Friday, April 13, 2012

Candles By Victoria - April 2012 Order

Well, I told myself I wasn't going to order until May... but I couldn't resist! I at least held off through the entire month of March, which might be a record for me since starting to shop with CBV. :)
I think I convinced myself that this order was okay because I got a couple of things for a basket for a bridal shower, and got mostly scent shots for me (I'm trying to narrow down my candle collection). So, tarts were okay to order.

And... hubby decided to give his two "scents" Take it for what it's worth. ;)


Purple Tart Warmer - I have faithfully used my jet black tart warmer in my living room for the past year. I decided it was finally time to be able to melt scent shots in my bedroom, as well. And, I think, trying to convince myself it would help me get through my tarts more quickly. Purple is one of my and my husbands favorite color - our bedroom and bathroom are both dark purple themed, so it matched perfectly.

4oz Mini Jelly Jar Fresh Laundry - I've had this before. Such a nice, clean, fresh out of the dryer laundry-type scent.

24oz Crumb Melts Lemon Pound Cake - Yep, love this one! Perfect sweet lemon bakery scent.

Watermelon Cupcake - I love Tiffany-D and I love Pink Cupcake. What a wonderful mix of both. The pink cupcake is definitely the prodominent scent in this, but the melon in Tiffany-D is there.

Chrystom says - YUCKY

Rock That Vanilla - I have never smelled what this is duping, but it's good. It's a very nice vanilla scent, mixed with a perfumey/woodsy type scent. Kind of reminds me of a toned-down twilight woods, but sweeter

Chrystom says - "SMOOTH"

Spring Moments - This one is very complex. On first sniff, it's like WHOA perfumey notes. But, if you dig a little deeper, I do smell some fruits. I'm guessing the perfume note I'm getting is all of the florals mixed together. This ones nice if you like florals.

Chrystom says - "FLOWERY"

Banana Caramel Cupcake - I love all of Victoria's banana scents that I've tried so far, and this one is no exception. It's a perfect blend of banana with a hint of caramel, along with the vanilla cake-type note. Reminds me a lot of a vanilla pudding/vanilla wafer dessert. YUM-O!

Chrystm says - "HORRID"

Caramel Apple - I've had this one before in a mini jelly jar candle, and just needed to replenish. I really enjoy this scent. It's a 50/50 mix of caramel and sweet/crisp apple. Soooo yummy!

Chrystom says - "VERY STRONG GRANNY SMITH WITH JUST A HINT OF CARAMEL"

Raspberry White Mocha Latte - When I first got this it was very strong on the coffee scent. Now that it has cured for a few days, the raspberry is really coming out. I'm usually not a big fan of coffee scents, but I had to try this one. And, to be honest, the last few mornings of work I've been extra sleepy, and I catch myself sniffing this scent shot to try to wake myself up.

Chrystom says - "NOT VERY NICE, WITH THE SLIGHEST HINT OF RASPBERRY"

Sunshine - I reviewed this in my last round robin review. Lovely blend of floral and sweet apricot. Reminds me of BBW Apricot Vanilla - the apricot in it.

Chrystom says - "NICE MIXTURE OF FRUIT AND FLOWERS"

Fizzy Pop - I have had this many times before and ran out. Carbonated Sprite/Ginger Ale.

Chrystom says - "MMMMMM.... LIKE A MIXTURE OF MOUNTAIN DEW AND SPRITE"

Pink Sugar - What a sweet, fruity girly scent. I can't pinpoint what I'm smelling, but it's good. Like young, feminine, sweet girl.

Chrystom says - "MEH, ALRIGHT"

Hello Dolly (free scent shot) - Reminds me A LOT of Graham Cracker Crust. It's a sweet, caramely, bakery scent. If you like bakery and caramel, you will probably like this one

Chrystom says - "ANOTHER HORRID"

Apple Martini - Very similar to fizzy pop, but a little less fizz and tart apple mixed in.

Chrystom says - "A BIT OF AN APPLE WITH A LITTLE FIZZY IN IT"

Lilac - Have had before and loved. Smells like a beautiful lilac flower!

Chrystom says - "LIKE SMELLING THE FLOWER"

Get Me S'more - After sniffing this, I get a lot of notes. There's the chocolate, the marshmallow, and the graham cracker. Reminds me a lot of her Cheesecake scent. So, if you like this, you would probably like Cheesecake.

Chrystom says - "IF YOU DON'T KNOW BY NOW, I HATE BAKERY"

Trix Are For Kids - Yummy, yummy, yummy! Reminds me a little of Victoria's Fruit Loops scent, but with more orange and toned down a little. Still has the sweet notes, along with the cereal notes. So, if you like Fruit Loops, try it. If you don't like Fruit Loops, try it! It's very fruity, that's for sure.

Chrystom says - "Like Fruit Loops with a heavy orange"

Kokamo Cove - Something in this makes my brain only be able to smell Fresh Laundry. It's still good, and I'm hoping once it's melted, all of the fruity notes will come out. But, maybe the fruit/floral combination of whatever is in this, smells like Victoria's Fresh Laundry scent. It's not bad at all because I love that scent, just not what my nose was expecting.

Chrystom says - "REMINDS ME OF A HOTEL"

Night Blooming Jasmine - Have had this one before, too. What a wonderful sweet floral scent.

