Event | FRANKS Launch Versace Dylan Blue pour femme

I finally have some time to get back to blogging after almost a month. Thing is, wedding planning has been taking too much of my time these past two months but most of the things are booked and I'm finally getting back into my routine, blogging included! Yay! Today's post is all about a perfume launch I was invited to attend by fellow blogger and friend Thereseanne from A Blonde on the Go. Thank you so much :)

The launch took place at Camarata bar in Valletta and revolved around Versace's Dylan Blue perfume for women by FRANKS. Of course, FRANKS is a household name when it comes to high-end fragrances, makeup and unique luxury gifts and has been so for the last 125 years! Did you know that their first ever shop was in Cospicua, my hometown? No? Well now you do :) 

L to R: Dorianne from Ask Dorianne, Caroline from Caroline Fashion Styling
Danilo from Roseberry and yours truly

Anyhow, back to the subject. Backed by years of success in the fashion industry, the Italian house of Versace is no stranger to lustful creations. This also holds true for their fragrances, the latest of which is, of course, Dylan Blue.

photo by Thereseanne Sammut

Dylan Blue is a tribute to femininity - a strong, sensuous fragrance for the powerful woman. The fragrance bottle is a work of art in itself. A gold cap, Donatella Versace's favourite metallic hue and a blue bottle evoking the mysterious blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea. To top it off, the medusa head because without it, it wouldn't be a Versace fragrance no? 

The fragrance is equal parts fruity and floral which is what I tend to go for when looking for a perfume. It also has a hint of woody notes which further evoke a sense of mystery. At the end of the event we were gifted with a gift set containing a shower gel, body lotion and the perfume in travel sizes and they are perfect for layering to make the scent linger for longer on your skin.

Have you tried it yet? I have and I love it!

Versace Dylan Blue is available for purchase from FRANKS outlets and online on their website as well as from authorised retailers.

Introducing Zadig & Voltaire This Is Her! Fragrance

Perfume is something personal, something intimate. Almost everyone has their respective signature scent. I for one, tend to gravitate towards floral and musky scents and Zadig & Voltaire's newest fragrance, This Is Her! embodies everything I look for in a perfume. Thierry Gillier, founder of the brand, couldn't have said it any better - “I can’t imagine life without fragrance. I like when it leaves behind a trail, asserts a personality. It’s an alchemy between you and someone else.”

About Zadig & Voltaire

I'm sure many of you have heard of the Parisian brand Zadig & Voltaire before especially if you follow the fashion world closely. Zadig & Voltaire is a quintessentially French fashion house, whose name is a reference to the nickname of founder Thierry Gillier, ferryman of the Voltairian mindset.

It all started in 1997 - the rock star destiny of the Zadig hero and his revolutionary philosopher Voltaire inspired Thierry Gillier to create a new French easy luxury brand. Chic and casual. Young, arty, Parisian. Feminine, masculine. More than an everyday collection, it would be free-spirited, with a rock attitude. It would break the mold and embrace modernity. Cashmere for everyone. Updated basics. A new way to wear the jersey with the iconic Henley top. Zadig & Voltaire reinvented knitwear: frayed, boiled, unstructured and oversized, visible seams, raw edging, layers. A style that makes a statement. Capsule collections with contemporary artists and designers. Fashion as a statement, art as inspiration. Just one rule: be yourself, completely. Such is the borderless ambitions of the brand’s fashion manifesto. Easy wear. Easy life. Easy luxury. This is Zadig!

About the Fragrance

Inspired by contemporary art, the minimalist design of the bottle looks like it is cut out of a rock. The feminine fragrance comes in a white bottle while the male counterpart comes in a black bottle - a timeless combination.

This Is Her! is a woody, heady floral fragrance created by Sidonie Lancesseur and Michel Almairac (Robertet). It reminisces of Paris, elegantly wrapped in sensuous silk and cashmere. It has notes of Arabian jasmine brightened with pink peppercorn, chestnut and vanilla. The base note  is an intense, woody and milky base note: sandalwood, the Zadig & Voltaire signature. Confident, unpredictable, irresistible. This is HER!

This Is Me!

I thought of having a play on words and interpret the perfume's name in my own way - This Is Me! The Zadig & Voltaire campaign revolves around a casual, rock chic theme, the concept behind the Zadig & Voltaire brand. While my style is more on the girly side, I sometimes do like to lend an edge to my outfits, a perfect example being the outfit I am wearing here.

