Blessings

Food is pretty much what we do here at Chez Winter.  I grew up in a "foody" family; my Mom studied with some of the best chefs in the world, including Julia Child and James Beard.  My Dad is a fabulous cook in his own right, too, so it is only natural that that all that food love filtered on down through the generations.

Mister was a willing protoge from day one, and gotta say, I'm a good cook myself, but he is a great one.  I taught him everything I know,  but being the competitive guy he is, he just had to one up me!  Nothing, of course, makes me happier, since the dirty little secret in our household is that he does most of the the everyday cooking, and we eat like kings.  Have I ever mentioned that John makes ALL our breads--from sandwich loaves to baguettes, bagels, round loaves, tortillas, muffins, biscuits, rolls, etc. We source various wheat flours from non-GMO mills; there is a fabulous one in Logan, Utah that we have visited a few times, not to mention Bob's Red Mill in a Portland suburb.  I suspect we're the only folks in the neighborhood with a hundred pounds of flour in food-safe buckets in the garage!

We have to credit our oldest daughter, Leah, though, with bringing the idea of eating local home from college to us.  She went to University of Portland, and eating local is huge there.  It really is the yummiest way to eat, since if you buy local, your food is always fresh, and often, organic.  We support local farms through CSA shares, and of course Leah and Scott have a garden on their little farm that supplies us with so many delicious foods...from beets to eggplant to fennel, squashes and pumpkins of all varieties, plus the usual foods like carrots, tomatoes, chilis, peppers, and radishes.  Be still my heart.

Currently, I contribute things like cultured butter (I use buttermilk bacteria to culture the cream, and then churn it up after it has set for 24 hours), regular and greek yogurt, and occasionally, fresh cream cheese, goat cheese, and other soft cheeses to our food table.

You can imagine what our Thanksgiving table looks like!  This year, I'm in charge of the homemade cranberry sauce, some carrots with vinegar and oregano (an Italian recipe from Marcella Hazan--delicious cold, warm, or hot), and I'll help with the stuffing and turkey/gravy.  John is in charge of the turkey (he made three loaves of bread for stuffing and has it cubed and toasted in bread bags, ready to go), along with the homemade dinner rolls. He also made a crust for the pecan pie Sarah is bringing, along with a green salad.  Leah and Scott are bringing pumpkin pie along with mashed root veggies--potatoes/parsnips/garlic (all home grown).

Obviously, we'll be jogging around the block both before and after the feast.

All this food talk can only lead to one thing...the December scent of the month--Blessings.
Welcome the warmth of home, family gatherings, and holiday traditions with Blessings, a classic blend of aromatic spices: ground nutmeg and clove, cinnamon bark, sandalwood, and amber.

Have you ever grated a fresh nutmeg seed? (if not, you owe it to yourself to track one down and try it....Penzey's is one source)  It is the most heavenly scent ever!  Scentsy has captured the scent of freshly grated nutmeg along with some subtle clove, all mellowed out with just the barest touch of sandalwood (not sure I'm getting the amber, but, it is probably part of that mellow feel I get from this).  It reminds me a little of the old fashioned spice drops--you know, the real spice ones, not the icky sweet ones you get most of the time nowadays.  Yeah, the ones we walked 10 miles uphill both ways in the snow to get back in ye goode old days...

Blessings has gotten some weird reviews on the Scentsy consultant forum, with some consultants describing it as "Vicks" or "turpentine", or "campophenic".  All of those descriptions made me wonder if we're smelling the same scent.  To me, Blessings, IS the scent of the holidays--both Thanksgiving and Christmas--when the house is filled with the delicious scent of all those holiday yummies we love to cook and eat.  All I can figure is...maybe those folks don't cook with fresh ingredients?  I dunno.

Blessings is my most-loved scent to come along in a very long time (although Very Snowy Spruce made me do a happy dance, too).

I give it a very solid 10 in all departments.


And speaking of Blessings,

Where ever you are this Thanksgiving, may it be filled with the Blessing of family, friends, and joyful celebration.  As always, just a reminder that I don't "do" Black Friday, because I think the holidays are about spending time with loved ones, and being grateful for what we have, not focusing on getting more more more of the stuff we really don't need!  There will be plenty of time to shop between Thanksgiving and Christmas (or Hanukkah) , so take a little time to relax and enjoy the long weekend.

Whatever YOUR traditions are, be safe, be joyful, be grateful, be BLESSED.


PS:  Our latest Blessing is the news that Grandchild #3 will be debuting in June 2015.  Yay for sweet angel grandbabies!!!

Two Speed Reviews

Another twofer day.

Are you entirely sick of me posting, "well, it's okay..." or "I like it don't love it" or "it makes me gag" ?  Because I'm sick of me posting that.

Scentsy has finally listened!  (haha)  I've found two fall scents that I love.  Ironically, both are scents of the month: September's Ambrosia and November's Very Snowy Spruce.

Ambrosia

The sweetest fruit salad ever: tropical pineapple, mandarin orange slices, juicy pears, and ripe concord grapes with hints of jam and fruit nectar. 

Hyperrealistic fall fruit packed into a cornucopia.  It's big.  It's strong.  It's Scentsy doing what Scentsy does best: fruit!  Daughter number 3 came into the house, gave a big sniff and announced, "I'm strangely drawn to that."  Exactly how I felt.

