{ Archive for February, 2009 }

dirt candles: soy sensational!

dirtcandles1 dirt candles: soy sensational!One thing that’s sure to make a winter night feel cosy to me is lighting up a candle, and now all I use are soy or beeswax candles — they don’t have any nasty things like carcinogens.

Dirt Candles are my latest indulgence. Sure, at first glance the name sounds strange, but dirt is, as the website says, “where nature begins and ends,” and Dirt Candles are “formulated from beginning to end with natural things.”

The 10-oz candles made of GMO-free organic soy wax and natural essential oils, are lead- and soot-free and have a natural cotton wick. They come in 25 fun scents like Take It Easy (Bulgarian & English lavenders, Mexican and Madagascar vanillas) and Beach Bum (seawater, kelp, fresh rain, white sand), and the metal lids ensure those scents remain fresh.

I like them because the ones I tried out (including Fountain of Youth, After Hours and Open Arms) are subtle and not overpowering, a big plus in my books. I like some scent, but being knocked over by any too-powerful perfume is not only irritating to me, it’s also potentially harmful since it can trigger a painful migraine. There’s also an unscented version, cheekily called Skinny Dip.

The paper packaging is 100% post-consumer recycled (and recyclable) and printed with soy inks and the labels are made from corn. The recycled-metal lids and glass are all recyclable, but hold onto the glass containers — after you finish burning the candle and wash them out, they make nice tumblers for drinking!

An added bonus: a portion of the money made from each candle sold goes to charity; for a list of the charities funded click here.

Available at: www.dirtcandles.com, as well as Pistachio stores in Toronto (check out www.epistachio.com)

Price: approx. $31.50

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Do you have a product you’d like to recommend for this blog? Email me at naturalchic@styleathome.com!

bestow boutique

picture 15 bestow boutiqueDid you ever read Jane magazine? I went through a period in the late ‘90s when I was positively obsessed with both the magazine and the forums on their website. Anyway, I loved the brand and their very real approach to love, life and everything in between. Sadly, the magazine and website are no more but I`ve just learned that the former founding art director of the magazine has just launched bestowboutique.com, a fab new online shop where you`ll find chic stuff for the house along with unique gift ideas. My fave item? This Jan Constantine wool felt pillow. You don`t need to wait for Valentine`s Day to give or get one of these. Decorating your home with amour is stylish any time of year!

Available at: bestowboutique.com
Price: $120

williams-sonoma: the great cupcake pan

picture 13 williams sonoma: the great cupcake panOne of the great things about Facebook, besides reconnecting with long lost friends (and maybe a few you`d rather have remained estranged from), is being able to check out your friends` latest and greatest pictures. Thanks to Facebook, I`m able to stay in touch with friends in a way that we just didn`t seem to have time for before the rise of social networking. I can get instant updates on their travel plans, see every angle of their newborn`s smile and check out what they were up to on the weekend. It`s great fun and while nothing replaces the necessity of face-to-face contact over drinks, it`s a pretty decent alternative when you`re busy. Anyhow … all of this is by way of explanation for how I stumbled upon this fab new find! Whilst snooping, I mean … casually perusing a friend`s photos of a baby shower she`d recently attended, I spied the loveliest, cupcake-shaped cake adorning the buffet table. Love at first sight! Where, oh where did she get the pan to make this, I wondered? But I wondered only momentarily because, in perfect Facebook fashion, everything I needed to know was right there in the comments section with a list of retailers for curious gals like myself. So I hunted it down at Williams-Sonoma and now I`m sharing it with you. Drum roll, please! I give you … The Great Cupcake Pan!

Available at: Williams-Sonoma
Price: $36

toronto restaurant serves up water in reusable bottles

bloorst toronto restaurant serves up water in reusable bottles

Toronto’s Bloor Street Diner deserves a gold medal in my books for being the first restaurant to join the innovative Green on Tap program: it will offer customers filtered water in the usual bottled water options (still or sparkling), the customers will receive their water in reusable 1L bottles, and $1 of the $4 cost will to toward the cost of transforming the Brick Works in Toronto’s Don Valley.

It’s estimated the initiative at this one restaurant alone will save some 12,000 bottles each year — absolutely mindboggling! Just think what would happen if more and more restaurants took part!

For more info, check out www.greenontap.ca. or click here for info on the Bloor Street Diner.

Do you have a product you’d like to recommend for this blog? Email me at naturalchic@styleathome.com!

miele limited edition chocolate laundry set

miele choc laundry v11 miele limited edition chocolate laundry set

I fancy myself quite the chocolate connoisseur. Yup, I love chocolate in all its forms: dark or creamy; in a cake or in a drink; with nuts or with caramel; hot, warm, or cold. Well, my obsession has taken on a completely different meaning now that I’ve seen Miele’s Limited Edition Chocolate Laundry set.

