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Favorite Scented Candles 2019 Edit

best scented candles

 

Hey peeps. In this post, I’m sharing with you some of my fave candles this year. I didn’t get a chance to collect a lot this time because I’ve been busy traveling and haven’t had the chance to shop around that much. Besides, I still have some of last year’s candles to burn as well. Speaking of last year, check out my fave scented candles 2018 edit HERE.

 

This year is still not over and I might still find some interesting scented waxes to obsess with. I will update you soon if there’s any more fragrant candle worth looking into, or you could keep checking my posts here or on my Instagram to see if there’s any new candle featured in the background. But right now, these are my current faves.

 

Ikea Candles

 

There are two scented block candles that I love from Ikea, the Lugga and the Blomdroft which are both beautifully crafted candles with very affordable price points. At 5.99 USD, you’d get three very pretty large gradient candles that will surely last a long time. I haven’t burned them all completely and I don’t think I’ll ever will because they’re so pretty and they make for such a nice home decor. Their scents are not the strongest and though they tend to fill the room with their unique fragrance during unboxing, their scents do tend to dissipate easily. However, for their price and size, they’re definitely worth the purchase.

 

ikea lugga candles

 

Lugga – has a light powdery scent, love the gradient lavender, white, and pink pastel shades.

 

ikea blomdroft candles

 

Blomdroft – has a nice light floral scent.

 

ikea skurur candle holder

 

I also love the Glasig Candle Dish and Skurar Candle Holder from Ikea, both of which are very inexpensive and very versatile to use.

 

tocca capri

 

Tocca Capri – Out of all the Tocca scented candles, this is my most favorite because it has a Mediterranean citrus scent that could fill the room pretty easily. The scent lasts a long time even when not lighted and its size is huge. This puts you in a perfect sunset and vine vibe.

 

 

nest linen candle

 

Nest Linen – This candle is the perfect definition of clean. It smells like fresh clean laundry that is not overbearing and definitely not boring as well. I like to keep this candle very close to my clothes just because it’s fresh. I also love to give this to my friends as a gift.

 

Overose Candles

 

This is my first time trying Overose candles and I have been so curious about them for a long time now. They’ve been popping all over Instagram and I was really intrigued by their unique names and pretty packaging. I mean, who wouldn’t love a pink scented wax inside a sleek matte-pink glass? I know I do. 🙂 I find these candles to be very long-lasting and definitely worth the money. They fill my room with scents even if I don’t light them.

 

overose nympholia candle review

 

Nympholia – what an interesting name for a fruity scented candle. It smells like an orange blossom with a hint of honey and something more. It’s sweet, calming, different, nostalgic (like those sweets you so desire to eat during your childhood), and definitely interesting.

 

Anamorphine – this is the scent that I probably had a hard time discerning at first. It’s as complicated and mysterious as its enigmatic name. I know I love it because it’s just so unique. I definitely think it’s somewhat floral with a hint of something earthy and woodsy, perhaps blended with lavender as well because of its relaxing notes. There is also a bit of freshness to it and something very very mysterious. This is the type of scent that definitely defines me. 🙂

 

diptyque tuberose candle

 

Diptyque Tubereuse – As a Diptyque fan, I still can’t get over the scent of Baies, which will forever be one of my most favorite scented candles of all time. But for this coming Fall, I have my eyes set on this Tubereuse/Tuberose Diptyque candle to burn completely. I love its strong tuberose scent that fills my home.  It’s somewhat strong but not heady. It’s got a calming effect on me and its scent lingers everywhere around the house.

 

As with most candles, the first time you light it, don’t forget to let the candle burn long enough to melt the entire surface on top of the candle for two to three hours. Also, regularly trim the wick to 5-6 cm long to avoid smoke and get a longer burn. Never ever leave a burning candle unattended, and keep it out of children’s reach.

 

These comprise my favorite scented candles this year (so far). I hope to discover more scented candles somewhere during one of my rambles.

 

Have you had any of these candles before? What candles have you been loving lately?