While here, Ambrosia is loud.  But then, poof!  the fairy dust must fade off because suddenly, it is gone.  But while it was here, I loved it.  Way to go, Scentsy!  A big 10 on the scent, 10 on the throw, but a mere 5 on the last, 'cause I barely got a full day out of it.


Very Snowy Spruce

Imagine Scentsy made a dupe of Yankee Candle's Balsam and Cedar.

The End.

Scent rating is a 10 because Balsam and Cedar is an absolute fave of mine, and about time you duped it, Scentsy!  Throw is a 10.  Last is a 10.  If you like evergreen scents, THIS is the one you want from Scentsy.  They've been lagging in this department for a long time.  I'm glad they finally stepped  up to the plate.

Crumb Top

Spent a great weekend sewing, visiting with old friends and just generally hanging out.  Cozy Fireside (yum!  one of my faves!) and Yankee's Cozy Cabin were my scent companions.

Finally had a chance at the end of last week to throw that Crumb Top in the warmers. Hmmmm...not bad.  The perfect blend of oats, butter, and brown sugar to top your favorite dessert.

Although Crumb Top is decidedly out of my scent box, it is a lighter bakery scent that really does have that sort of coffee cake streusel topping effect that is pretty good.  Translation: a bakery scent that doesn't make me gag.  Good job, Scentsy.

Mostly I get the brown sugar and butter, but then I always have a hard time discriminating "oat" scent, ya know?  Bottom line, I'd warm this on a cold day on the rare occasion I have a craving for a sweet scent.   As I already said, I did feel it was a little on the light side, and its last was definitely below average; I put it in the warmers in the morning and by bedtime, I couldn't smell it any more.  For me, that's not a problem, but it is something to consider if you like your scents to last a super long time.

For scent, it is a strong 6, throw was a 5, but last, I'd give it a 4.  YMMV.

Today I'm melting September's scent of the month, Ambrosia.  I'd put off melting this one, too, because I wasn't sure I'd go for the grapiness of it.  Hint:  It's very good.  Very very good.  Full review in the next edition.  As for me, I'm off to finally dig out my Pumpkin warmer.  I've been procrastinating on getting out my fall warmers, but I'm determined that today is the day.  I'll still have six weeks to enjoy it until Thanksgiving hits and it is time to drag out the Christmas warmers.

Ack!

I know, I said I was gonna review Crumb Top next, but when I got Very Peary Pumpkin in the mail I had to throw it in first.  So sorry I did.  Ick.  Nasty.  Gross.

Sweet nashi pear, freshly picked pumpkin, tart green apple and toasted spices are carried on a breeze of crisp autumn air.

Pear and pumpkin make for one disgusting combo.  I actually had to get rid of it before it was completely melted, it was that bad.  Mind you, I love Scentsy's Pumpkin Roll and Yankee's Spiced Pumpkin.  I love the smell of fresh pumpkin.  I was repulsed by the horrid Very Peary Pumpkin. It was pearish, and sweet, and appallingly unlike any real pumpkin I've ever smelled.  Who knows where the apple and spices were?  Fleeing for their lives, apparently.

'Nuff Said.

Scent Rating:  1
Last and throw:  Well, it sure seemed strong--say a 10 for throw, but who knows how long that ughness would have lasted??

Blech!  I promptly replaced it with a mix of Pumpkin Roll and an old bar of Embers.

Tomorrow, on a fresh nose, I really will try out that Crumb Top

Love You Berry Much and Autumn Blaze Maple

I am getting behind on my reviews, so today I have a twofer.

Yesterday, I had an opportunity to give Autumn Blaze Maple a try.  A bountiful harvest of crisp apples and earthy pumpkins with golden maple syrup, warm cinnamon, and a ribbon of smoldering oak.

Gotta say, I was pleasantly surprised.  It reminded me just a little of my beloved Yankee Candle swirl, Cozy Cabin (a mix of Mountain Lodge and Autumn Leaves), only with the addition of maple.  Of course, any time maple is in the mix, it tends to become the predominate note for me, and Autumn Blaze Maple is no different.  But, it didn't make me feel like I was at a pancake breakfast either, and I wasn't overwhelmed with sweetness.

It's a pretty good blend, though, because none of the notes overwhelmed the others--I really didn't feel like it was screaming "apples!"  or "pumpkins"  or anything like that.  It just gave me the impression of walking outside on a crisp fall day in a grove of maple trees.  I like it.  My youngest daughter, on the other hand, gave it a sniff and announced how disgusting she thought it was.  Have I mentioned she doesn't like sweet scents, too, and she really abhors anything with maple, so there you go.

Autumn Blaze Maple is a 7 in my book, and the throw and last are amazing, at 10 for both.  It was still going strong on the second day.  If you do like maple, you'll love it.  Definitely the best maple scent I've come across.

Love You Berry Much

I'm just gonna say it straight out.  Of all the new fall scents so far, Love You Berry Much is my fave of the lot.

A fragrance to crush on: bursting red berries, dreamy white peach, and tart cranberry finished with a splash of vanilla.