This washer-and-dryer set is available in a rich chocolately shade and comes with all the fixings you could ask for. Its Energy Star rating comes from the washer’s ability to determine exact load-sizes, thus adjusting the water accordingly, while the dryer uses moisture sensors rather than timers to stop the load when it’s dry. Want even more eco-options? High water temperature in the washer allow for powerful cleaning results, meaning you can cut back on your high chlorine bleach. Plus, every machine is tested to last for 10,000 cycles and includes a 10-year warranty.

Don’t think you can resist this chocolate-y goodness? Be quick — these sets are only available while quantities last!

Price: starting from $3,495 a pair

Available at: check miele.ca for retailers

Have a neat gadget or tech accessory you`d like me to feature? Shoot me an e-mail at
techstyle@styleathome.com

diptyque’s limited edition candle, pink roses

picture 10 diptyques limited edition candle, pink rosesFill your home with the fragrant aroma of roses. This limited edition Pink Roses candle from Diptyque is the perfect way to help you wish away winter. Yes, I`m still on that kick. I love winter around Christmastime but come January 1, I have no use for it. (It`s minus 21 degrees Celsius today … ) So I`m constantly sniffing out ways to make this tough season more tolerable. I don`t know about you but I like to nest in the winter months and making my home comfy and cozy is one way to survive when the weather outside is frightful. Luxurious bedding, fresh flowers, oversized mugs filled with steaming drinks, good books; these are the simple things that make me smile at home. Top it all off with a lovely fragrance filling the air and there`s a recipe for pure calm. So try a scented candle, one that evokes happy memories and dreams of spring. It`s just around the corner. We`re going to make it after all!

diptyque’s limited edition candle, Pink Roses, $68
Available at the Diptyque store in San Francisco and other stores such as Aedes, Barneys, Bergdorf Goodman & Saks in the  United-States, Noor in Toronto and Ogilvy in Montreal.

john masters organics body wash

johnmasters john masters organics body washI am in love! It happened this morning in the shower, when I tried a sample of John Masters Blood Orange & Vanilla Body Wash that I’d recently received.

What a way to start a Monday morning in February! The delicious scent transported me to a tropical land, far far away from frigid Toronto!

Plus, the body wash, like all John Masters products, is certified organic, and is also paraben- petroleum- and sulfate-free, has no artificial colours or frgrances, and isn’t tested on animals.

Sheer heaven!

Available at: www.johnmasters.ca

Price: $25.40

more chroma lab clocks

clocks2 more chroma lab clocks

By popular demand, here’s a detail of one of those gorgeous Chroma Lab clocks from my post below… Check out all the designs at Chroma Lab’s website! 

9.5″ Pink Block Clock (acrylic paint and semigloss polyurethane topcoat on birch)

Price: $75 US

Available at: Chroma Lab at Supermarket

simple human sensor soap pump

simple human border simple human sensor soap pumpEvery now and then, you find a product that you never knew you needed. And then suddenly, there it is, in all its glory and you wonder how you ever lived without it. That`s sort of how I feel about Simple Human`s sensor soap pump. We`ve all used sensor pumps in public washrooms but it never occurred to me how brilliant it would be to have one at home. Well, now that I`ve used this, I realize just how great it is. Particularly in the kitchen, this soap pump makes a lot of sense. Let`s say you`re working with raw meat and you need to wash up frequently. With this pump, you don`t need to touch a soap dispenser with your contaminated hands. Just place your hand underneath the sensor and voila! Just enough soap comes out for you to wash up. So simple, so smart.

Available at: Home Outfitters or visit simplehuman.com for more information
Price: $49.99

west elm pin-tuck duvet cover

pintuck border west elm pin tuck duvet coverIt`s a wet, cold, dreary day in Toronto today. It`s the perfect day to dive under the blankets with a good book and to keep a steaming hot cup of tea bedside. West Elm`s organic cotton pin-tuck duvet cover is the perfect attire for a cozy bed. I love this look; the multiple pintucks add such a pretty detail to this simple cotton duvet cover and add a burst of visual interest for the entire room. The cotton is certified organic, grown and processed without the use of herbicides or pesticides. This 230-thread count combed cotton cover will add instant style to any bedroom. Available in three gorgeous neutrals (sea spray, clay and natural), they`re easy to add to your existing decor. And priced from $79USD to $119USD, you might just want to pick up more than one!

Available at: West Elm
Price: $79USD to $119USD

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