 

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How to Grow New Plants from Cuttings

Miracle-Gro FastRoot Dry Powder Rooting Hormone review

 

Hello everyone! Summer is just around the corner and I’ve been busy working on my garden. I have a few plants that have grown a lot and they needed to be trimmed or split into two so that I could transfer the other half into the patchy areas of my yard. One of these plants is my ever-growing vintage peony. I like it a lot and it leaves a nice fragrance around my yard. I’m not sure if I could find this plant again nowadays. It’s really the old-world type, and I suspected that this plant was planted probably by the first owners of my house, back in the 19forgottens. Since I like it a lot, I decided to grow more of this plant by using a rooting hormone.

 

Miracle-Gro FastRoot Dry Powder Rooting Hormone

 

I use rooting hormones quite often especially when I want to multiply my Roses. The process is fast, easy, and it works with a lot of plants, especially Peonies. The growing process might be slow which does require a bit of patience, but it’s a rewarding one.

 

So, for this review, I’ll show you how I grow new plants from cuttings using the Miracle-Gro FastRoot Dry Powder Rooting Hormone ($5.99).

 

See the steps below.

 

Materials:

 

rooting hormone review

 

*seedling pots are from Lowes, but are also available via Amazon. Make sure it’s filled with gardening soil or potting mix. I like this ONE.

*gloves are from Digz, similar style HERE. I’ve been using it for a long time and it’s still holding up pretty well.

*rooting hormone powder, I like the ones from Miracle-Gro.

*cutting/s from the new growth of a plant, choose the one with a branch. You may or may not cut the leaves.

 

Step 1. Cut a small part of a plant’s new growth (Cutting). Make sure that it has a tiny branch/branches.

 

Step 2. Prepare biodegradable seedling pots by filling it up with gardening soil or potting mix.

 

Step 3. Pour a bit of dry powder rooting hormone into a piece of paper (which I formed into a box/container).

micracle gro fast root rooting hormone review

 

Step 4. Dip the bottom of the cutting into the rooting powder and tap off excess.

Miracle-Gro FastRoot Dry Powder Rooting Hormone

Step 5. Stick the bottom of the cutting into the seedling pot filled with soil, and carefully press the soil around it, to make it more stable.

plant-cloning

 

Step 6. Spray the cutting inside the pot with water. This waters the cutting softly and prevents it from moving around the soil, as opposed to normal watering using a hose.

 

Step 7. Place the pot in a sunny area and keep it moist.

 

The cutting will develop new growth in approximately 3-4 weeks. Take a look at this peony cutting I did 3.5 weeks ago. Once the cutting has grown, you may transfer it into a larger pot.

 

Miracle-Gro FastRoot Dry Powder Rooting Hormone plant cloning

 

I tend to have a high success rate by using the Miracle-Gro FastRoot Rooting Hormone, but just to be on the sure side, it’s better to have a few cuttings to grow rather than one when doing this plant-cloning technique.

 

Happy gardening everybody!

 

The Miracle-Gro FastRoot Dry Powder Rooting Hormone is currently available at Amazon or at any gardening and home improvement stores.

 

 

Caring For Roses In The Summer

This year, my roses struggled a lot. Not only did they take a long time to regrow, they’re also suffering from extreme humidity this Summer. As you all know, roses are finicky plants, and they really need such special care and the right environment to grow their best. Unfortunately, this Summer has been too much for them mainly because of several weather fluctuations plus some pests and diseases that are quite a challenge to control.