We took these pictures in Sicily on our latest weekend getaway; it wasn't really a holiday per se as we had to visit a number of showrooms and home decor stores to furnish up our new place, but on Sunday, we did manage to fit in an hour to shoot some pictures specifically for this blog post just in time before a very heavy downpour! Photos were captured at Villa Casina dell'Etna, the place we were staying at in Ragalna and I think it provided the perfect backdrop for the theme of this shoot, for the rocky walls evoked the perfume bottle's shape perfectly in my opinion, plus I took the 'Be Rock' concept literally here ;)

Zadig & Voltaire has invented a mixed silhouette – lithe, dynamic and rock combined with urban yet rugged influences. It is an attitude of restlessness. Being rock means being yourself. Free, sure of your rebellious elegance, good in your own skin. Just one rule: Always be ready for anything! "Zadig is a lifestyle, a unique look, a feeling of freedom" says Cecilia Bönström - Artistic Director, Zadig & Voltaire.

I chose to wear this black and white check top representing the colours of the men's and women's fragrance bottles and paired it with my new skirt from Purple in my current favourite colour. I think this is an edgy piece and I love the tie at the front which is made to look like shirt sleeves! The whole outfit was brought together with my favourite pair of white sneakers from Michael Kors (at Rebelli) and this leather jacket from Zara. I think this outfit nails the whole Be Rock concept, don't you agree?!

As I said in the beginning of this post, I found this perfume ticks all the right boxes for me. I am currently obsessed with minimalistic designs which I am even going to try to evoke into our home - clean lines, white walls, metallic accents..., thus the bottle was a lovely surprise as it will make a nice decorative piece in my walk-in wardrobe. Also, the side that looks like it's cut from rock reminds me of marble, another current obsession of mine. And to top it all off, it comes from a French fashion house ;)

I find the scent to last me all throughout the day without it being overpowering. I would describe it as a soft, floral scent with a mysterious aura, just like the city of Paris itself! Zadig & Voltaire This Is Her! has become my favourite scent for day and night and people are always asking which perfume I am wearing, with my reply being, This Is Zadig!

Zadig & Voltaire This Is Her! 50ml perfume was given to me as a PR Sample

Zadig & Voltaire fragrances are exclusively represented in Malta by C+M Marketing Ltd.

Review | The Body Shop Coconut Eau de Toilette

Gloomy weather like today's reminds me how much I love summer and why it is my favourite season and if there is one scent that reminds me of it, that is coconut...and those who know me well enough know how much I love the coconut scented products from The Body Shop.

Consequently, I couldn't resist getting this little eau de toilette as a free gift when I reached the fourth stamp on my Love Your Body card. I wanted to try something new so I looked around for their perfumes. I was undecided between the coconut and vanilla scents but seeing I have a lot vanilla based scents in my collection, I figured I'd go for the coconut one to be able to go back to summer moments all year round.

The perfume is presented in a brown glass bottle that holds 30ml of perfume. It has a silver cap that fits tightly around the spray nozzle. The distinct coconut smell lingers on the skin for a very long time and I receive compliments every time I wear this perfume, probably because it is not overpowering. To help make the scent last longer, I like to use the corresponding body scrub and body butter, also from The Body Shop.

Currently, this is my everyday perfume and I will repurchase soon as it is already running a little lower than I'd like it to. I recommend you to get this scent if you are a fan of coconut and summery fresh scents.

The Body Shop Coconut Eau de Toilette sells for €12.00 and is found in all The Body Shop outlets across Malta & Gozo (Paola, Valletta, Sliema, Bugibba and Arkadia, Gozo). For mote information, check out The Body Shop Malta Facebook page.

The Exit Interview Series | Volume #27

Over December I didn't use up much products mainly because I had a lot of new products to try out but more of that in my favourites post which will follow up soon :)

 

First up is Montagne Jeunesse Iced Crystal Exfoliating and Cleansing Facial which proved to be a treat in keeping my skin in tip top condition during party season. I love the refreshing feel of mint and ice on my skin plus the dead sea salt makes a very good exfoliant without feeling too harsh or abrasive on the skin. Definitely one of my fave facial treatments from the brand!

 

 

Next is a sample of Lierac Huile Sensorielle. I am adding this to my wishlist just because it smells so nice and leaves the skin feeling soft, smooth and lightly fragranced with 3 white flowers. It feels very silky and is rapidly absorbed by the skin for 24 hour worth of moisture. Definitely a must have from this luxury French skin care brand! On a side note, it can also be used on the face and hair but I cannot comment on that as I haven't used it that way.

