winter weather can be tough on your skin, as I'm sure you know. Chapped hands and lips are my biggest challenges. Crazy Rumors has 4 vegan Candy Cane lip palms out for the holidays.

Look for Peppermint Twist, Pear & Peppermint, Pineapple & Peppermint, and Plum & Peppermint. Each vegan lip balm is all natural, made with 70% Certified Organic ingredients including Shea Butter, Jojoba oil, pure peppermint essential oil, and just a touch of the natural sweetener Stevia.


The lip balms are available at $3.99 a piece or a gift set of 4 for $15. Perfect for stuffing holiday stockings!

Girl Looks Swell readers can receive a 15% discount if they order they place their Crazy Rumors.com order by December 31st, 2010. Simply use the savings code CR15 at checkout.

Image credit: Crazy Rumors.com

Swell Skin: Miracle Skin Transformer & A Giveaway!

I just got word that Miracle Skin Transformer with SPF 20 will be available in a wider range of shades beginning next month, January 2011. The new shades include a Medium Tan, Dark, and a Deep Dark.

Have you tried Miracle Skin Transformer yet? It's a one-step application that hydrates, protects, smooths, and evens your skin's texture and appearance. It feels light and comfortable on the face - leaves your skin looking healthy and fresh, rather than make-up-y. I got to try a sample of it this Summer and I loved it. Fans of the Dr. Oz show may have seen Miracle Skin Transformer featured as a 2 Minute Beauty Miracle recently.


Hurry! There's only 1 week left to enter the Miracle Skin Things I Love Giveaway that features a  Jennifer Fisher14 karat Gold Star Pave pendant with diamonds, valued at $1,310. For giveaway details, click here.

Image credit: Miracle Skin Transformer.com

Swell Skin: Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Hand Cream

I'm finally back!

My life has taken a few twists and turns since this past Summer. I'm now settled into a new life in Northern California........and after 4 weeks worth of me begging, pleading, and even raising my voice, I've got my internet connection back. Sheesh. I won't say what company I'm working with, but I will say that some of the people who work for the company appear to have no interest whatsoever in giving good customer service. I suppose they are paid the same amount - whether they provide good service or bad.

I have a new day job these days and it requires a lot of outdoor time. My hands, especially my fingertips, were becoming dry and cracked, so I picked up an old, tried & true favorite - Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Hand Cream.  I tried a lot of products before I grabbed a tube of the Norwegian Formula the other day. It started to work immediately and in 24 hours, there was a noticeable improvement. It's an excellent product and you can get a tube for less than $5. Swell price.

Image credit: Drugstore.com

Swell Shopping: EO Is Havin' A Sale!

One of my favorite companies, EO, is having an online warehouse sale. They carry a huge variety of products including the Mandarin Spice hand soap that is currently sitting on the counter in my powder room. (Powder room? How proper am I??)

EO Products are made with organic ingredients. For example, their Chocolate & Mint moisturizer, one of my all-time favorite body lotions, is made with Cocoa Absolute and Rice Proteins which are full of antioxidants and flavonoids that help to fight the signs of aging. Other good-for you ingredients include Oat Betaglucan, Vitamins A & D, Mango See Butter, Olive Wax, Jojoba, Calendula, Chamomile, and White Tea.

Normally this moisturizer runs $8.99 for an 8 ounce bottle, but for a limited time, you can get it for $4.99. Click here for a complete listing on the products offered in the warehouse clearance sale.



Image credit: EO

Swell Smells: Miss Pucci & Marc Jacobs Daisy

I am going to be totally honest here - I'm writing about this purely because I like the bottle. I wish I could see it in person, hold it in my hand, because I'm so intrigued. Is it flat-ish? Is it heavy?

So much goes into the making of a fragrance - no detail is overlooked - and when it comes to bottles, well they can be a powerful selling point. The prettiest bottle I have is a silver version of Marc Jacobs Daisy. I love to shoot it because I can catch a good reflection off of it - lots of fun. In the case of Daisy, you get a whole rang of flankers, too -  pins, necklaces, special edition bottles. Great idea - a collector is going to want all the different versions and someone who might not otherwise try Daisy might be drawn to one of the other versions and think, hhmm I think I need this in a big bottle....

The Miss Pucci is all new modern-version of a Pucci scent and it's available exclusively at Sephora.

Fragrance notes: Sicilian Lemon, Turkish Rose, Comoros Ylang-Ylang, Tunisian Orange Blossom, Arabian Jasmine, Texas Cedar, Florentine Iris, Musk

Do you have a favorite perfume bottle?

Image credits: Sephora and Chase Your Bliss Photography

Swell Skin: Clinique & Breast Cancer Awareness Month

I love to check out the variety of pink-themed Breast Cancer Awareness products that come out every October. I'll do my best to share a good selection this month.  For example, purchase Clinique's Limited-Edition Dramatically Different Moisturing Lotion and Clinique will donate $10 of the purchase price to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. The lotion comes in a 6.7 ounce size, with a pink ribbon charmed key chain.


Every Clinique purchase in October, shoppers will receive a free pink ribbon bookmark. If you'd like to make a donation directly to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, then take a look here.

Image credit: Clinique.com