Romy Raves

I don’t know about you, but when February rolls around each year, I find myself feeling more amorous, sexy and focused on all things red, chocolate and romantic. It’s the holiday that reminds me about love and staying connected to those we hold near and dear. In honor of this heart filled day, I thought I would share some of my current favorite discoveries that seem like a perfect sync with this holiday:

  1.  Black Magic Roses (pictured above)
These are the most amazing velvety black looking roses and they were the focal point of my wedding bouquet over 10 years ago. They still captivate me to this day–Stunning!

2.  Perfect Kiss Parfum
I am a huge fan of Sarah Horowitz Parfums (More Than Just a Fragrance) because her fragrances are so unique, beautifully made, and the kind of scents that people always stop me and ask what I am wearing. Perfect Kiss is a tribute to romantic love; it has a sexy blend of night blooming jasmine and honeysuckle that rests upon a base note of creamy sandalwood and warm amber, and it is made even more inviting by a hint of dark chocolate. I just love the smell of Perfect Kiss which I describe as warm, sensual and yummy which makes it a perfect Valentine’s Day fragrance.

3.  Flaming Heart T-Shirt by Sledge
I have always loved the fun, hip fashion forward tops designed by Sledge. I recently saw a picture of this top in Los Angeles Magazine and loved it! I think it will make the perfect Valentine’s Day date night shirt too!

4.  Jurlique Love Balm
This is a delightful little tin of love that I keep in my purse and use anywhere that my skin needs a little extra moisture. It is made of all natural oils and is scented with yummy tangerine oil. My dry chapped lips adore this little balm and I hope yours will too!

5.  Lipstick Queen Chinatown Glossy Pencil in Thriller
This is a super sheer, moisturizing “draw on” gloss that comes in a chubby jumbo-sized pencil. It even comes with a jumbo-sized sharpener and the original artwork on the boxes and shade names are all inspired by the Polanski film of the same name. I love the hint of blue red color (perfect for your V-Day pucker) and how simple it is to use.

6.  Vampire Kiss in Love Bite Red by Lip Seduction
This is one of my all time favorite lipgloss and treatment products because it provides a nice sheer hint of color and it heals, plumps and sooths my lips all at once (read The Seduction of My Lips for my full rave of this product). And Love Bite Red is the perfect sheer Valentine’s Day shade of red!

7.  China Glaze Nail Polish in Ruby Pumps 
This is a great sparkly red nail polish that was inspired by Dorthy’s Ruby Red Slippers.  Being a die hard Wizard of Oz fan, I could not resist The Wizard of Ohh Ahhz collection by China Glaze (what a fun packaging concept!). There are six great colors in this set, but I think I will be wearing Ruby Pumps for a fun blingy Valentine’s Day Look. I also love the sparkly blue shade in the set called Dorothy Who? and the fun shimmery purple called C-C-Courage. 

8.   Choclatique Fig and Peanut Butter Sea Salt Truffle
OMG! This is such an insanely good candy creation that I tasted it over a year ago at Expo West  and still cannot stop thinking about it. It is the perfect blend of creamy peanut butter, carmely fig and a hint of sea salt covered in divine chocolate—An Absolute Confection Perfection!!

9.  Gotta Have S’more Amore 
I recently discovered the addictive S’muffins by Gotta Have S’more and am totally hooked on these miniature s’more like cupcakes. They have a graham cracker shell dipped in chocolate and are filled with marshmallow, chocolate and other divine ingredients. And the S’more Amore is a Valentine’s Day spin on this amazing treat with red colored white chocolate on the outside and a candy red heart on top—Super cute and yummy too!

10.   Naja Tea
I recently discovered Naja’s divine tea blends at the Go Green Expo in LA and was immediately hooked! Naja’s mantra is to make ‘whole leaf hip’ and she masterfully fulfills this promise by creating aromatic and unique blends of tea that intoxicate you with their beautiful inspired smells and flavors. I am absolutely head over heels in love with the sensual Mix & Mingle blend of toasted coconut, chocolate, vanilla and rooibos, dee-lish! And I think the delicious Allure blend (white tea, tangerines, & schizandra berries) and the Wicked Plum blend (cinnamon, ginger root, hibiscus and rooibos) would make delightful Vday gifts.  

If you are anything like me, I steer clear of the Black Friday shopping frenzy because NOTHING is worth waking up at 4am and fighting the crowds for–plus personally I think the whole concept is a psychological marketing trick of more hype than substance. However, I must admit that I was curious this year, so I did venture out at 11am to shop, and honestly there were no great bargains to be had and the crowds were minimal.

In contrast to Black Friday, Cyber Monday has tremendous appeal. From the comfort of your own home, you can scour cyberspace for the best deals around, no crowds, no lines, and no nonsense. You might fare better if you are tech savvy, but there are plenty of bargains to be found.