At the risk of repeating myself for the gazillionth time, fruity scents are what Scentsy does best.  In fact, I was never a fruit scent lover until I started buying Scentsy, and they have made me a convert.  Very few Yankee fruits grace my stash, although, let's face it, no one does fall/winter scents as well as Yankee.  

Love You Berry Much is just an excellent tartsweet fruity blend, mellowed by a splash of vanilla .  I get way more red berries than I do peach, and the vanilla is very understated.  The bar I melted had just a tiny hint of powder to it, although I haven't heard one other person say that, so it may have been that bar or my nose, or both.   I give it a strong 8, and the throw is excellent at 9.  The last, however was average, at 6.  I couldn't really detect it much on the second day, but oh well!  Just a chance for a new scent in the warmer.

We're winding down on fall scents with only a couple more to go.  Next up is gonna be Crumb Top.  However, I am very much looking forward to trying out November's scent of the month, Very Snowy Spruce.  You know I love me some evergreen.

Also should mention that it is time to vote for January's Bring Back My Bar scents!  Go to https://scentreview.scentsy.us and click on the link for Bring Back My Bar and vote vote vote!!!

Shimmer

What happens when Cerise and Flirtatious have a baby?  Shimmer!  Actually, you might have to throw a little Lucky in Love to get the blend just right <g>.

Get your girly-girl on! Sweet cherries, velvety apricots, and sensual white musk crowned with a tiara of shimmering spun sugar.

When I melted Shimmer, I really couldn't pick out any of the scent notes.  It struck me as more floral than fruit, which is weird, because it doesn't seem to have a lick of floral in it.  It is a soft, floaty Victoria Secret-type scent--something a 16 year old would spritz all over herself after bathing.  Not that that's a bad thing, needless to say.  I enjoy a blast from the long-distant past myself.  

I tend to melt scents like Shimmer on hot summer days when I don't want something heavy or oppressive.  It also would make a great bathroom scent since the throw is a little softer than average.

Overall, I like Shimmer well enough.  Again, I haven't found my fall love. Maybe I'll find it in my next scent--Love You Berry Much.  I give this scent a rating of 7 (the highest so far!), but the scent throw was quite light--a 4, and the last was pretty average--a 5.

A little diversion into Scentsy' forumulation:  It sure seems like the wax is a little harder than usual lately.  I often rinse out my emptied warmers with very hot water to remove the wax traces, and it sure hasn't been as easy to remove.  I've also noticed that some scents have been giving me a little bit of an asthma reaction (which I tend to get with soy based candles and melts--I can't use Bath and Body Works scents for that reason, although I love some of their scents.  I had a horrible asthma attack with one of their candles once, because of the soy, and gave away all the rest of my stash.  So much for soy being the "healthier" alternative to paraffin.  It is a terrible allergen.  I also avoid the Yankee candles with soy.  Ugh)  Anyone else noticed that the formulation seems to have changed, or is this my imagination?

Orange Amber

Got a hilarious note from a customer this week.  It said,  "I can review Orange Amber in two words: Mandarin Moon."

I could almost hear Orange Amber whispering, "I resemble that remark."

But all jesting aside, there are some similarities, although I personally think Mandarin Moon is way spicier.  When I first melted Orange Amber, my first thought was that it smelled an awful lot like an oldie, now retired, Two Harbors.

Orange Amber's description is:  An alluring blend of bitter orange and clementine, exotic wild ginger, cozy cardamom, and sultry amber.

Two Harbor's was:  Escape to distant shores with tart Meyer lemon and refreshing lime, warmed by sweet vanilla and golden amber rays.


As you can see, it is that citrus/amber thing. However, back to the original comparison.  All I can say is, if Orange Amber and Mandarin Moon were 20's movie characters, Mandarin Moon would be a wild flapper dancing the Charleston and Orange Amber would be the refined gentleman retired to his palatial library.  Gotta say, I do like both, but I'm a little less...well, enervated...by Orange Amber.

But, all it really boils down to is...do you like citrus scents?  Or not?  Does it hedge on orange cleaner, or is it better than that?

Orange Amber is just orange mellowed by amber--not too cleanerish--and just fine.  It is Two Harbors redux, Mandarin Moon only less spicy, Sunkissed Citrus, only, well, a little different.  In other words, we've been there, done that.  And the down side for me is that Orange Amber seems to fade into the sunset pretty quickly...I got a day.  So, the scent is a 6, throw is an 8, and last is a 5.

Next up in the Scentsy Fall 2014 review line-up:  Gonna switch things up and turn up my girly-girl with Shimmer.

Sugar and Spice....

and Everything Nice....

Well, Mother Goose was pretty charitable attributing all those good things to little girls, wasn't she, when all the boys got were snips and snails and puppy dog tails?   When I was thinking about Scentsy's new Everything Nice scent, I couldn't help but google the poem to remind myself how it all goes, and I found out something pretty amazing, but more about that later.

Everything Nice

Sugar and spice and everything nice: deep caramel and swirls of butter with roasted pumpkin and glazed pecans.