 

Bayer All-In-One Rose & Flower Care Concentrate

 

The Summer is probably the time when I had to pay close attention to my roses, simply because a lot of issues happen or can happen to them at this season. Usually, when it’s too humid, my roses tend to get inflicted with fungi, which causes them to have black spots on their leaves, and if not treated, the leaves will fall off and the roses will not produce any blooms, then they could potentially die. That is probably the worst thing that could happen to anyone who has a rose in their yard, and the one that I fear the most for my own. Aside from the dreaded black spots, there are some problems I usually encounter for my roses every Summer, one of them are those pesky Rose Cane Borers. You don’t usually see them much until you’ll notice the roses’ stems/canes having holes in the center. These insects are so mysterious and so annoying; they bore holes right through the roses’ fresh cut canes/stems and they go all the way down and they can so hard to get rid of. Also, the Summer is the season of the Aphids. Tons and tons of Aphids stick to my roses’ new growth and new buds, and if left untreated, they’ll suck the life out of every new rosebud and hinder their growth, resulting to abnormally shaped or deformed rose blooms.

 

rose fungi treatment

 

Bayer All-In-One Rose & Flower Care Concentrate reviewBy observing all these problems, I’ve somehow managed to learn with time and prepare by having some products that have helped me alleviate my roses’ problems. I learned that by using a combination of treatments/products and treating my roses rigorously have improved their appearance and overall health a lot. So, the first thing that I always have in my shed is a bottle or two of Bayer All-In-One Rose & Flower Care Concentrate, the liquid one. Aside from being an all-around rose treatment, for me, this is a very good prophylaxis that needs to be used during the Spring to protect the roses from any potential diseases. I just use 2 oz. or 4 tbsp. of it mixed with 1 qt. water and that treats one plant. With this liquid treatment, I never noticed any rose burns or any untoward reactions from my roses, and they seemed to proliferate well after just a few days of having the treatment. This formula resolves the yellowing or black spotting of the leaves and restores them back to their lush green healthy foliage. I love that this treatment not just treats, prevents or cures the roses of certain diseases, it also rids them of some bugs, and it also has an added fertilizer for nourishment.

Garden Safe Neem Oil Extract review

 

The Rose Cane Borers problem may usually be relieved by the Bayer Rose & Flower Care, but most of the time, they can be so hard to get rid of once they’ve tunneled through the rose canes. The best way to combat this issue is to cut off the stem/canes until you don’t see the holes, but try not to cut a lot or cut all the way down. Then seal the cut stem or cane with Elmer’s Glue or any wood glue, that should take care of the problem. From then on, whenever you cut a rose cane, always make sure to seal the top with a glue so that the borers won’t be able to dig in. The last thing that really makes my roses miserable are the horrible Aphids. They seem to multiply so fast and congregate on new growths, especially on the upper part of the rose where there are new soft leaves and new buds. I’ve tried spraying soapy water on them or pluck them one by one which was so tedious until I finally gave up and bought the Garden Safe Neem Oil Extract. I don’t know why, but most Neem Oil Sprays are too weak to get rid of several Aphids, so I had to buy this Need Oil Concentrate since I definitely needed a stronger formula on my roses. I love this product a lot, and it’s available on Amazon. You just have to put 2 tbsp. or 1 oz. per gallon of water and then spray it on the plants, including the underside of the leaves. For me, I usually put more, like one tablespoon for a 32-oz. spray bottle. I usually use a heavy-duty sprayer that I also purchased at Amazon since I got tired of using some flimsy sprays in the past that don’t hold much and their nozzles break easily. I’ve had this sprayer for almost 3 years now and it’s still holding up so well. I usually spray my rose bushes with this Neem Oil Extract every other day until the Aphids disappeared. They could still come back, so I just keep spraying with this as preventive measures. Since then, my roses’ blooms looked more balanced, perfect in size, and the blooms open well with no damage or broken petals. Also, this Neem Oil concentrate is very economical, you don’t need to use a lot, one bottle can last forever. It’s very aromatic and can also repel mosquitoes. The scent is between lemon citronella, and that’s probably why the Aphids left because the scent is too much for them. I just hope they won’t transfer to my Azaleas, OMG!

 

Bayer All-In-One Rose & Flower Care Concentrate liquid

 

My roses have been through a lot this year, but they’re now recovering and are looking lush and healthy again, thanks to these amazing products. Will be reaching for them again next year.

 

Do you own a rose plant? If so, how do you keep them healthy?

 

 

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