 

The last products are Impulse Hint of Musk deodorant and a sample of Paco Rabanne's Black XS. I'm hooked up on this perfume these days. It is very feminine and has a sensual note to it... just the perfect scent to drift me to happier places instantly. I guess I will soon have to give in and buy the bigger version!

Review: Travalo Perfume Atomizer

Good morning ladies! I just had to share this great little invention with you all! I will be sharing with you an accessory that has been in my clutch bags throughout all the Graduation celebrations and will be there for many more to come!

I am talking of none other than Travalo Perfume Atomizer!  I have heard of this gadget before and when I saw Natalie's post where she shared that bloggers could get a free sample, I jumped at the chance and in less than 24 hours, I was contacted to review Travalo Excel! Furthermore, shipping was very quick as I received mine in just three days and it came packaged very well!

Travalo Excel is the latest addition to the range and the difference between Travalo Excel and Travalo Classic is that the former delivers up to 65 sprays while the latter is capable of 50 sprays.

Let's have a look at the packaging first.  Travalo Excel comes in a cute case and I am a big fan of the design on the bottom part of this case.  Mine is the Perfect Pink one but there are 10 different colours available to suit all tastes! The carry case also protects Travalo from scratches when carrying it around in handbags, gym bags etc.  If you have more than one Travalo, you can also see which one you want thanks to clear top of the case.

The case also contains a small insert with simple instructions on how to fill up your Travalo!

Let me point out a few more advantages of this little accessory:

~ Your favourite fragrance is travel-sized in an instant so don't have to carry bulky perfume bottles and risk breaking them

~ Travalo is aircraft approved

~ It is made out of 98% recyclable materials

~ No funnels, no spills!

~ It has no dangerous glass parts

~ Suitable for both men and women and for various occasions such as parties, holidays, the gym and the great outdoors!

~ Travalo is just over 8.6cm in length and only weighs 20g!

~ Travalo comes with a No-Quibble performance guarantee for the operational lifetime of the product, which is about 10 years, or 10,000 operations.

Now, let's see some photos and a little video of how to refill your Travalo the simple way:

1. Get your favourite fragrance and Travalo

2. Travalo is easy to fill up ~ Just remove the spray head off your big perfume bottle and hook Travalo (with lid still on) over it and simply pump up and down!

3. Ta-dah!! Your favourite perfume is now travel-sized!

What I like about Travalo is the spray nozzle which delivers an even mist of the perfume and also, the little window as it permits you to see how much perfume is left. The last thing I would like to pint out is that the lid won't come off on its own in your purse as it fits tightly yet easy to remove just by pulling it gently.

Overall, I think this is an ideal Holiday gift idea and you can also win one yourself on the Travalo Facebook page where they run a ‘Daily Spray’ every day, which gives all those who ‘like’ the page a chance to win a free Travalo - every day!!

For further information or to buy Travalo, visit the Travalo website on www.travalo.com.

PR Sample

Tag: 8 Most Worn Things

I saw this tag on a blog I follow (sorry I can't remember which one it was) and I decided to do it! I think it will all get us pondering about or most abused items!! :P

1. Lipstick ~ I prefer lip glosses to be honest so I am going to cheat a bit here and show you my worn lipstick and gloss... Maybelline Water Shine 02 Beige Glace & e.l.f. Super Glossy Lip Shine in Goddess.

2. Earrings ~ I generally wear these simple pearl studs for everyday, but to jazz up my going-out outfits I really like these Peacock earrings!

3. Sweater ~ comfy, cute label and all in my fave colour! Bought it like two years ago from Peacocks as well.

4. Nail polish ~ this is tough, but if I had to choose only one, I'd say Cranberry by e.l.f. Cosmetics.

5. Shoes ~  this is even tougher! The most worn shoes for everyday at this time of year are this grey pair of boots and this pair of ballerina pumps, both from Peacocks.  My most worn going out shoes is this pair of bow heels from Dorothy Perkins:

6. Hair Product ~ this no name brand hair spray that keeps my hair in check all day! (review will be up next week).

7. Perfume ~ Kate Moss Velvet Hour & Guerlain Insolence

8. Bag ~ I really love this Tally Weijl bag as it is roomy and I get to carry all my essentials with me wherever I go :)

I tag the following bloggers to do this post if they are up to it + anyone else who feels like it!

Enigma

Dyna

Stavroula

Gertrude

Nicoletta

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