When I first melted Everything nice, it reminded me of something I couldn't quite place my finger on.  At first, I thought maybe it was that sweet potato marshmallow casserole my sister-in-law brought to our Thanksgiving dinners.  You know the one.  But that wasn't quite right.  Finally, it dawned on me that it smelled just like the sweet potato pie that my adorable daughter got from her equally adorable mother-in-law.  Just like it.  I'm pretty fork-shy of sweet potatoes (they're sweet.  I find that weird), and sweet potato casserole is about the only way I can eat them.  It's the quintessential southern-style pie--lots of butter, brown sugar, spice, sweet potatoes (of course) and if it were up to me, gobs of pecans.

That's what Everything Nice smells like.  It's not bad for a sweet scent.  But you know me.  I wouldn't voluntarily melt a sweet scent if I had something else on hand.  But, if you like the scent of oodles of brown sugar floating in melted butter, with a hint of pumpkin and pecan, then this will be your winner.  For me, it is an acceptable sweet one (meaning it doesn't send me gagging like Caramel Pear Crisp), and the throw and last are outstanding.  It is still going strong in my warmers; I started it yesterday morning and I keep my warmers on all the time, even at night.  All in all, I give it a 5 for scent (that sweet thing), and a 10 for throw and last.

Next review?  Orange Amber

Mother Goose

Now, back to the Mother Goose thing.  Mother Goose was the backbone of my early childhood, and I very vividly recall the big Mother Goose book of rhymes we had at home right down to the illustrations.  But, when I googled the poem with What are Little Girls Made of, I was blown away.   I had no idea that there was a long version of the poem!  The original version is attributed to a 19th century poet, Robert Southey, however, it is believed that unknown authors extended it over the years until it became this somewhat ballad-like version.  It goes like this:

  What are little babies made of, made of? 

          What are little babies made of?
             Diapers and crumbs and sucking their thumbs;
          That's what little babies are made of.

          What are little boys made of, made of?                                      
          What are little boys made of?
             Snips and snails and puppy-dog tails;
          That's what little boys are made of.     

                                         

          What are little girls made of, made of?
          What are little girls made of?
             Sugar and spice and everything nice;
          That's what little girls are made of.

          What are young men made of, made of?
          What are young men made of?
             Sighs and leers and crocodile tears;
          That's what young men are made of.

          What are young women made of, made of?                                
          What are young women made of?
             Rings and jings and other fine things;                                        
          That's what young women are made of.  

                                     

          What are our sailors made of, made of?
          What are our sailors made of?
             Pitch and tar, pig-tail and scar;
          That's what our sailors are made of.

          What are our soldiers made of, made of?
          What are our soldiers made of?
             Pipeclay and drill, the foeman to kill;
          That's what our soldiers are made of.

          What are our nurses made of, made of?
          What are our nurses made of?
             Bushes and thorns and old cow's horns;
          That's what our nurses are made of.

          What are our fathers made of, made of?
          What are our fathers made of?
             Pipes and smoke and collars choke;
          That's what our fathers are made of.

          What are our mothers made of, made of?
          What are our mothers made of?
             Ribbons and laces and sweet pretty faces.

         That's what our mothers are made of.

          What are old men made of, made of?
          What are old men men made of?

          Slippers that flop and a bald headed top.

That's what old men are made of. 

          What are old women made of, made of?
          What are old women made of?
             Reels, and jeels, and old spinning wheels;
          That's what old women are made of.

          What are all folks made of, made of?
          What are all folks made of?
             Fighting a spot and loving a lot,
          That's what all folks are made of.

Boho Chic!

                Scentsy does Boho Chic with its own version via scent---Boho!

A bohemian fragrance of clove-studded winter apples entwined with juicy black plums, candied mulberries, and cinnamon sticks.

          

      One thing I really like about this scent is its balance.  A lot of fall scents really bring on the cinnamon and clove pretty strongly---and I like that—but once you have done it, then what?  Boho reminds me a lot of an older Yankee scent whose name escapes me right now, but it is the right blend of fruit, spice, and that undertone of fall woodiness that can be very pleasing.  Boho is perhaps a bit stronger on the fruity than the rest.  And big bonus?  It is not toooo apple-y.  I definitely get more of the plum/mulberry vibe, and that is just fine by me.  Another big plus is the departure from that perfume note that was bugging me in Pom Pear and,  to a lesser extent, Sno-leil. 

            Boho is another Scentsy fruit story success .  I like it quite a bit, although, once again, it doesn’t cross over into the love department.  I give Boho a 7 plus.  The scent throw is pretty good, although it’s not a screamer, another strong 7, and the last is acceptable—a solid full day and a half per cube, another 7.

            Next up in the Scentsy Fall 2014 trials?  Everything Nice

Sno-leil

Sno-leil Hits the Warmers  

              My warmers were on hiatus this last week while I honked and hacked my way through a little bronchitis, but now that I’m rejoining the human race and can smell just a little bit, I thought I’d report back on Sno-leil, which was the last scent I warmed before becoming  Suz, the Red-Nosed Cougher.

            Sno-leil melted in my warmers for a good four days, giving me plenty of time to decide it was a like, not a love.

A merry mélange of sparkling citrus, iced nashi pear, and decadent marshmallow mousse.

            I get lots of marshmallow, with an even bigger serving of citrus.  It doesn’t measure up to my beloved My Wish, but it is still good.  I’m still scratching my head trying to figure out where the name fits in.  It isn’t snowy, although I still feel it is Christmasy---in a visions of sugar plums sort of way.  Even so, what prevents it from crossing over into my love territory is a vague perfume note that so overwhelmed Pom Pear for me.  Maybe it is the pear that is turning me off?  Not sure that’s it, though, because Simply Nashi Pear and  Honey Pear Cider don’t give me that impression.