Chrystom says - "PLEASURABLE"

White Ginger - I know Ashtyn and others have compared this one to a Calgon perfume, and I agree. It's a very nice, sweet, perfumey, floral.

Chrystom says - "STRONG ON THE PEAR"

Warm Apple Fritters - I love Victoria's apple scents, I love her Cinnamon Donut scent. Therefore, I LOVE THIS SCENT. It's soooo good! A great mix of macintosh apple, with a hint of sweet cinnamon/bready note. Yum!!

Chystom says - "THE APPLE STANDS OUT"

Wildberry Scone - If you've smelled Victoria's Jelly Donut scent and liked it, you will love this. The only difference I can pick out is the berry. Instead of sweet, creamy strawberry, Wildberry Scone is a more tart berry.

Chrystom says - "NOT PLEASURABLE"

Life's a Beach - Fizzy Pop + Fruit = AMAZING!!! That's all I have to say about this one.

Chrystom says - "ALMOST LIKE A FRUITY FIZZY POP"

Raspberry Guava - Very nice strong, fruity scent. I get mostly sweet raspberry.

Chrystom says - "HIGH RASPBERRY SCENT"

Raspberry Violet - The raspberry and violet mix perfectly. On cold throw, they blend equally together. Neither over powers the other. I can't wait to melt this one to see if it's just a good warm.

Chrystom says - "GRAPE INSTEAD OF RASPBERRY, BUT I DO SMELL THE VIOLET"

Love Shack - I thought I loved Love Spell, but no I LOVE Love Shack. On cold throw, it's a great mix of sweet, pink sugar and sweet, musky love spell. When melting, it blends sooooo nice together and almost smells like a sweet perfumey fruit punch. Soooo good!!

Chrystom says - "FRUITY AND NICE"


So, now that you've read about all the wonderful scents I ordered in April, go check out http://www.candlesbyvictoria.com/ ---- You won't be sorry!!!

Friday, April 6, 2012

CBV Round Robin 7 Review

Every few months the wonderful ladies (and gentlemen) of the CBV Pouring Pot message board participate in round robins, swapping scent shots and random other goodies with each other. One person will generously volunteer to start the box (filling it with as many scent shots as they can), and the box goes around to different people. Each person gets a chance to smell all the scent shots in the box, take what they want, and then exchange them with an equal number in return. This is a great way to try scents that you maybe have never tried before, and also share scent shots with other people that you may not be too fond of, but it could become someone else's favorite.

So, this is what I swapped some of my scent shots for.

P.S. I Love You - Exact dupe of BBW P.S. I Love You, but BETTER! When I worked for BBW for about a year, I HATED this scent. Something about it in perfume and lotion form did not sit well with me. But, Victoria's version is great! It's a wonderful mix of the florals, but in a sweet, not overpowering way. I get a lot of rose, amber, and citrus. I think the amber scent in it tones down some of the floral notes. If you're not a floral person, don't be afraid to try this scent, it's good!

Cherry Vanilla - The name says it all. This ones strong on the cherry and light on the vanilla (at least on cold throw). It might change when it is melted.

Buttermint Candies - Yep, smells like the buttermint candies you eat around the holidays. 50/50 blend of butter and mint.

Oatmeal Milk and Honey - LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this one. It is a perfect scent for a baby's room or a bathroom! Smells exactly like a clean, fresh, lotion.

Million Dollar Baby - Smells like pineapple cake to me. I can't wait to melt this one.

Sunshine - Another favorite that I got! The scent description says it's a blend of apricot and sunflower. One of my favorite body splash fragrance from BBW is Apricot Vanilla. They of course, do not make this anymore, but this reminds me of it. It's the same kind of sweet apricot scent, with a hint of floral. What a great spring/summer scent. I already ordered another scent shot in this!

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Catching up.... Crockpot Sundays

Ah, I've really been slacking when it comes to blogging my "Crockpot Sunday" recipes, and blogging in general - I'M SORRY! So, with the few minutes I have tonight, I'll update everyone.

We have had a few repeat recipes because we love them so much including; buffalo chicken sandwiches and cream cheese chicken chilli.

New recipes we've tried are:

Chicken Tortilla Soup

 Ingredients-

1 pound frozen chicken (shred with two forks when finished cooking)
1 (15 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, mashed
1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups water
1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 (10 ounce) package frozen corn, or fresh if in season
Crumbled tortilla chips
Cooking Instructions -
1. Place chicken, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, green chiles, onion, and garlic into the crockpot
2. Pour in water and chicken broth, season with cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and bay leaf
3. Stir in corn
4. Cover, and cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours
5. Shred chicken with two forks
6. Sprinkle with crumbled tortilla chips and serve

Baked Potato Soup
Ingredients -
  • Potatoes (washed by not peeled), cut into small cubes
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 10 cloved of garlic, minced (I usually just use a hand cheese grater to mince it)
  • 64 ounces of chicken broth/stock
  • 16 ounces softened cream cheese
  • 1 tablespoon seasoned salt
  • Optional toppings - bacon, green onions, shredded cheese
Cooking Instructions -

1. Add potatoes, onion, garlic, seasoning, and chicken broth to crockpot
2. Cook on high for 6 hours or low for 10 hours
3. Remove half the soup and put into a blender with half cream cheese - blend until mixed well
4. Place other half of cream cheese into crockpot, let melt
5. Add soup/cream cheese mixture back into crockpot
6. Mix everything together well
7. Serve with variety of toppings; Enjoy!