So in honor of this special day, I would like to share a few special offers from some of my favorite brands that are definitely worth checking out:

• Senna Cosmetics: Cyber Monday Deal, November 30th ONLY. Romy Raves Readers receive 20% off all regular priced items as well as FREE shipping with the code BEAUTY20. Offer only valid 11/30/09. All new customers will also get 11 skincare samples with their 1st order. I LOVE their Form-A-Brow Kit, read my review of this fabulous product HERE

• Skin 2 Skin Care I am a huge fan of this advanced, anti-aging, certified organic skincare line. Read my rave review of this amazing line HERE. And now through December 2009, they are offering my loyal readers 20% off their entire skin care line with the code Romy20

• Sarah Horowitz Parfums This is a fragrance line I adore! The parfums are very unique, artisanal, and the kind of scents that people stop you and ask what you are wearing. To learn more about why I love this line, read my review HERE And now through December 2009, Romy Raves readers will receive a 20% discount on their yummy Perfect Bliss fragrance on either a Perfect Bliss 1.7 oz. eau de parfum or a Perfect Bliss Body Creme when you use the coupon code BLISSOUT09

• Bobbi Brown Cosmetics This is definitely one of my all time favorite cosmetic lines because they always have amazing wearable colors that catch my eye, and their beautiful collections are timeless–LOVE the holiday collections. And here’s an added incentive to check out the current holiday offerings: Bobbi Brown Friends and Family Offer of 20% off any order on BobbiBrown.com from November 30^{th –} December 2^nd

• Jeune d’ age Organics (To Better Skin) This is a wonderful new skin care line that I have been trying out and loving! It is a beautifully made and uses high grade antioxidants and certified organic ingredients that make your skin glow. I am especially loving the Hydrating, Firming Anti-Aging Serum that makes my skin supple and comes in an inspired environmentally friendly recyclable box made of flower seed paper that you can plant and watch it grow, love that! And Romy Raves readers will get 25% off all purchases now through December 7, 2009 by using code RomyRaves.

Happy Shopping!!

As my hubby always tells me “You have a bionic sniffer” and if you are anything like me, your sense of smell is VERY powerful.  Scents dramatically affect my mood–the right smell can transport me to a wonderful time and place or it can anchor a special memory and the wrong smell can easily put me in a negative space.  For this reason (along with being a beauty maven), I absolutely adore wearing perfume and tend to use different fragrances to shape my experiences.  I am always on the ‘sniff’ for a new scent to add to my permanent collection.

Enter Sarah Horowitz Parfums, a California based fragrance house that has attracted a cult following across the US because of its unique and inspired collections of artisanal fragrances. The creative genius behind this company is Sarah Horowitz-Thran, an extraordinary perfumer who has an intuitive knack for creating non-formulaic complex fragrances that tap into your emotions and offer a wonderful vehicle for self-expression. “Finding the perfect fragrance for you, can bring you into the moment and remind you of who you are and what you love,” says Sarah.

Years ago, I heard about Sarah’s talents from friend, who knew about this entrepreneurial perfumer and her wonderful box of oils that she would schlep around the beaches in Malibu and create custom fragrances for people. Soon enough, I began wearing one of her earliest creations called Perfect Veil a clean, subtle musky scent that is still one of my signature fragrances to this day.

Imagine my delight, when I had the opportunity to try a couple of the new Sarah Horowitz Parfums purse pens (these are fun, sleek, modern, purse-friendly rollerball pen parfum dispensers) filled with the fragrances from her newest collection called What Comes From Within. This inspired line pays tribute to the phenomena of inner beauty (love that concept!) and there are five scents in this collection all based on the powerful connection between spirit, heart and mind. These more spiritually oriented parfums offer the consumer more than just a fragrance, they offer an emotional journey as well.

First, I tried Light Comes From Within which represents Spirit. This is a sheer, luminous fragrance that celebrates new beginnings. It has a sparkling bergamot top note, a freesia, honeysuckle and night blooming jasmine middle note and a fresh oceanic musk and white cedar base note. I would describe this parfum as fresh, slightly floral with an appealing musk aspect that I am drawn to (I am a total musk girl and almost all of my fav fragrances have a noticeable musk note.) This is the type of fragrance I would wear on a summer night, out on a date and hanging by the beach because it has a watery, oceanic smell to me. And I just love it! It’s uplifting but has complexity and depth.

Peace Comes From Within represents the Mind. This is a clean, tranquil fragrance of gentle depth. It has a bergamot top note and a fresh oceanic musk and sandalwood base note. I would describe this parfum as subtle, fresh, water/oceanic and great for spring and summer. I also love the musk notes in this parfum and it makes me smile when I wear it.

Not only am I equally loving both of these intriguing, unique, fresh inspired fragrances, but I am also thrilled about this sleek and modern purse pen packaging. It is a beautiful design, fits nicely in your purse, dispenses the parfum easily and smoothly, and just looks cool.

My affinity for Sarah Horowitz continues to grow and I definitely think you should check out the What Comes From Within Collection and add one of these adorable purse pens and beautifully crafted fragrances to your collection, you will love it!

You can buy any of the fragrances in the What Comes From Within Collection or any other Sarah Horowitz Parfums products Here. As an added bonus, Sarah Horowitz Parfums is offering Romy Raves readers a special discount on another cult fav fragrance in their collection called Perfect Bliss (top notes of blood orange, mango, and papaya; middle note of gardenia; and warm, sexy base notes of vanilla, patchouli, cedar and musk–YUM!). Romy Raves readers will receive a 20% discount on either a Perfect Bliss 1.7 oz. eau de parfum or a Perfect Bliss Body Creme when you use the coupon code BLISSOUT09 .

CONTEST ALERT!!! Make sure to check back on the Romy Raves Blog tomorrow for an chance to win one of these fab purse pens of your very own! Don’t miss out, this is a real treat!