            Regardless, Sno-leil is a good fall and winter scent that I think will appeal to lots of people.  It is sweet without rotting your teeth, and it is a nice winter-change-of-pace from balsamy and cinnamony scents (which I love, but how many can you melt?)

            A solid 6 on Snoleil, although the throw is excellent at 10, and the lasting power is amazing; I got 2 days for each cube. 

            Next up in the Scentsy Fall Scent Trials?  Boho!

Welcome Fall

Pomegranate Pear

Sweet nashi pear garnished with violet petals, pomegranate seeds, and curls of orange zest.


I was an avid reader as a young girl, and I vividly remember the Pooh stories that always began something like....In Which Pooh Learns...

This review should be prefaced....In Which Suz Learns, Yet Again, that Melting a Scent Changes Everything She Thought She Knew About It.

The delicious woody character I detected in Pom Pear on cold sniff was undoubtedly due to the violet petals. Yet violet petals become decidedly perfumey and floral when melted. How quickly I forget. Another scent I had so much hope for, only to become something I don't particularly care for when warmed. I'm oh-for-two in the fall scent trials.

It's not that this isn't relatively pleasant. It is okay. But, the name is misleading, because this is really meant for floral lovers. I like the soft florals, not the violet petal florals. In fact, I still have a lot of Violet Leaves from last year's scent of the year that I just can't bring myself to melt. I just wouldn't be inclined to ever seek Pom Pear out because it is not my thing. I was picturing a fall cornucopia overfilled with pomegranate and late season pears surrounded with vining fall leaves on a crisp fall day. Pom Pear is an old-fashioned perfume spritzer on my grandma's vanity.

Scent Rating: 5

Scent Throw: 9

Scent Lasting Power: will update

Tomorrow's trial? Sno-leil! Marshmallow never disappoints.



In Family News

September really is the best month in the Pacific Northwest. After a long, hot, dry summer (this year anyway), the mornings are crisp and cool, yet the days are still sunny and warm. Perfect. Please stay like this forever!

Our Little Buddy will be 8 months old tomorrow and Wee Elf will be 16 months old just a few days after that. Little Buddy is sooooo close to crawling. That boy is just one big ball o'happy--just about the most cheerful little dude you're gonna run across, but when he does cry. Oh My! The drama involved about melts your heart. The little little lip pouts out, the wide blue eyes pour wee tears, and then the saddest cry known to man comes pouring out. Way to manipulate Grandma, Little Guy! And of course, he's a genius. Here he is--already learning to drive the tractor. See how he's reaching for the shift knob?

Of course, we all know Elf has had Grandma wrapped around her little finger for a goodly while now. Girlfriend is a wee version of a Mad Scientist these days....what happens if I stick this in the cabinet? Will it be there when I open the door back up? Why Yes! Yes, it's there! Oh wait! Hey, it's me in the mirror! Look, I can spear watermelon out of the serving bowl myself! Her Mom and Dad are amazing at letting her do things for herself, and she does! She handles a fork better than most adults, fergoshsakes. Here she is sitting on her favorite "chair"--a FoodSaver box, lol.

I'm looking forward to enjoying a few more weeks of this delicious weather with my babies. Got to get them outside while the getting is good.

Where's the Cedar?

Cedar Cider

LeSigh.

An autumn medley of the reddest apples, cinnamon sticks, and vanilla beans nestled among fragrant white cedar branches.

Nope.  Cedar Cider is another pleasantish apple/cinnamon combo with maybe a HINT of cedar that, to me, smells just like all the other apple/cinnamon combos that Scentsy has trotted out over the past few years.  I was really hoping for lots and lots of cedar with a hint of apple and cinnamon, but that just isn't happening folks.  This is apple and cinnamon for the apple and cinnamon lover, though, because the throw is great!  This is the Big Apple; I can smell my downstairs warmers throughout the house and back again.

I just wanted something different.  Something more like Yankee's Apple Wreath, which has a strong woody component that screams "It's Fall!  Put out the pumpkins!  Break out those sweaters."

Cedar Cider just says "bapple...."

Scent Rating:             6
Scent Throw:            10
Scent Last:               8

First Impressions

Scentsy's New Fall Scents

Just got in my shipment of Scentsy's newest scents in the fall catalog.  This is my impression of them on cold sniff.  Totally could change once they are melted.  Individual reviews forthcoming once I've melted these.  The description in italics is how Scentsy describes them:

Ambrosia (the September sotm):
    The sweetest fruit salad ever: tropical pineapple, mandarin orange slices, juicy pears, and ripe concord grapes with hints of jam and fruit nectar. 
   Very, very sweet.  I get lots of pineapple and grapes on cold sniff.  Did I mention it is SWEET?  Not sure this is up my alley.

Autumn Blaze Maple
     A bountiful harvest of crisp apples and earthy pumpkins with golden maple syrup, warm cinnamon, and a ribbon of smoldering oak.
     Cold sniff detects a LOT of maple with a bit of cinnamon.  Not getting much else.

