obsessed: pomanders

This might be the start of a new series on the blog of things with which I'm obsessed.  We'll see.  But first of all, the title of this should probably be "obsessed: the scent of pomanders," or, "obsessed: the scent of pomanders and other things with clove in them."  But let's start with pomanders.

Aren't they cool?  I've made three of them, using this tutorial from Mrs. Meyer's, the cleaning product line.  It's really easy, even for a non-crafty all-thumbs gal like myself.  They smell lovely, and look pretty neat, too.

Speaking of Mrs. M, I bought some of this stuff, and it also smells wonderful.  As with all orange/clove products, I find myself wishing it had a bit more clove in it, but that's just me.  (I even put extra clove in our homemade sloppy joes when Andy made them recently.  I was the sous chef, so I snuck 'em in there.)

I bought this Clementine Clove candle from Sydney Hale on Etsy, and I love it.  It has a wonderful scent, is a nice big size, and the old timey label and amber glass container are nice bonuses.

I bought two of these wonderful clove and lavender sachets from AdobeHouseVintage on Etsy last year, and kept one for the house, where it hangs in my bedroom.  It has a wonderful scent--plenty of clove for me--and is cute as heck.  I feel like a need another one--or six--for my house this year.

I've been a fan of Burt's Bees lip balm for a long time, and was happy as heck when they came out with this balm with clove oil.  So good!

Please tell me about your favorite pomander or clove-scented products and recipes in the comments!  I would especially love to find a nice clove-y or pomander scented perfume.  Or a clove-centric cocktail.  I know cloves are a staple in mulled wines and cider, but is there a way to use them in other cocktails?  (See...I really am obsessed!)

xo

K

obsessions and inspirations

Dear Internet, and most especially, Tumblr--

I love you so much!  You let me keep a scrapbook of all my favorite things, and I don't have to mess with scissors, glue, or scrapbooking stores.

Seriously, I remain a hardcore fan of Tumblr since I signed up for an account a few months ago, and my Tumblr blog, alwaysalwaysalwaysthesea, has become my online repository for sources of inspiration and obsession.  I've made a couple collages of images from my July Tumblr-ing--click them to make the images nice and big.

1. pine cone collage (via Cori Kindred's Flickr stream)

2. Dutch paper theater scenery.  Old paper puppet theaters are really cool and were beautifully illustrated. (via 50 Watts)

3. gingham check dress from Roksanda Ilincic's Resort 2012 collection. (via style.com)

4. beautiful old book cover (via HoskingIndustries Flickr stream)

5. beautiful young Pete Townshend, in a fair isle sweater vest (via meninsweaters on Tumblr)

6. single malt scotch + a lodge on Jura, an island in the Scottish Hebrides = my dream vacation. (via IsleOfJura.com)

7. creepy as all heck, but beautifully filmed and with a stellar cast (David Morrissey, Sean Bean, Andrew Garfield, Maxine Peake) all decked out in 1970s finery.  Screenshot from the Red Riding Trilogy.  Will give you nightmares about Yorkshire policemen--who knew?

8. I do have a thing for Scotland and accordions.  King Creosote (a.k.a. Kenny Anderson) fills the bill.  His gorgeous new album with Jon Hopkins, "Diamond Mine," has been nominated for Britain's Mercury Prize and deserves to win.  Buy it!  (image via Dear Scotland)

1. Richard Armitage.  It's been quite a week for us Armitage fans.  He appeared in his first major Hollywood film, Captain America, and an awesome photo of him as Thorin Oakenshield in next year's Hobbit film was released.  Plus, he's looking quite sexy and fierce in this Project magazine shoot.  (via RichardArmitageNet.com)

2. Speaking of fierce.  This is Danish actor Mads Mikkelson.  He's been in a number of films, but the one I know him from is After the Wedding.  (It's good; watch it on Netflix.)  I really like these photos.  (via brilliantinemortality on Tumblr)

3. photo by Matthew Turley of an A frame shed in Norway. (via mpdrolet on Tumblr, who consistently blogs the most interesting photography)

4. amazing lace halo/headdress (via suz1212's Flickr stream)

5. more fierceness, this time Arya Stark, my favorite character in HBO's Game of Thrones.  Have you seen it?  You really should.  I may re-watch the whole thing again--I can't wait for the next season.  (via HBO.com)

6. an 1839 friendship album with locks of hair sewn into the pages and color drawings of flowers. (via summer turban on Tumblr)

xo

K

synesthesia part 2: the summer edition

I am not a synesthete.  I am just pretending to be one for the purpose of this blog post.  Synesthesia is, according to Wikipedia, "a neurologically based condition in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway."  An example of a synesthete is a person who automatically and involuntarily associates colors with certain numbers or letters.