Boho
     A bohemian fragrance of clove-studded winter apples entwined with juicy black plums, candied mulberries, and cinnamon sticks.
     Very interesting scent.  Think this will be a keeper.  I get just a tiny dab of clove, lots of plum and berries, and something just a little bit earthy--maybe the cinnamon.  A little apple, too, but not gobs.  I'm not an apple scent person, so that's a bit of a relief.  

Cedar Cider
     An autumn medley of the reddest apples, cinnamon sticks, and vanilla beans nestled among fragrant white cedar branches.
     This was my most looked-forward-to scent of the whole bunch.  A little disappointed in the cold sniff.  I mainly get apple and cinnamon.  Really hoping the cedar develops when warmed because I love cedar scents.  Not unpleasant, but not what I had hoped for.  C'mon cedar!!!!

Crumb Top
     The perfect blend of oats, butter, and brown sugar to top your favorite dessert.
     Smells like melted butter and brown sugar.  Very realistic.  Not unpleasant, just not what I usually choose to melt.

Everything Nice
     Sugar and spice and everything nice: deep caramel and swirls of butter with roasted pumpkin and glazed pecans.
     Well, kudos to Scentsy for photorealism in their scents this year.  Boy, they have been spot on with their bakery scents.  Smells just like the description.  It is very sweet, and not my thing, but I can see that bakery-scent lovers will go wild for this one.  Buttery caramel, lots of glazed pecans, and a smattering of pumpkins and spices.

Love you Berry Much
     A fragrance to crush on: bursting red berries, dreamy white peach, and tart cranberry finished with a splash of vanilla.
     Not sure why Scentsy places this in the Romance category--it is one of the least romantic scents I can imagine.  .  Not loving it at all.  I really can't pick out any one scent note, just an overall impression of very sweet fruit that has been made into perfume.  Perhaps warming it will warm it to me.

Orange Amber
     An alluring blend of bitter orange and clementine, exotic wild ginger, cozy cardamom, and sultry amber.
     I definitely get the orange and the cardamom.  Not much else, but I am hopeful that warming it will bring out the ginger and amber and get rid of that "I'm an orange cleaner" impression.  We shall see.  I am very hopeful and wanting to like this one.  A strong maybe.

Pomegranate Pear
     Sweet nashi pear garnished with violet petals, pomegranate seeds, and curls of orange zest.
     A totally surprise like!  From the description, I thought this would be a strong "No", but wow, am I very surprised.  This is a very well balanced blend and none of the scent notes overpower the others.  Excited to melt this one.  Not a sweet fruit, but almost gives a barely detectable woody note that is fallish and extremely pleasant.

Salted Caramel Cupcake
     Creamy golden caramel with hints of cocoa and delicate pink sea salt crowns a buttery cupcake.
     I've never had a salted caramel cupcake, so I can't say whether this smells like it or not.  It is a very very sweet bakery scent with lots and lots of caramel, and I can definitely smell cake.  It doesn't repulse me, but not being a sweet lover, I can say with certainly that warming it won't be my thing.  

Shimmer
     Get your girly-girl on! Sweet cherries, velvety apricots, and sensual white musk crowned with a tiara of shimmering spun sugar.
     This reminds me of those fruity perfumes that are so popular in places like Victoria's Secret.  It is not at all unpleasant, and actually, I find myself drawn to scents like this at times.  It is like a cross of Surfer Chick and Flirtatious.

Sno-leil
     A merry mélange of sparkling citrus, iced nashi pear, and decadent marshmallow mousse.
     Everyone has to have secret indulgences--you know, like watching (and loving) b-grade disaster movies, or eating red licorice, or loving marshmallow scents.  This reminds me a lot of the now-gone My Wish, which was a secret indulgence of mine.  In spite of my distaste for sweet scents generally, I love love love marshmallow scents, and this is a really really good one.  What makes it different from My Wish is the strong citrus note.  Yum!  This reminds me of baking goodies at Christmas time, and I'm looking forward to melting it.

Didja See?

Yankee Candle's Scenterpiece

I just love this idea so much!

That is Yankee's new Scenterpiece system, which is a lot like Gold Canyon's meltcup system.  I had tried Gold Canyon many years ago, but didn't care for the behemoth warmer and I never really connected with the scents that I tried, which I found very "perfumey."  So, I was very excited to see Yankee come out with the idea, since there are several scents in the Yankee line that I just haven't found a dupe for in the Scentsy line.

Yankee is soooo clever.  They emailed out $20 off $45 coupons with their introduction, and that was enough to make me want to give Scenterpiece a try.  I ordered one of the smaller warmers and five different scents to try.  Gotta say I'm pleased with my purchase.  I ordered Autumn Leaves, Pink Sands, Sage & Citrus, Silver Birch, and Harvest.  The throw is very good on all of them, they seem to last much longer than the stated last time of 24 hours, and changing out the scents really is a breeze.

Scentsy needs to jump on this bandwagon!

 

New Catalog Season

In spite of my cheating ways, I'm very excited for the new Scentsy catalog season starting in September!  Lots of yummy sounding scents a'coming.  I'm really hoping they'll soothe my disappointment over some of the scent of the month offerings recently.  Out of the last six, I really only liked one and loved one.  The others were only meh, or, like Mystery Man, a downright dud in my book.

The like?  It is a surprise like, for certain....Vanilla Bean Buttercream!

When I warmed Vanilla Bean Buttercream, the Mister entered the house, sniffed the air, looked at me a little incredulously and asked, "are you baking something????" 

He shoulda known better. 

Vanilla Bean Buttercream smells exactly like you've pulled a fresh vanilla cake from the oven and slathered it high with decadent buttercream frosting.  Yummy!  This one is soooo out of my box, but I think it works for me simply due to its realism.  It is not fakey sweet smell.  It is the real deal, and while it is not a scent that I personally would go to a lot, it is worthy of a rare "10" for a bakery scent.  Throw is excellent--another 10.  Last is the same.  The reason I give a "like" a 10?  Yeah, I know.  A little cognitive dissonance there, but the reality is that, although this is the most excellent bakery scent I've ever run across, I just am not inclined to melt them all that often.  Melting this would make me want to whip up a pound of butter, throw in a pound of powdered sugar and a healthy splash of vanilla and bury my head in the bowl.  Not good.

I'm more inclined to melt something like Fuzzy Blanket.  Fuzzy Blanket is a rather weird name for what is really just a lavender/honeysuckle blend. 
Snuggle up to the soft scent of lavender, sandalwood, and sweet honeysuckle.

It is a very comforting scent, so I suppose the name does have a certain sort of sense.  This one is a very balanced blend of lavender and honeysuckle, with just enough sandalwood to give it a soothing undertone without being incensy.  I really like it, but I tend to like scents like this, so that should be no surprise.  I have had good luck with the throw and last, although others have reported it is a little light for them.  My sensitive nose doesn't like those really big scents, though, so keep that in mind if you are thinking of trying this one.  Fuzzy Blanket is the perfect transitional scent--I wouldn't be very inclined to use it in the full heat of summer, but it is a wonderful Fall/Winter/Spring scent, and I'll be stocking up on this one over the winter.  Another 10 all round.
 

 

Family Update

We have had a bit of Mr.Toad's Wild Ride here at Chez Winter this summer.  I had happily started doing just a bit of a facelift on our 20 year old home--replacing doors, doing a little painting, when I noticed that the carpet in my master bedroom closet was soaking wet.  The short of it was, shoddy construction in our master bath had led to a major leak requiring the entire---and I mean ENTIRE--bathroom to be torn out.  Poor Mister.  Underlayment and walls needed replacing, the closet floor was replaced, tile was installed in the bath.   Watching two men lug a 350 pound cast iron tub up a flight of stairs was pretty awe-inspiring (go Mister and Jacob!!)  Currently, we still have a shower surround and shower to install, cabinets to reface, and painting to be done.  It will be beautiful.  Some day.

In the meantime, a complete stairway rebuild has simulaneously commenced (it was knocked wonky in our 2001 earthquake and we've lived a little dangerously ever since).  I've done as much of the work as I can myself--including lots and lots of painting, finishing of stair retreads, and so on.  Phew.  Lots to go, but it sure will be nice when it is finished.  Two years from now. Phew.

We were blessed mid-projects with a visit from John's Mom, who, at 89, came up from California to visit us as well as three of John's siblings who also live in Washington.  Here's an adorable pic of her meeting Soren for the first time.

After Helen's visit, my parents came to town as well, although John doesn't have those pics at the ready yet.  After visiting us, they went down to Bend, OR, where, sadly, my dad was hospitalized for nine days (!!!) with pneumonia.  Currently, we have their little adorable Westie, Traveler, staying with us, along with their truck.  John and I will be taking a little trip down to Arizona to return them to their rightful owners.  Dad and Mom flew home on Monday, where Dad finally seems to be making some headway in his recovery.

 

My babies are growing oh so fast!  Soren has two teeth now, is sitting like a champ, and is very close to crawling.  He chats all the day long and is just a happy little fellow.  Here is a recent pic of the little guy with his big "sister" Miss Edie.

My angel Alice is also in an amazing stage.  She is 15 months and the very picture of curiousity and ingenuity.  She has been walking since 11 months, and knows a great many signs in American Sign Language.  She hasn't been a big talker up to this point, although just now she has really begun chatting it up verbally.  She has an amazing head of bright curls, loves her dollies, her books, and her little Soren.

Sure do love these babies lots.

Stand Up

I am Standing....

In one of my favorite movies, a senator of Rome entreats his compatriots to stand up in court in support of the heroine of the movie.  "Stand up!" he cries out to them imploringly, "Stand, or if no one will, I will stand alone."  At first, no one stands, and a horrible silence descends.  Finally, after the moment has passed, and it looks as if the judge will proceed, a lone man lifts himself from his seat.

"Minister," asks the judge, "Do you have something to say?"  The minister looks around the courtroom, and finally utters,

"I am standing."


If there is one thing I know in life, it is this, it is so hard to be the person who lifts themself from their seat and stands. 

In the wake of all the looting in Ferguson recently, there was a video of a man standing in front of a store imploring his fellowman to quit the looting.  He was standing. 