In my previous synesthesia post, I matched some of my favorite fall and winter perfumes with items of vintage clothing I found on Etsy.  I'm doing the same again, only this time with some of my favorite summer scents, and including vintage and reconstructed fashions from Etsy, as well as jewelry.  This was fun for me--hope you enjoy!

Here's my current top summer scent rotation:

1. Etro Anice.  A sweet, yet clean, black licorice scent.  Like Good & Plenty candy, or better yet, a cool cocktail made with absinthe.  Maybe I'm being too obvious, but this 1940s corde bag from BessGeorgette naturally makes me think black licorice.

2. Guerlain Aqua Allegoria Herba Fresca.  A refreshing blend of mint, citrus, and grass.  Sparkling mint green celluloid buckle from jeanjeanvintage.

3. Miller Harris En Sens de Bois is a woodsy vetiver scent.  Vetiver is a tall, fragrant grass native to India that is often used to control soil erosion.  It has an earthy, rather smoky scent that I love; many of my favorite perfumes include vetiver as a primary note. And I have to share this beautiful quote from vetiver.org:  "Indian poets referred to vetiver scent as 'the smell of the first monsoon shower on parched soil', and 'the perfume of a rejuvenated earth.'"  Moss green lace and satin dress from DearGoldenVintage.

4. CB I Hate Perfume Memory of Kindness.  Probably my favorite summer scent.  Very simple--smells like tomato leaves.  Not tomatoes, but the plant.  Heavenly.  1950s tomato red Lilli Diamond dress with a leafy print, from clostetcaseVNTG.

5. Acqua di Parma Blu Mediterraneo Foglie di Basilico.  Straight up basil leaf.  1950s kelly green cocktail dress by missfarfalla.

6. Hermes Hermessence Rose Ikebana.  I am not a big fan of floral scents, but I do like the scent of rose, especially when it's blended with something zingy like--in this case--rhubarb.  Rhubarb rose chalcedony pearl necklace from fiveforty.

7. L'Occitane Verbena.  A sparkling lemony verbena scent, hugely refreshing and energizing, and probably my most-worn summer scent.  The matching scented Soothing Body Ice Gel is one of my summer must-haves.  Shimmery 1960s pale yellow silk shantung beaded cocktail dress from  HinterlandVintage.

8. Rosine Un Zest de Rose.  A lemony rose scent (see my comments about Rose Ikebana).  Pretty reconstructed rose pink dress from AdelaideHomesewn.

xo

K

obsession

I have an obsession.

The last one was Elvis. It resulted in me buying up every Elvis cd available in the BMG music catalog. And in a pilgrimage to Graceland.

And one to Graceland Too.

I still like The King. I still think the '68 Comeback Special is awesome. But...I've moved on. I'm no longer obsessed.

I've had a nice, normal decade of liking, really liking, and even loving, lots of things. Andy, vintage clothing, Lucy, road trips, perfume, cocktails, food, Howard Dean... Everything was going nice and smoothly.

And then Scotland hit me.

I realize now it was meant to be. For example, some of my favorite bands from my formative years--Aztec Camera, The Waterboys, Jesus and Mary Chain--hail from Scotland. (Just FYI, TJ&MC and Pastels photos below link to cool videos by them, so you may want to turn down your volume if you're at work.)

And I know I'm really late to the party, but I've discovered these guys, and can't stop listening to them.

And of course, there was this. I don't think Trainspotting made me want to go to Scotland at the time. Junkies, filthy toilets--already had that in NYC. But the accents! Great movie, great soundtrack.

So anyway, I've become convinced Scotland and me are meant to be. I'm starting to develop a taste for this stuff.

And I have always loved tartan. This photo is from a gorgeous 2008 British Vogue story called Take the High Road. You can see more of the photos here. In my p-rock days I wore plaid tights just like the models in the shoot have on, and I would love another pair.

Probably the most famous Scottish fashion export next to tartan is Pringle knitwear. Here's Pringle back in the day, a twinset on the cover of Vogue.

And Pringle now, as worn by Tilda Swinton.

I love these looks from Pringle A/W 2010, updates to the traditional fisherman's sweater and Scotsman's kilt, for women.

And of course, there's this man, the lovely Mr. Alan Cumming. All men should dress like this. And he makes the only celeb perfume I would wear. Which is, naturally, called Cumming, and which has notes of leather, peat fire, highland mud, burned rubber and white truffle. You can see his cute ad for it here. (Coincidentally, I would also wear Tilda Swinton's perfume, which is called Like This.)

Seriously. You're just not going to get an anti-kilt argument out of me. Nope.

Maybe this obsession will become suddenly displaced by something else. Like the midterm elections? Um, probably not.

I think this one is going to be a bit more expensive than a trip to Graceland. I'd better start saving.

You can be sure you'll be hearing more from me on this.

xo

K