Sometimes standing is a very lonely pursuit, and yet, we must stand in order to combat the wrongs in this world.  It can be a very simple thing to stand at times---as easy as turning off the television when a smutty reality television show comes on.  Or it can be very difficult--standing against a professor who tells you that the only race capable of being racist is caucasion.  That happened to my daughter last year, and she had to stand.  For people who suffer from depression or other mental illness, standing can mean just showing up to life every day.  Or, standing can mean the ultimate sacrifice,  as Dan Foley found when he stood against ISIS.

It is an increasingly difficult world we live in, and it can be exhausting standing for all of the causes we know are right.  Sometimes we have to choose our battles, just to have enough energy to stand the next time. 

I often ask myself, am I standing when I should be, either alone, or with friends and family who need my support? Am I standing to represent right, even if it means so-called friends will desert me, or the crowd will jeer me?

Are you standing?

A Productive Weekend and Pretty Pears

Productivity

Happy Belated Easter to all of you.  We had a low-key weekend with lots of productivity.  It all started out on Good Friday with Maura's new bee hive.  Here's what 10,000 bees look like:

 



I'll be honest, that many bees scare the heck out of me, but it didn't seem to phase Maura at all.  They are all now installed into their hives on Miss Edie Farm (Leah and Scott's place), and hopefully will be providing us with delicious homemade honey in a year or two.

Maura also dried some nettles over the weekend in our dehydrator.  I'm really hoping that nettle tea (along with locally-purchased honey), will help my allergies out a bit.  It's been a bad year for that!  Our nettles came from an agriculture share box from a farm near Leah, and with the two batches of nettles received, Maura has made a nettle tincture and so far, one batch of dried nettles.  Fingers crossed on herbal cures!

On Saturday, I churned my first batch of cultured butter.  Although butter can be made in a blender or using a mixer, I thought it would be way more fun to use an old-fashioned hand-cranked churn, which took about 50 minutes for 2 1/2 quarts of cream.  Culturing the butter (using "friendly" bacteria to make the cream a little more sour, in our case) is supposed to give it a more old-fashioned butter taste, but it was a little chilly the night I cultured it, I'm not sure the bacteria really was warm enough.  When I make yogurt, I use my husband's bread-proofing box.  It's a great invention--you can set the proof temperature to a specific temp.  I'm going to use the box this week to culture my cream in this hopes of a little more flavorful butter.  We're super lucky to have local dairy delivery from a milkfarm that doesn't use Ultra High Temperature pasteurization (their products are also BHT free).
For more information on making cultured butter, check out this article:http://www.cheesemaking.com/Butter.html

Nonetheless, even though the butter could use improvements, it was still delicious on Mister's homemade dried cranberry/pecan scones on Saturday morning, and later, on the two round crusty loaves of bread he baked while we were babysitting Alice.  I've probably mentioned it before, but Mister makes ALL of our bread products---from scones and biscuits to baguettes, bagels, sandwich loaves, crusty french breads, crusty sandwich rounds, panini, ciabatta,Thanksgiving rolls---you name it!  He tries to source local (non-GMO) mills, although he depends pretty heavily on Bob's Red Mill and King Arthur Flour as well.  Next month, he and I will be heading to Utah for some national park fun, and along the way we'll be stopping in beautiful Logan, Utah because they have a grainery where Mister can load up on flour.

Along with a little sewing (me) and bike-riding (Mister), we had a very satisfying weekend!

So, on to the reviews...

Scentsy Pears

After my last post (rant?) about my disappointment with the man scents, I figured I better trot out something a little more positive.  Pear scents are big this year, and Scentsy has plenty to offer.  I've already praised my two faves of the pear bunch---Sparkling Citrus Pear and Simply Nashi Pear, but there are two more that deserve a sniff, although I definitely like one better than the other: Nashi Nectar and Pear Blossom.

Pear Blossom is:
Sweet nashi pear tossed with light florals and cool berries.

Personally, I think Pear Blossom is the sweetest of all of the spring pear offerings Scentsy has right now.  Nonetheless, it is not toooo sweet nor heavy, and still does strike me as a pleasant scent for a spring or summer day.  I don't really smell any floral in it, and perhaps it is the berry that tempers the pear sweetness, but I can't pick out the berry per se.  Although I don't love it, it is a reasonable like.  It places third in my pear line-up and deserves a 6 + for a rating, a 7 for throw and last. 

My least favorite of the bunch is

Nashi Nectar 
Sparkling citrus and crisp nashi pear balanced in perfect sweetness.

Nashi Nectar sounds so good on paper.  Unfortunately, this one strikes me as "perfumey" instead of citrusy or fruity.  Unfortunately, that quality gave me a bit of a headache when I tried Nashi Nectar, so while the scent itself isn't wholly unpleasant, I ultimately had to toss it.  I hate when that happens, and luckily, I don't find myself in that boat with many of Scentsy scents.  I do wonder if I got a dud bar, so perhaps some day I'll re-order and try again, but until then, I need to give it a 5 scent rating.  It was fairly strong---a 9 on the throw scale, but since I tossed it out, I'm not sure of the last.

All in all, except for the devastatingly sweet Caramel Pear Crisp, I think Scentsy does right by pear.  Sparkling Citrus Pear, Simply Nashi Pear, and Pear Blossom are all ones I'd keep on hand for a sunny day.  They may have even converted me to a pear fan...

 

 

 

 

Until next time....